Musical 'The Great Comet' Korean Premiere on March 21

by Choi Donghyeon

Published 19 Feb.2021 10:07(KST)

Musical 'The Great Comet' Korean Premiere on March 21

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] The musical The Great Comet will meet Korean audiences for the first time on March 21 at the Universal Art Center.

The Great Comet is a sung-through musical created by Dave Malloy, a composer and playwright currently gaining attention in the American theater scene, based on parts of Leo Tolstoy's masterpiece novel War and Peace. He collaborated with director Rachel Chavkin to bring this production to life.

It premiered to critical acclaim off-Broadway in 2012 and made its Broadway debut at the Imperial Theatre in 2016. The Broadway production, featuring world-renowned pop-opera singer Josh Groban as the lead, received 12 Tony Award nominations in 2017, including Best Musical. It won four Drama Desk Awards and two Outer Critics Circle Awards, earning both critical acclaim and widespread audience popularity.

Originally scheduled to open in Korea in September last year, the performance was canceled due to the spread of COVID-19. The Korean premiere will feature most of the previously announced lead cast members, including Hong Kwang-ho, K.Will, Jung Eun-ji, Lee Hae-na, Lee Chung-joo, Park Kang-hyun, and Go Eun-sung, with little change in the lineup.

For the Korean premiere, director Kim Dong-yeon, known for drawing depth and dynamism through various directing techniques, will participate. The 27 musical numbers, spanning diverse genres such as pop, electronic, classical, rock, and hip-hop, will be overseen by music director Kim Moon-jung. Notably, many actors, including the lead role of Pierre, will perform live instrumental music themselves, offering audiences a unique experience. Set designer Oh Pil-young’s stage design transforms the entire interior of the Universal Art Center into an innovative and multidimensional space, providing a powerful immersive experience for the audience.