photo by Aston (the master of Musical Winter sonata japan blog)
The popular South Korean TV drama Fuyu no Sonata (Winter Sonata) is now being performed as a stage musical in Sapporo with actors, actresses and backstage staff all from South Korea. The show is due to be performed again during this year's Sapporo Snow Festival in February, and then every year until 2010 as part of the popular annual event showcasing snow and ice sculptures.
The performance is in Korean with Japanese subtitles.
The TV melodrama starring Bae Young Joon and Choi Ji Woo ignited a craze for South Korean drama in Japan after the series was broadcast here. The drama also drew attention for its extensive use of beautiful snowy landscapes.
Im Tae Kyung, a well-known South Korean opera singer, and Go Young Bin, who performed at Shiki Theater Company in Japan for two years, will alternate playing the lead role that Bae -- known as Yonsama to his legions of Japanese fans -- made famous in the televised version.
Im, who had been to Hokkaido for skiing in the past, said it immediately made sense to him when he heard the musical was to be staged in Sapporo. I think the town's snowy image sits well with Winter Sonata, he said.
Speaking of the great popularity of the television series in Japan, Im said he wanted to use the pressure of stepping into such a famous role to produce his best-ever performance. I want to put on the perfect musical, unhindered by the popularity of the original, Go concurred.
The musical was created at the suggestion of Yun Seok Ho, who directed the television drama. Yun told the Sapporo Junior Chamber Inc. about his pet idea of making the drama into a musical after he was asked by the chamber to make a film with Sapporo as the backdrop. The chamber made the request as part of a drive to attract film and stage productions to Sapporo.
Yun and the chamber agreed to put on the musical during the Sapporo Snow Festival for the%2
