'Flying Apsara' from China wins top prize at Daegu musicals fest

The 18th Daegu International Musical Festival concluded its 15-day run Monday with the DIMF Awards at the Daegu Opera House.

The grand prize went to the Chinese musical "Flying Apsara," which uniquely and immersively combines traditional Chinese art and modern musical elements.

The Jury Award went to "Missing Link," co-produced by DIMF and the Daegu Municipal Theatre Company. Based on the infamous scientific fraud known as the "Piltdown Man" hoax, the musical creatively dramatizes the universal message of truth and lies.

The Creative Musical Award, given to one of the six creative musicals that premiered during the festival with DIMF's support, went to "Sisyphus." The musical, which connects Albert Camus' "The Stranger" persuasively, was praised for delivering the theme of "life must go on despite everything." Choo Jung-hwa, the director of "Sisyphus," also won the Ah-Sung Creator Award.

The Best Actor Award was jointly awarded to Gao Tenhe, who played the traveler in "Flying Apsara,” and Cho Hwan-ji, who played John Hurst in "Missing Link.”

The Best Actress Award went to Kim Chae-i, who played the heroine Becky Hurst in "Missing Link."

The grand prize at the DIMF College Student Musical Festival, a competition and a dream stage for musical theater students, went to Soonchunhyang University's "42nd Street," which demonstrated excellent skills with lively tap dancing and perfect group choreography.

The DIMF Awards will be broadcast on KBS1 on July 22 at 11:35 PM and air in 114 countries through KBS World in August.

Hosted by the city of Daegu, the annual event was established in 2006 to promote the city as a musical hub of Asia.