Come Together: Gwangju Performance Project

Come Together is a series introducing associations and clubs that expats can get involved in. This week, Expat Living spoke to Travis Major of Gwangju Performance Project

●Name of Club: Gwangju Performance Project

●Locations: Gwangju, South Jeolla Province

●Number of members: Around 20, but it depends on the project.

●Started: Early 2011.

Who is it for? Theater lovers in Gwangju, or just anyone who is looking to take part in a unique, creative, collaborative project. Our audience is about 70/30 Koreans/expats. Our membership is mostly just expats. Some of us have professional theater experience, some have mostly amateur experience and then most have no experience at all. The only thing that we require is a willingness to take risks and make a solid time commitment.

What goes on? We produce full-length plays and donate our proceeds to charity. We’ve done two shows so far, with audiences of 200 and 300 people, respectively. So far it’s been full-length absurdist comedies, but we are more than open to trying other types of shows. We’ve considered everything from cabaret to sketch comedy to musicals to poetry readings. If we can get people out to enjoy something, we will do it!

Plans for the future? More! We are going to keep doing plays as long as this fantastic momentum continues. Every time we finish a show we are contacted by dozens of new people with new talents that want to take part. The expat community is so loyal and well-connected, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish with the right amount of stubbornness. We are currently accepting scripts and new ideas for our spring project.

How to join: We can be contacted directly at our website: www.gwangjutheatre.com

Are there any membership fees? Nope, it’s totally free to join. Also, no experience is necessary. In addition to actors, we are looking to fill a variety of supporting positions. We can always use more painters, set designers, light and sound technicians and dozens of other kinds of people, including management. As most expats are on temporary contracts, we will probably always be recruiting. One of the great things about theater is that anyone can take part, regardless of their skill set! We are also considering taking submissions for scripts. It would be very exciting to present an evening of locally-written one-act plays.

What is the highlight of the year? The highlight of last year was probably when we held auditions for our second show, and a ton of people came out. That was proof that our company was actually going somewhere, and had opportunity to expand in the future. People are looking for an alternative to the weekend bar scene, and we are more than happy to provide that alternative.