Stage as a Canvas: Director Rachel Chavkin Brings 'Rempicka' to Korea
Creatrip Team
a month ago
Rachel Chavkin, the Tony-winning director of Hadestown, brings her new musical Rempicka to Seoul after its Broadway run. The show dramatizes the life and art of Polish painter Tamara de Lempicka against the chaotic backdrop of 1920s–30s Europe, exploring wounds and desires hidden behind her perfected portraits. Chavkin frames the stage and audience as a single “canvas,” opening the piece with an elderly narrator and emphasizing strong visual design, deep emotional truth, and an intimate love story. She highlights the female perspective—Lempicka faces time, desire, and personal limits rather than a single villain—and argues that art must resist and give voice in troubled times. Rempicka earned multiple 2024 Tony nominations and Drama League recognition; the Korean cast includes Kim Sun-young, Park Hye-na, and Jung Sun-ah as Lempicka, with Cha Ji-yeon, Rina, and Son Seung-yeon as her muse Rafael. Performances run March 21–June 21 at COEX Artium in Seoul. (COEX Artium: a large performance venue in Seoul)
