Critically Acclaimed Pan-sori Theater Opening Performance 'Simcheong' Continues to Make Headlines with Praise from Critics and Media
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Lee ByungJae(2025-08-26 07:10:06)
- 2025 Jeonju World Sound Festival Closing (Top)
The 2025 Jeonju World Sound Festival (hereinafter referred to as the Sound Festival) came to a close on the 17th, leaving a lot of buzz behind.
This year's Sound Festival received high praise for its success in attracting attention to the opening performance of the Pansori Theater 'Shim Cheong,' the expansion of outreach through the '2025 Genre Market Hub Support Project,' and the enthusiastic response from the audience that filled the playground of the Korean Sound Culture Hall. It was evaluated as having captured both artistic quality and the expansiveness and popularity of the Sound Festival. The achievements of this year's Sound Festival will be reviewed over three installments: top, middle, and bottom.
Discussing the Radical and Impactful New 'Shim Cheong'
The response to the opening performance of the Sound Festival, the Pansori Theater 'Shim Cheong,' unveiled on the 13th, was fervent. This production, a result of a two-year collaboration between the Sound Festival and the National Theater, attracted a lot of attention from the beginning with its splendid production team and cast.
Directed by opera director Yona Kim, based in Germany, the star-studded cast included Kim Junsu and Yoo Tae-pyeong from the National Changgeuk Company playing the roles of Shim Bong-sa, and Kim Yul-hee, selected for a double casting, playing the role of Shim Cheong.
This 'Shim Cheong' was revealed to be a completely new interpretation, not the traditional 'filial daughter Shim Cheong' we knew, which sparked extraordinary interest. The response after the opening exceeded expectations.
Music critic Jang Il-beom praised the camera work of Benjamin Lutke, capturing the vivid portrayal of characters like Shim Cheong and Shim Bong-sa on the sophisticated stage, enhancing the audience's immersion in the performance.
Furthermore, the placement of classical instrumentalists akin to the Bayreuth Festival at the Wagner Opera Festival enriched the musicality, and the powerful ensemble scene where all 150 cast members sang in unison, rather than inserting harmonies typical of Western-style choral singing, showcased a remarkable charm of Changgeuk, including Chinese opera and Japanese Kabuki, not seen elsewhere.
Moreover, it was noted that Shim Cheong, shedding the traditional Korean attire for modern clothing, presented a version of Cheong that could exist in our contemporary era, not confined to the classics.
Jang Il-beom, the music critic, commented, "For those who think, 'Changgeuk should be sung in traditional hanbok attire,' this work could have been a remarkable breakthrough," and he remarked, "The final scene depicted Shim Cheong, freed from her father Shim Bong-sa, emerging from the Moakdang lobby and disappearing into the streets. It portrayed a forward-looking Shim Cheong who leaves behind her father, who once dominated her entire world, and the surrounding violence, moving towards a new world."
Following the opening performance of 'Shim Cheong,' various reviews and audience feedback poured in.
The published a review titled "Jeonju World Sound Festival's 'Shim Cheong,' a Reinterpretation Overturning the Image of the Filial Daughter Shim Cheong, a Requiem Dedicated to the Many Deceased Daughters."
Journalist Jang Ji-young of the stated, "First and foremost, 'Shim Cheong' is an unprecedented large-scale production involving around 150 cast members, including members of the National Changgeuk Company, dancers, child actors, and a choir," and she noted, "It captivated attention for its formal aspects, such as frequent ensemble singing (unlike Western music choral singing, there are no harmonies) and the use of live cameras that capture actors' emotions and movements in real-time and project them onto screens. However, what is more striking is the reinterpretation that completely shatters the Confucian values and fairy-tale fantasy embedded in the traditional Shim Cheong."
Moreover, not only broadcasting companies but also numerous media outlets (over 50) have been offering various interpretations of 'Shim Cheong,' continuing the buzz.
People's attention is now turning towards Seoul. Following the Jeonju opening performance, 'Shim Cheong' will be staged at the National Theater Haewolimdal from September 3 to 6, with all previous performances sold out, showing that the enthusiasm remains high. The premium opening performance of 'Shim Cheong' marks the beginning of the history of the Jeonju World Sound Festival.
