Jeongdong Theater to stream ‘Red Cliff’ online

Jeongdong Theater in central Seoul is to stream its signature show “Red Cliff” through YouTube on Wednesday.

The show, originally slated to run from Feb. 14 to Sunday, has been on hold to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 since Feb. 24 after the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism ordered all national theaters and art troupes to cancel their performances.

 

Instead, for patrons who had been eagerly awaiting the show, Jeongdong Theater will stream the show live Wednesday at 8 p.m. through its YouTube channel.

“Red Cliff,” which premiered in 2017, is based on “Jeokbyeokga” (“The Song of the Red Cliffs”), one of the five surviving stories of pansori, a traditional Korean genre of performative music. A combination of pansori and choreography, the show has evolved into a signature show format for the theater.

“It is unfortunate that we have to cancel the show, though we had prepared it for a long time,” said Kim Hee-chul, head of the theater. “For audiences who have waited for the reopening of the show, we will stream it online.”

Meanwhile, the local performing arts scene has nearly faced a complete shutdown due to the virus crisis. Though big-sized musicals had been continuing with their schedules, after two ensemble cast members of “The Phantom of the Opera” were recently confirmed with the virus infection other musical productions have been canceling their shows, too.

By Im Eun-byel (silverstar@heraldcorp.com)