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New musical brings energetic K-pop world to Broadway – The Hollywood Reporter

There are some familiar storylines in a new musical that opens on Broadway – a singer and her relationship with the mentor who guided her; a novice is trying to find his place; Young women chasing their dreams.

But they never heard like this.

The global feeling is that Korean pop music is becoming the focus in KOREAN POPopens Sunday at the Circle in the Square Theater.

Featuring an almost entirely Asian-American and Asian-American cast, many of whom will make their Broadway debuts, the behind-the-scenes musical about several K-pop performers when They are preparing for their debut concert in New York City. The conflict broke out and was resolved, ending with a concert-like performance.

Playwright Jason Kim has been on Broadway for a long time, first coming up with a K-pop play about a decade ago and choreographing an off-stage version in 2017, with music and lyrics by Helen Park. and Max Vernon composed. .

Born in South Korea, Kim came to the United States as a child, settling with his family in the Midwest. K-pop has been a permanent part of his life, as have Korean dramas. He also loves musical theater, especially shows like “A Chorus Line” and “Dreamgirls,” where the story follows what is happening behind the scenes.

He said, “I love backstage shows. “Is there a war going on between people? Do they all love each other? These are the questions I asked myself.”

In the show’s first theatrical version, Kim is introducing the K-pop machine to an American audience largely unfamiliar with it; Five years later, it has been rewritten for a world where K-pop artists like BTS and Blackpink are the mainstays of the pop charts, amid a host of other entertainment activities. Korean movies and TV shows like “Squid Games” are becoming more popular in the US as the Good.

Back then, America “didn’t really know what K-pop was, and so there were a lot of explanations that I had to make. … This time, I didn’t really have to apologize for anything or explain anything, and just let the story go,” said Kim, a writer in television and film. .

He called the timing “really coincidental.”

“It’s really poignant and moving to see the world change in this way.”

Robert Ji-Song Ku, an associate professor of Asian American studies at Binghamton University, said a Broadway musical that showcases the sound of K-pop is a sign that “America is finally catching up to what’s happening right now. happening around the world”. .

K-pop has grown in popularity globally over the past 20 years, he said, although other attempts to break into the US market over the years have not achieved similar success until recently.

“If there is a scope for popularity, then K-pop is designed to be as popular as possible,” he said.

Kim said the casting process for the show took about two years, with calls open in both the US and South Korea. Some of the people on the show are from K-pop backgrounds, including Luna, a former f(x) member who plays the central character of MwE, a singer who has spent years realizing her dream own and came to the crossroads. .

It’s a step forward for the representation of Asian Americans on Broadway, which is very important to Kim.

“That talent exists and they just need a platform,” he said. “So it was really important for me to bring these Asians on stage and see them not playing the typical roles they play, but playing rock stars, pop stars, dancing. dance and act according to their faces and it’s breathtaking. “

For his part, Park calls the experience an honor.

“K-pop and Broadway have both been my passions for a long time; K-pop is like comfort food to me, and Broadway is my seemingly unattainable dream, as there aren’t many Asian composers, let alone Asian female composers that I can see and dream of it,” she said in an email. . “Being able to bring something like home to me, to the stage of my dreams, Broadway, is like the most magical gift I will treasure for the rest of my life.”

Kim said it was important that the show included some Korean interspersed with English, both in the songs and the lines.

It’s “a way to get really real with the experiences of K-pop idols and the Korean people,” Kim said, noting that “when I talk to my mother, I always switch back and forth, depending on what we say. talking about.”

“The design of the program’s bilingual nature was very intentional.”

Obviously, a musical built around K-pop already has a potential audience. But Kim says there’s something for everyone, even those who’ve never heard K-pop tunes.

“Hopefully if we do our job right, you guys are watching a fun musical with lots of good K-pop songs,” he said. “But really what you get out of the theater is a universal story.”




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