K-Musical Triumphs at the Tonys; Korean Stars Return to the Stage
Creatrip Team
3 months ago
Maybe Happy Ending, a homegrown K-musical, won six Tony Awards at the 78th Tony Awards in New York, including Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Score, marking the first time a Korean original musical claimed major Tony categories. Created by composer Will Aronsen and writer Park Chun-hyu (the “WillHyoo” team) and first staged in Daehangno in 2016, the show also earned top U.S. theater honors earlier in the year, raising calls for stronger infrastructure and government support to help Korean theater aim for global audiences. Meanwhile, major Korean film and TV stars returned to the stage: Park Jung-min in the stage adaptation of Life of Pi, Hwang Jung-min in the musical Mrs. Doubtfire, and actresses Lee Young-ae and Lee Hye-young both played Hedda Gabler in different productions. Korean ballet also shone internationally — teenage dancer Park Yoon-jae won the prestigious Prix de Lausanne, Jeon Min-chul took the Grand Prix at Youth America Grand Prix and joined the Mariinsky Ballet, and several young Korean ballerinas won top prizes at the Orléans UNESCO international dance competition. (Daehangno: Seoul’s small-theater district dedicated to plays and musicals; Prix de Lausanne: major international ballet competition)
