'Nanta' producer explains how he brought life to hit nonverbal show

Producer Song Seung-whan gives a lecture during the Corea Image Communication Institution's (CICI) Korea CQ Forum at the Moroccan ambassador's official residence in Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of CICI

By Dong Sun-hwa

It was a pile of debt that prompted producer Song Seung-whan to bring his theatrical comedy show "Nanta" to the international market.

"More than two decades ago, I hardly made any profit by producing a show in Korea," Song, the CEO and artistic director of PMC Production, said during the Corea Image Communication Institution's (CICI) Korea CQ Forum that took place at the Moroccan ambassador's official residence in Seoul, Tuesday. The goal of the forum is to bring together opinion leaders and promote cultural exchanges worldwide.

"So I decided to bring my show to other countries, where more people were willing to watch paid performances," Song added.

The producer explained that he had to make a nonverbal performance with no language barrier to appeal to a global audience.

"I also had to incorporate various elements of Korean culture, so that it looked distinctive from other Western shows. So I fused the sounds from the kitchen that I loved ― such as the sound of my mother dicing different ingredients on a chopping board ― and the rhythms of 'samul nori,' which is kind of percussion-based music originated from traditional Korea music. This is how I brought life to 'Nanta' in 1997."

"Nanta" made its international debut at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1999 and had its Broadway premiere five years later. To date, the show, which follows three cooks preparing a wedding banquet, has been staged in 58 countries, accumulating an audience of 14 million.

"Nanta" will hit the stage again in Korea and the U.S. later this year, after more than two years on hiatus triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Song, who directed the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games, also revealed how he attempted to showcase the unique traits of Korean culture during the ceremonies.

"I thought 'harmony' was the defining characteristic of our traditional culture, whereas 'incorporation' best describes our contemporary culture," he said. "So I tried to visualize these two features in the ceremonies, while highlighting the two other crucial themes: passion and peace."

The Korea CQ Forum was joined by Moroccan Ambassador to Korea Chafik Rachadi, French Ambassador Philippe Lefort, U.K. Ambassador Colin Crooks, Swiss Ambassador Dagmar Schmidt, and Greece Ambassador Ekaterini Loupas, among others.

Participants of the Corea Image Communication Institution's (CICI) Korea CQ Forum pose at the Moroccan ambassador's official residence in Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of CICI

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