Experimental experience of walking around during a play

Experimental experience of walking around during a play. January. 23, 2025 07:41. by Min Kim kimmin@donga.com.
A series of plays that have been well-received and popular globally will premiere in South Korea this year. “Sleep No More” gives you a chance to know what it would feel like to live in the movie world of the late U.S. filmmaker David Lynch, who passed away last Thursday (local time). To dive deep into the nature and identity of humans, you should try this masterpiece, “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” Last but not least, “Prima Facie,” a one-woman play that gave the main character the Best Actress Tony Award in 2023, awaits South Korean audiences as well.

“Sleep No More,” scheduled to premiere this August, is an immersive theatrical play that allows you to walk through multiple rooms. Shakespeare's “Macbeth” serves as the backbone of the narrative, enhanced by mysterious and shocking scenes that remind you of Alfred Hitchcock's “Rebecca” and witch hunts.

Only gestures and dance moves tell the story speechlessly. Instead of the story unfolding sequentially on a static stage, actors repeat the same one-hour performance three times in total, each in separate spaces. Audience members wearing masks follow characters of their choice, allowing each to interpret the same play in many various ways.

This play premiered in London in 2003 and has been running for over 10 years on Broadway in New York since 2011. The upcoming premiere in Seoul is based on the New York version. A six-floor building provided a backdrop for the performance in New York, but the South Korean version will unfold at a performance venue remodeled from Daehan Cinema in Jung-gu, Seoul, which closed last year. “The old theater building is under construction to turn into a hotel-themed space,” Production company Ms. Jackson said. “The premiere would be localized perfectly in the South Korean context.

“The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” which premiered in Edinburgh last year, has been highly commended for modernizing the stunning beauty of a classic. It is scheduled to meet local audiences for the first time at TOM Hall 2 in Daehangno, Jongno-gu, central Seoul. This one-man show, freshly written by Scottish playwright Gary McNair, offers a novel perspective on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by telling the story through the eyes of Gabriel Utterson, Jekyll's close friend. Directed by Lee Joon-woo and produced by Gleam Company, the play stars Choi Jeong-won, Ko Hoon-jeong, Baek Seong-gwang, and Kang Ki-doong. Choi will perform in a play for the first time in six years since 2019.

“Prima Facie,” which will be performed this August at Chungmu Arts Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, unfolds with only one woman completely in charge of the performance. Tessa, a successful lawyer specialized in sex crime cases, ends up being a victim of sexual assault and tells two years of her life story. With one actor playing multiple roles, including Tessa, the performance delivers its powerful message, effectively merging the feature of drama in a courtroom with the scars of personal trauma."

As Tessa transitions from lawyer to victim, the play critically shows her shifting perspectives on the legal system, the contradictions that she finds in there, and the challenges faced by victims. It premiered in Sydney, Australia in 2019, and subsequently played in West End, London in 2022, and New York in 2023. Incredibly, it garnered Laurence Olivier Awards for new play and best actress.