Met Opera tenor Kim makes Korean debut
By Lee Hyo-won
“Kim has a fine tenor voice and he seems to be on a mission to make everyone realize it,” International Record Review said of Kim Woo-kyung, the first Asian tenor to play a leading role at the New York Metropolitan Opera.
Kim’s next mission after conquering the Met? Making a dangerous deal with the devil in his first Korean opera.
His local debut with the Korea National Opera’s (KNO) “Faust” Wednesday comes after the vocalist wowed local fans in a duo recital with Hong Hei-kyung, the first Asian soprano to sing Violetta in the Met's "La Traviata."
“The original play by Goethe that inspired the opera is an extremely difficult piece. I bought the thick book and tried reading it, only to fall asleep,” Kim said, laughing, during a recent press conference in Seoul.
“Faust sells his soul in return for eternal youth, and it appears on the surface that youth is the most valuable asset. But youth signifies hope. This story depicts hopeless people leading meaningless lives. There would be challenges in expressing such diverse states of the human condition, but as much as this marks my Korean debut, I will try my best,” he said on playing the lead role of Faust.
The French opera follows Goethe’s approach to the legend of Faust. The devil, Mephistopheles, appears before the elderly and desperate Dr. Faust, who agrees to sell his soul in exchange for worldly pleasures. Having regained his youth, Faust enjoys affairs with beautiful women, but tragedy ensues with the death of the innocent maiden Marguerite, and his existential cravings remain unsatisfied in this world of illusion.
“We have been preparing for this work over the past three years, and we are finally staging it with the best cast, including tenor Kim Woo-kyung and bass Samuel Ramey,” said Lee So-young, artistic director of the KNO. “Faust” marks the second in a series of four works inspired by the Goethe piece, following last year’s “Mefistofele” by Boito.
“I’ve been singing in operas for more than 40 years, and I’ve played the roles of devils like Mephistopheles for most of it,” said Ramey. “If someone asks what my favorite role was, I would have to say it’s Mephistopheles. He’s a devil but he also seduces, which really lures the audience.” The American singer has been praised by Time Magazine as “a basso of extraordinary dramatic and lyric gifts.”
Sopranos Alexia Voulgaridou and Moon Soo-jin will share the role of Marguerite. “The role of Marguerite intrigues me because it portrays the entirety of a woman’s life, from her youth to her death, in a span of just two to three hours. As a European, I’ve performed mostly in Europe and I’m very happy to perform for Asian viewers,” said Voulgaridou, a Greek native.
Tenor Baek Yoon-ki will alternate the role of Faust with Kim while bass Park Jun-hyok has been cast alongside Ramey as Mephistopheles. Ottavio Mario will conduct the Korean Symphony Orchestra.
“Faust” is on Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Seoul Arts Center. Tickets cost from 10,000 to 150,000 won. Call (02) 586-5282 for more information.