Artists Combine Buddhism With Dance
By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter
The Kim Myung-sook Nulhui Dance Company is presenting a performance that works a traditional Buddhist ceremony called ``Heonmudarae'' into a highly creative dance.
The ``Heonmudarae,'' which literally translates as ``a dance for praying to a religious entity and serving tea,'' is a dance form that brings out the sublimity of Korean cultural and religious tradition.
``There are various types of Buddhist ritual dance which are mostly very simple. We studied the rituals and found `Heonmudarae,' not unlike the praise on Thanksgiving Day for Christians,'' Kim told The Korea Times.
The religious dance accentuates a Buddhist ritual called ``Yukbeobgongyang.''
``Yukbeobgongyang'' is a ritual that was first performed during the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 936). According to traditional Buddhist ritual, one must serve six different offerings, namely flowers, tea, fruit, rice, incense and lanterns, to the Buddha. Dance is considered a way of thanking and showing respect to the Buddha for his teachings and also a way of praying and confessing one's faults. Kim managed to bring her specialty, Korean traditional dance, to the ancient rituals.
The idea for the performance started with choreographer Kim and gayageum (12-string Korean zither) master Hwang Byung-ki. The two artists arranged the event with the help of other renowned cultural figures, including veteran actress Park Jung-ja and soprano Yoon In-suk. With the delicate movements of Kim, the traditional music of Hwang, a recital of Buddhist doctrine by Park and finally the touching songs of Yoon, the ancient ritual will come to life and offer guests a memorable experience.
``The music will all be live, performed by professional musicians. We will use ``Yeongsanhuisang,'' a Buddhist work. We modernized the piece by rearranging it, and dividing it into different sections. The musicians will all use traditional instruments including the daegeum (a large Korean traditional bamboo flute), gayageum and danso (a small Korean traditional bamboo flute),'' Kim added.
Kim mentioned that she thought it was important for Koreans, and also non-Koreans, to appreciate Korean traditions, and her job was to combine dance and tradition together.
``It's very hard to make a dance based on a certain ritual or religion. In terms of religion, we have to be more careful. Our aim is to share Korean traditional dance and show it to the world. By adding religious elements like Buddhism, it will create a more interesting performance,'' she said.
The performance is 70 minutes long and there will be a special tea ceremony for visitors after the show.
The ``Heonmudarae'' will be held at the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts Sept. 19. Tickets cost from 30,000 won to 50,000 won. For more information, visit www.nulhuidance.co.kr or call (02) 3277-2550.