New national theater director begins run with 'Macbeth'

Kim Yun-cheol, the new artistic director of the National Theater Company of Korea, is hoping to make a splash with his production of "Macbeth,'' which opens this week at Seoul's Myeongdong Theater. / Yonhap

By Kwon Mee-yoo

Kim Yun-cheol, the new artistic director of the National Theater Company of Korea (NTCK), will open his term with Shakespeare’s tragedy “Macbeth.”

He hopes to make a statement with the new production, which will be staged from Saturday at Seoul’s Myeongdong Theater, considering the controversy that followed his appointment last month.

A group of thespians have been voicing their displeasure over the culture ministry’s decision to pick Kim as the head of NTCK. The national drama company has been traditionally helmed by artists, but Kim has spent most of the last three decades as a critic.

Kim, a Seoul National University graduate, does have experience as an actor and director, and happens to be the founder of the Seoul-based drama company Maekto.

He pursued a career as a critic and drama theorist after a vocal cord injury prevented him from acting regularly.

He earned his master’s degree in theater and cinematic arts at Seoul Chung-Ang University and a Ph.D. in theater and cinematic arts from Brigham Young University in the United States.

Kim was involved in designing the education structure of the Korea National University of Arts (K-Arts), which opened in 1993, and served as the dean of the university’s school of drama.

Upon his arrival to the NTCK, Kim immediately faced objections from thespians who labeled him as non-artist who had been “away from the scene.”

Jeong Jai-ho, secretary-general of the National Theater Association of Korea (NTAK), a vocal opponent of Kim, claims he holds no personal grudge against the new NTCK director.

He blamed the conflict over Kim’s appointment on the culture ministry, which he claims failed to communicate effectively with thespians as it prolonged the search for the new director, although the term of Sohn Jin-chaek, Kim’s predecessor, had expired in November.

“We lost a great critic and the National Archives of the Arts was deprived of its new head in just seven months. Kim has a year left before retirement at the K-Arts drama school. The ministry appointing Kim felt like a deception and we think it would be best if Kim steps down voluntarily,” Jeong said.

He added that the NTAK and other thespian associations will hold one-man protests in front of the NTCK headquarters next week, before holding a news major conference in Seoul’s theater district of Daehangno on March 15.

“We organized an emergency committee for this issue and will continue to try to communicate with the NTCK and Kim,” he said.

However, Kim’s support among thespians seems to be equally strong, especially among the more experimental artists who have relied on critics such as Kim to gain exposure and acceptance.

Park Jung-gi, a critic and playwright, welcomed Kim’s arrival as the NTCK’s artistic director.

“The idea of a critic not being capable of helming the national theater’s head is outdated. Kim has been in the theater world since his undergraduate years and founded the drama troupe Maekto, where he acted and directed. He translated many English plays into Korean and studied drama theory,” Park said.

“He is now one of the most renowned critics in the world. I think Kim is the proper person to lead national theater company. If anything, he is overqualified for the position.”