By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter
The much-anticipated musical ``Hero,'' which deals with the life of Korean independence activist Ahn Jung-geun, has unveiled its lineup two months before its premiere.
The musical was designed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ahn's assassination of Japan's first Prime Minister Ito Hirobumi on a railway platform in Harbin, Manchuria, on Oct. 26, 1909.
``I have tried to portray the national hero as a human being in this musical. I hope this musical will contribute to the commemoration of his achievement in line with the centennial anniversary,'' said Yun Ho-jin, the show's director, at a showcase for the musical on Monday evening.
The epic is produced by Acom International and directed by Yun, who is renowned for ``The Last Empress'' and head of the company. It casts Ryu Jung-han, Jung Sung-hwa, Kim Sun-young and Sonya.
``It is my first home-grown musical since I have been in foreign-licensed musicals. But this musical is better prepared than any others,'' said Ryu.
Ryu, who will take the role of Ahn, has starred in ``Jekyll and Hyde,'' ``Thrill Me,'' ``Man of La Mancha'' and ``The Phantom of the Opera.''
Comedian-turned-actor Jung will alternate playing the role of Ahn with Ryu. Jung has been highly acclaimed for his excellent performances in ``Radio Star,'' ``Man of La Mancha'' and ``All Shook Up.''
``As a Korean actor, I am very honored to act the part of a national hero,'' said Jung.
Yun said that it was not easy to adapt the story of Ahn into a musical due to the heavy subject matter.
``So we've added dramatic elements through some fictional characters such as Ling Ling, a Chinese woman who falls in love with Ahn, and Seol-hee, who was the last court lady,'' he said.
Yun emphasized that the musical focuses on the universality of Ahn's way of thinking ― Pan-Asianism ― and the ideological conflict between Ahn and Ito.
The director explained that Ahn strongly believed in his vision of Pan-Asianism, in which China, Korea and Japan would have worked in unison to counter and fight off the ``White Peril" ― European countries engaged in colonialism ― and restore peace to East Asia.
To target the overseas market, the musical will depict Ahn as an international figure who not only fought for Korea's independence but also for peace in Asia.
The show will shed light on the human side and inner struggles of Ito ― seen as an enemy of Korea ― but who was actually a historically influential figure from the Japanese point of view.
``The musical targets the international audience, especially the Chinese and Japanese. So we will describe every character from the perspective of each nationality. That's why the musical has diverse characters, such as the Chinese woman Ling Ling, a fictional figure, and Japanese detective Wada to show various spectrums,'' Yun said.
At the showcase, musical actors and actresses briefly sang musical numbers and showed the stage costumes and a music video.
The musical is expected to draw much attention as it features a remarkable combination of digital and analogue technology in its reproduction of the scene in which Ahn assassinates Ito.
Production began in 2004, and it has taken three years to complete. The creative team took a field tour of Vladivostok, Ryojun and Dalian in March to look at the sites where Ahn was held.
The cost to make the epic has reached some 5 billion won. It will present the major incidents and various episodes with dramatic additions from the period between January 1909 and March 1910.
The musical will be on stage from Oct. 26 to Dec. 31 at LG Arts Center. Tickets cost from 40,000 to 110,000 won.