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| Gustav hoists Shiho over his head at a 2017 event in Itaewon. / Courtesy of Robert Michael Evans |
By Jon Dunbar
Korea's own homegrown pro wrestling crew, Pro Wrestling Society (PWS), is returning to Seoul, finally, after more than two years away. But they're dead set on showing everybody that they haven't been in hibernation during the pandemic.
This Friday, the action will be at Rabbithole Arcade Pub, a basement venue in Haebangchon known mainly for drag and burlesque shows. It may seem like an odd place for PWS' "Pub Brawl" event, but Shiho, one of PWS' main wrestlers, says otherwise.
"Giving people new perceptions of pro wrestling as an art form is my biggest vision, not as a bloodthirsty sport, as many people think," he told The Korea Times. "People can laugh at it, but to me, pro wrestling is art. It is one of the most mixed art forms that has elements of theater, musical, combat sports and music. People feel catharsis with the mixture of action, music, storytelling and our passion. We express our pain, joy, sorrow, pleasure, all different kinds of emotions. This is my life and art, and I think it isn't so different from any of other art forms, like theater, music performance, burlesque or drag."
The first "Pub Brawl" was held in Itaewon in 2017, in collaboration with Starlight Productions. "That's when I saw the potential of bar-style pro wrestling in Itaewon collaborating with music, burlesque, drag and all kinds of different art forms. We had about 200 people in two days and the response was so positive."
Shiho grew up nearby in Huam-dong, but he relocated to Pyeongtaek more recently to be closer to his job. PWS has its gym down there, in a warehouse in a quiet corner of the city, an ideal place for U.S. soldiers and their families to show up for the monthly shows, the last one being March 27.
They've kept the monthly shows running as much as possible throughout the pandemic, careful to avoid the spread of COVID-19 infection but also driven to keep up the appearance that pro wrestling isn't resting.
"Show size has been small but the quality of the matches has been better than ever," he said. "During the pandemic, we couldn't have big shows with large crowds, so our interests naturally went to training our talents. If we can't show our product, then we can focus on improving our skills. We train our wrestlers every week. As a result of those two years of training, we have the best talents in Korea that can compete with the world."
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| Masked wrestlers prepare for an aerial move. / Courtesy of Park Min-seok |
PWS has been building up a stable or grouping of talented wrestlers, both from Korea and around the world, since before the pandemic. While some have had to leave, others came in, and the numbers have stayed roughly the same, according to Shiho. Before the pandemic, they were working with people around the world and inviting overseas wrestlers to Korea, including members of China's Middle Kingdom Wrestling, former WWE wrestler Zeda Zhang and Simon Miller of the U.K.'s Defiant Wrestling.
"I'm actually developing even more connections with overseas promoters, producers and journalist all over the world amid the pandemic. So when the pandemic is over, I believe we can always resume our collaborations with them. But for now, our goal is to raise our homegrown talents first and have quality shows with them."
Shiho pointed to PWS' current champion, Jo Kyung-ho, who has a fierce rivalry with Ha Da-on, who built up his pro wrestling experience in Japan.
He also highlighted the youngest members of PWS, including JD Lee (20), Im Hyeon-bin (19) and Choi Du-eok (25), who have undergone intensive training during the pandemic. "They have absorbed veterans' pro wrestling knowledge so fast and some of them have already surpassed the majority of pro wrestlers in Korea," Shiho said.
And keeping them on alert is Kim Mir, PWS' "bloodthirsty, weapon-wielding villain," Shiho said.
PWS also includes foreign members, including wrestler Duncan Solaire of the U.S., as well as commentators from the U.K. and Canada, a Canadian DJ and of course PWS' enigmatic director, Terrence McAvoy of the U.S.
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| Pro Wrestling Society member Duncan Solaire slaps hands. / Courtesy of Park Min-seok |
Shiho also mentioned that PWS provides classes for anybody, of all ages, genders and physical conditions, to learn how to be a pro wrestler. He said it takes a year or two to become fully trained for matches. "It's not an easy path, but in the last four years, we got about seven homegrown pro wrestlers," he said.
"My ultimate goal is the establishment of pro wrestling in Korea as one of the major entertainment forms that people can just casually enjoy in their daily life, like going to a movie theater ― and the task is still ongoing," Shiho said.
Back in 2019 when PWS last had shows in Seoul, Shiho said new fans were showing up all the time ― both hardcore fans and people who had never seen pro wrestling before.
"Pro wrestling has given me so much," he said. "It's my time to return what pro wrestling has given me to the world."
"Pub Brawl" will be at Rabbithole this Friday starting at 8 p.m. Tickets cost 10,000 won. A second show will be held on April 15 at Studio HBC.
Visit fb.com/societywrestling or email societywrestling@gmail.com for more information and to reserve tickets.
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