Mime Artist Yujin-gyu Archives 50 Years of Work in New Performance
Creatrip Team
a month ago
Yujin-gyu, a leading Korean mime artist, will present an archiving performance titled "If I Mask, That Becomes the Path" on July 4 at Seoul Theater 202 (part of Seoul Theater Center) as a special opening program of the 11th Neulpureun Theater Festival. The show documents his 50-plus-year career across four areas—performances and festivals, film, social engagement, and archival presentation—through interviews with longtime collaborators (including Kim So-yeon, Yoon Jong-yeon, Jang Kwon-ho, Byeon Yu-jeong and Im Geun-woo), video materials, and live pieces. Signature works such as "Hair," "Hanji" (traditional Korean paper), and "There/Not There" will be performed alongside improvised violin by Kang Hae-geun to illustrate his artistic evolution. Starting in theater in 1972, Yujin-gyu helped establish the body as an independent artistic language in Korean performance, contributed to the Chuncheon Mime Festival, expanded mime into film with light and body, and engaged in social-performance projects including Sewol ferry memorial pieces and civic demonstrations like "Right" (a Gwanghwamun protest work). Yujin-gyu says the program is not just a retrospective but an invitation for audiences to walk the continuing path he is making with his body-based art. The Neulpureun Festival will continue through August 2 with works by veteran theater artists.
