'The Last Empress' comes to Europe

By Yun Suh-young

“The Last Empress,” as part of the “SAC on Screen” project by Seoul Arts Center (SAC), was invited to the 9th Korean Movie Festival hosted by the Korean Cultural Center in Spain. The screening was held at the Cine Dore cinema in Madrid on Nov. 11 and 20. Around 200 attended the screening and many waited outside before the doors opened, according to the SAC.

The screening in Madrid this month was the first held in Europe by the SAC which began the project in 2013. Its first overseas screening was the ballet “Giselle” at the Korean Cultural Center in Los Angeles in 2015.

“The screening of The Last Empress in Spain as part of the SAC on Screen project was a meaningful first step in introducing Korea’s quality performance content in Europe,” said Ko Hak-chan, SAC president.

Following the screening, the Spanish audience gave feedback, praising the opportunity to learn about Korea’s history in relation to Japan as well as the production value, and requests for more screenings to carry Korea’s unique story.

The SAC on Screen project began as a public service to provide SAC’s performances in film to those who are marginalized from culture, notably in rural areas. Since 2013, the SAC has filmed 18 performances to be screened and has shown them in 65 locations across the country, including military bases, schools and small theaters. Around 140,000 people have viewed the performances through the SAC on Screen project.

SAC on Screen was also invited to Jakarta, Indonesia, twice — last year to screen opera “The Magic Flute” and contemporary dance “Vaporization” and this year to screen “The Last Empress” and ballet “La Bayadere.”