School of Drama Celebrates Its 30^th Anniversary with Plentiful Events

The School of Drama of K-Arts has prepared 6 plays to perform and 4 commemorative events to celebrate its 30^th anniversary. It is expected to round up the accomplishments of the school, the first national institute for higher education in drama in the country, at the same time, to forward to the future marked by innovation and creative emergence.

On 24 April at the Seoul Arts Center, “Handful Frankenstein,” starts out the events. The work is a repertoire, a product of the curriculum of the School of Drama which was a cooperative project involving professors and current and graduate students. The play is made up of actors’ and actresses’ movements only with no lines. In the tone combining horror and comedy, it talks about loneliness, indignation, and vengeance caused by the human’s infinite desire for creativity and discrimination resulting from disparity. Prof. Nam Geungho of the Department of Acting directed the work while the students played the roles. Well-known musical actor Choi Jaerim and actress Song Sang-eun made cameos.

“Biographies of Assassins 2024” written and directed by Prof. Park Sanghyeon of the Department of Playwriting comes on stage at the Experimental Stage in the School of Drama building from 2 to 4 May. Initiated by the encounter of Kim Koo and Lee Bong-chang, the activists who fought for the independence of Korea under Japanese rule, the work recalls the representative historical figures around the world throughout time who were revolutionists or terrorists to probe the essence and origin of terror.

From 30 May to 1 June at the Lee O Young Art Center on the Seokgwan campus, “Romeo et Juliette” will be presented. Shakespeare’s timeless classic will be adapted into the sci-fi genre in the hands of director Alain Timar from France and Prof. Choi Junho of the School of Drama. Set in Verona in the year 2100, it will amusingly explore the theme of love and relationship. Later in the year from 29 June to 21 July, it will also meet the audience at the Avignon Festival in France.

Following them, “Thirty” by Prof. Oh Manseok at Sungsoo Art Hall in the first week of September, “War Diary of Admiral Yi Sun-sin” by Prof. Park Geunhyung at the Experimental Stage in the School of Drama from November to December, and “Our Town” by Kim Miran will proceed.

The School of Drama Day will be joined by the faculty and current and graduate students of the School of Drama. On the day, the event will encourage friendship among attendees through various side events.

From 27 to 28 September, furthermore, the directors’ conference of Asia Pacific Bond of Theatre Schools (APB) will take place on the Seokgwan campus. Dean Kim Mihee of the School of Drama stated, “We, the School of Drama, which has led the innovation and advancement of Korea’s drama education, will share our educational exploits with many drama institutions in other Asian countries to promote a brighter future of drama.”

Lastly, from 2 to 3 November on the Seokgwan campus, the International Asia Theatre Studies Conference joined by scholars from 4 theatre schools in East Asia – K-Arts (South Korea), Shanghai Theatre Academy (China), Osaka University (Japan), and National Taiwan University of Arts (Taiwan) will take place.