Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
INTERVIEW 'Music is deep, plot is easy to follow'
Kathleen Kim, left, performs the role of Gretel during last year's opera production of “Hansel and Gretel” by Korea National Opera. Courtesy of Korea National Opera
By Anna J. Park
By Anna J. Park
The Korea National Opera (KNO) presents its year-end opera “Hansel and Gretel” this weekend. Starting Thursday evening at Seoul Arts Center's Opera Theater, the 19th century opera based on Grimm brothers' fairy-tale will provide a perfect night-out for the family, as the opera can be easily enjoyed by young audiences.
The three-act opera, composed by Engelbert Humperdinck, had its premiere on December 23, 1893, in Germany under the baton of Richard Strauss; and from the start, it was associated with a family entertainment to be enjoyed before Christmas.
As last December's production garnered enthusiastic responses from critics and audiences alike, the opera has recalled most of the singers and staff, including stage director Christian Pade, and Kathleen Kim, the prima donna of the production, playing the role of Gretel.
“This opera work is for everybody of all age ranges. The opera can easily be enjoyed without any burden by families together, especially for children audiences,” Kim said during an interview with The Korea Times, Monday.
“The opera's music score has wonderful orchestration, which draws in audiences with its beauty. While the music is deep, the plot and the scenario are easy to follow. There are also many great arias in this opera, and one of them is a prayer by Hansel and Gretel, after being lost in the forest. There is also a very popular scene in the cookie house of the witch,” she added.
Kim has been praised for her natural acting and youthful energy in playing Gretel, a 10-year-old girl.
“It's really fun to freely express myself by running and jumping on stage just like a teenage girl. To me, acting is not something difficult. It is a very natural process; I just focus on the lyrics of the song that I'm singing, and convey the most natural expressions from that situation,” she said.
Since her debut at the Metropolitan House of Opera in 2007, Soprano Kathleen Kim has performed nearly every season during the last decade. Courtesy of Kathleen Kim
The veteran coloratura soprano has been noted for her superb acting by music critics in her previous opera works on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House.
Kim is the fourth Korean to debut at the Metropolitan, following sopranos Hong Hei-kyung, Sumi Jo and Shin Young-ok. Making her debut in 2007, Kim has performed almost every season for the last decade. She was also the first Korean to join the Lyric Opera of Chicago's Ryan Center, after graduating from the Manhattan School of Music.
However, it's not that such doors opened to her immediately; she had to try again and again to make the opportunity her own.
“Sometimes I got discouraged, too. Sometimes I felt and wondered, asking myself 'would it ever work?' But I never thought about giving up. I was very certain that whatever my path was, it was about singing. I also practiced a lot. That was all I could do. So I focused on improving myself and getting auditions,” the soprano said.
“Now I look back, I think I was very confident; I was full of the courage of youth. It's not that I never doubted myself, but I just kept on trying. I wasn't aware of the possibility of failure, but I never stopped myself from giving it a try. I had such a strong willingness to challenge myself, and knocked on doors constantly.”
Besides her courage facing any challenge, her true love for singing is another secret to maintaining such a high-profile career.
“First of all, you need to love what you do; you need to do it with true love and joy. Because this path is not easy at all. It takes a lot of energy; it is lonely; and it's a long battle with oneself. That's why you need passion and your own individuality. Without those, it's very hard to be chosen, because there are so many other singers out there. You need to know your own color that's standing out,” she explained.
“Despite such suffering and pain, singing itself gives so much joy and happiness to me. I also get stressed while I am preparing for a show, but once I stand on stage, I am so happy to sing and happy to see audiences also become happy because of my singing. When I feel that they are truly enjoying my performance, that's when I feel rewarded. No words can express my bliss when I can express what I want to express with singing,” she stressed.
Kathleen Kim hopes to perform more Bel Canto opera works from now on. Courtesy of Kathleen Kim
After spending a successful decade with a full hectic schedule, Kim moved to Seoul in late 2015, and she now teaches at Hanyang University, while continuing her global performances.
“As I started my vocal careers at very high-profile theaters, I couldn't let my tension go for a single second. I was very focused and tense to bring out the perfect performance without any mistakes. Ever since I moved back to Korea, some 20 years after I left here when I was 16, I feel like I have begun to enjoy my personal life more,” the vocalist said.
“Except that my travel time has got a little longer when I get to perform in America, I enjoy living in Seoul. But every other possibility is open for me, as I still love performing on stage so much,”
Kim said now she hopes to perform more new roles in the near future.
“Now I wish to do more Bel Canto operas; opera works by Donizetti, Bellini, Rossini, and so on. As I am coloratura soprano, I mostly assumed the roles that are required to sing in high pitches; but now I hope to sing as a lyrical coloratura soprano. In November, I performed Donizzetti's 'Lucia di Lammermoor' at the Opera de Montreal, and I loved it so much. I love operas with drama and deeper stories.”
“I have so many roles and operas that I'd love to perform. Operas works like 'La Traviata,' 'La Fille du Regiment.' 'Romeo and Juliet,' 'L'Elisir d'Amore' 'La Sonnambula' … and many more!” she said with passion.