This Year's Musical Enthusiasts' Most Anticipated Original Premiere 'Frida'

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] This year, the musical that 'Myudeok' (musical + enthusiast) fans are most looking forward to as the best original premiere is 'Frida.'

Interpark announced on the 13th the results of a preference survey conducted among 1,884 musical audience members regarding 53 musicals scheduled to open this year. The survey was conducted online over five days from the 7th to the 11th, categorizing the works into original premieres, original revivals, licensed musicals, and visiting musicals, allowing respondents to select only one work per category. However, works whose lineups have not yet been officially announced by the production companies were excluded from the voting.

Among the 15 original premiere musicals opening this year, the most anticipated work was 'Frida,' opening on March 1 at the Sejong Center S Theater, which received 26.7% (493 votes), ranking first. 'Frida' is a world premiere original musical created by EMK Musical Company, writer Choo Jeong-hwa, and composer Heo Soo-hyun. It portrays the life of Mexican female painter Frida Kahlo in a frame narrative format. Among the original premieres, 23.6% (436 votes) responded that there was 'no work they wanted to see,' marking the second-highest response rate. The third place was 'Western Story' with 9.6% (177 votes), fourth was 'Diaghilev' with 7.6% (141 votes), and fifth was 'Let Me Fly' with 7.5% (139 votes).

In the vote for 25 original revival musicals, 'Excalibur' took first place with 42.7% (802 votes). 'Excalibur' will hold an encore performance at the Sejong Center Grand Theater starting on the 29th. Second place went to 'The Man Who Laughs' with 12.4% (232 votes), third to 'HOPE: The Unread Book and the Unread Life' with 4.3% (80 votes), fourth to 'Mio Fratello' with 3.9% (74 votes), and fifth to 'Sidereus' with 3.7% (69 votes).

Among 11 licensed musicals, the most anticipated was 'Death Note,' opening in April at the Chungmu Art Center Grand Theater, receiving 39.6% (738 votes). Following was 'Elisabeth,' celebrating its 10th anniversary in Korea this year, with 22% (410 votes) in second place. Third place was 'Next to Normal' with 9.9% (185 votes), and fourth was 'Lizzie' with 7% (131 votes).

In the visiting musical category, which has become even more precious after the COVID-19 pandemic, the response 'there is no work I want to see' received the highest votes at 33.8% (631 votes). Among the four visiting musicals scheduled this year, 'The Lion King' ranked first with 30.5% (570 votes). Returning to Korea after about three years since 2019, 'The Lion King' postponed its opening once due to special quarantine measures and will open on the 26th at the Opera Theater of the Seoul Arts Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Next, the 'Notre Dame de Paris French Original Encore' performance received 25.3% (473 votes), ranking second, and 'Cirque du Soleil Alegria,' opening in October, ranked third with 9.6% (180 votes).

When asked how many shows they plan to watch, 41% (770 votes) of respondents answered 3 to 5 shows, the highest response rate. Next, 15.4% (288 votes) said they would watch 16 or more shows, the second-largest group. Those planning to watch 6 to 8 shows accounted for 14.4% (270 votes). The percentage of audiences planning to watch six or more shows increased by 10 percentage points from 37.2% in the second half of last year to 47.2% this year.

Regarding multiple viewings, the work most desired for repeated viewing (two or more times) was 'Excalibur' with 20.1% (374 votes). Following were 'Elisabeth' with 16% (298 votes), 'Death Note' with 15.9% (297 votes), 'The Man Who Laughs' with 6.9% (129 votes), and 'Next to Normal' with 3.4% (64 votes). Among those planning multiple viewings, the most common number of repeat viewings for a single work was 4 to 5 times, at 25.5% (478 votes).

Lee Dong-hyun, head of Interpark's Performance Consulting Team, said, "Along with thorough COVID-19 quarantine compliance, a rich lineup of musical performances is prepared this year," adding, "We expect 2022, the Year of the Black Tiger, to be a year that brings comfort and energy to audiences."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.