Ahn Jung-geun musical to be staged in Harbin

An original Korean musical about independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun will greet audiences in the Chinese city of Harbin, the show’s producer said Thursday. Harbin is where the Korean man shot dead a prominent Japanese statesman more than 100 years ago to protest the then-imperialistic country’s colonization of Korea. 

“Hero” will be staged three times at the 1,600-seat Global Theatre of the Harbin International Convention Center on Feb. 7 and 8, Acom International said.

“The (Korean) cast and creative team have left for China today (Feb. 5),” it said through a press release. “We hope that the upcoming performances will serve as a chance to revisit the life of Ahn and the lofty ideals that he devoted his life to.”

Produced and directed by Acom chief Yun Ho-jin, the musical follows the life of Ahn (1879-1910) who sought to realize peace in East Asia by stopping neighboring Japan’s imperialistic aggression and militarism. Korea, along with some other Asian countries, was then a colony of Japan.

Ahn, who assassinated Hirobumi Ito on Oct. 26, 1909, at the Harbin Railway Station, is revered by Koreans as a national hero. Japan calls him a terrorist.

The show, which premiered in Seoul in 2009, has won both critical and public acclaim. It had six runs in Korea, with the seventh slated to open in April at Seoul’s Blue Square. In 2011, the show was taken to New York, where it had a total of 11 performances.

“From the very beginning, I wanted the show to be staged in Harbin,” Yun said late last year, upon announcing the Harbin performances.

Last year, Harbin opened a memorial hall for Ahn, which raised an uproar in Japan.

By Lee Sun-young (milaya@heraldcorp.com)