Often found at theaters and museums, Kwon Mee-yoo has covered a wide range of cultural fields from K-pop and dramas to theater and fine art for over a decade. Now as K-Culture Desk editor, she tries to connect Korean culture with global readers through fresh perspectives.
'L’art Reste' shines during New York reading as Korean musical theater eyes global stages
The cast and creative team of Korean musical "L’art Reste" pose after an English-language reading of the show in New York, Oct. 23. The Business of Broadway and the Korea Arts Management Service (KAMS) co-organized the reading as part of the "K-Musical Producers Workshop," aiming to foster connections between the U.S. and Korean musical theater markets. Courtesy of Carrington Spires
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Korean musical "L’art Reste" recently had a reading in New York, signaling the growing international presence of Korean musical theater.
The reading took place in New York on Oct. 23 as part of the second annual K-Musical Producers Workshop, which ran from Oct. 17 to 28. Co-organized by the Business of Broadway and the Korea Arts Management Service (KAMS), a Korean government agency under the culture ministry, the workshop aims to foster connections between the U.S. and Korean theatrical markets.
"L’art Reste" delves into the life of Kim Hyang-an (1916-2004), born Byeon Tong-rim, a woman who played a key role in shaping Korea's modern culture. The musical explores her life and relationships with two prominent figures of the era — her first husband, Yi Sang, a pioneer of modern Korean literature, and her second husband, Kim Whan-ki, who was a trailblazer of "dansaekhwa," or Korean monochrome painting. The musical also highlights Kim Hyang-an's own legacy as an artist and writer.
Premiered in Seoul in 2022, the musical enjoyed a successful second run earlier this year. The musical's title, a French term that translates into "the art remains" in English, symbolizes the enduring impact of art.
The English-language reading of "L’art Reste" featured a cast of Christine Heesun Hwang, Stella Kim, Paul Heesang Miller and Gen Parton Shin.
"We are very grateful for our growing partnership with KAMS and for this opportunity to support their work presenting a K-musical to the Broadway community,” said the co-founders of The Business of Broadway.
“While our teams were working together to rehearse and adapt 'L'art Reste' for a New York audience, we were simultaneously engaged in a two-week workshop with nine prolific producers from Korea where we learned from one another about the similarities and differences between the U.S. and Korean markets and envisioned what the ongoing artistic exchange between our countries might look like. It is a very exciting prospect that we cannot wait to watch (and hopefully support) come to life."
A scene from the Korean production of the musical "L’art Reste," which explores the life of Kim Hyang-an (1916-2004), born Byeon Tong-rim, a woman who played a key role in shaping Korea's modern culture as wife of Yi Sang and Kim Whan-ki. Courtesy of Hong Company
Journey to New York
The creative minds behind also shared their sentiment on presenting this culturally rich narrative to an international audience.
Producer Hong Seung-hee told The Korea Times that she approached the New York reading with a critical question: "Can a musical about a Korean artist resonate with international audiences?"
"Our creators and the Broadway production team worked together to translate the script into English with a focus on scansion," Hong said.
"Contrary to our worries, we were met with applause during key scenes and the story was described as 'beautiful' by the audience. It was a successful presentation opportunity that recognized the potential for extendibility of the musical 'L’art Reste' beyond Korea."
For writer Kim Han-sol, presenting "L’art Reste" in New York, a city that once hosted the lives and works of the characters Hyang-an and Hwan-ki, was especially moving.
She also put extra effort into translation as Yi's inventive yet bizarre poems quoted in their original form might not resonate well in another language.
"I rewrote the lyrics after interpreting the poem for English translation and I think it worked well. It was a great experience to see the international audience laughing and crying at the same parts during the reading as the Korean audience did and I felt that, even though the language was different, the power of the show was fully conveyed," Kim said.
The show's composers Moon Hye-sung and Chung Hye-ji spoke of their dreams being realized through this international venture.
"Like every musical composer, I've dreamed of going to Broadway since I was a kid, even though I thought, 'It's probably an impossible dream,' but the K-musical Roadshow gave me the opportunity to get closer to my dream," Moon said.
She quoted lines from "L’art Reste" to express her excitement in this new adventure.
"There's a line in the musical "L’art Reste" that goes '(I would go) anywhere where there is a new adventure!' and 'If you keep dreaming, one day it will become a reality.' Just like these lines, we will use this experience as a springboard to continue to dream and strive to make our dreams a reality by not being afraid of any new adventure."
Composer Chung said the task of adapting the lyrics was challenging due to the linguistic differences between English and Korean, but the effort was worthwhile, resulting in a performance that remained true to the original melody and intent.
"Listening to our music in English lyrics really made me feel that I was in New York. In addition, there are parts of the script that are set in New York, I thought it was even more poignant," Chung said.
The reading and the workshop are part of a broader Korean government initiative to promote K-musicals abroad . The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is promoting the genre targeting key markets such as the U.K., the U.S. and Japan for its overseas expansion.
The KAMS noted that the program aims to create a stable production and distribution environment for Korean musicals by promoting domestic and international investment throughout the entire process from planning and development to distribution.