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Western drama was first staged in Korea in 1908 at the newly
opened Won-gaksa Theater in Seoul. The advent of "new drama," as it
was known, was perhaps inevitable at a time when the powerful influence of
Western culture and civilization entered Korea
The pioneer of the "new drama" movement was Yi
In-jik,
who had returned from studying in Japan. It was Yi who made the Won-gaksa a
success. He not only wrote the plays for Korea's first proper theater, but
managed, supervised and directed them. He was followed in 1911 by Im Song-gu
whose works were greeted with standing support from the beginning. Im, however,
turned to less-serious drama later, catering to popular romantic sentiments in
what became known as "new-school plays." In 1912, another modernist,
Yi Ki-se, appeared with two more troupes, and the world of theater became
crowded. By then, a considerable number of professional actors, actresses, stage
directors and playwrights were available to put the "new drama" on a
solid footing.
A more serious group, calling itself the Drama Arts Society,
was organized in 1921, mostly by students who had returned from Japan. A
significant contribution to this Western-inspired movement was the formation of
the T'owolhoe (Earth-Moon Society) in 1923 by a group of students then
studying in Japan. Such figures as Pak Sung-hui
and Kim P'albong, who later became an eminent writer, came home during school
vacations to play major roles in "realistic" plays.
Though its members were amateurs, the T'owolhoe
surpassed any other professional group with its high artistic standards and the
introduction of "realistic" themes. The society's repertoire consisted
mostly of original works written by its own members, but it also included
translations and adaptations of world masterpieces. Popular approval was so
great that in its 10-year existence it presented a total of 180 performances/a
record-breaking feat for that time. Its influence has been felt ever since in
Korean dramatic circles.
Besides the T'owolhoe, a professional group called
Ch'wisongjwa turned out a substantial number of good actors and actresses
throughout the 1920s.
The most significant landmark in the next decade of
development was the formation of the Society for the Study of Dramatic Arts in
1931. Organized by the elite of Korea's theatrical and literary circles, this
society presented numerous world masterpieces as well as original works by its
members. Unfortunately, the Japanese Governor-General forced it to disband soon
after its establishment because of its nationalistic tendencies, but its
individual members carried on by organizing another body, the Drama Study
Troupe. Under this name, it lasted until the end of the decade when the Japanese
again forced its dissolution. The 1930s brought a period of socialistic thought
that was reflected in the theatrical world by the Modern Theater, New
Construction, and several other groups, all sympathetic to the leftist cause.
The early 1940s was a period of concentrated Pacific War
efforts, and the theater came to a standstill under intensified Japanese
pressure.
The tragic post-liberation division of the land and the
ensuing political cleavage brought chaos to Korean dramatic circles. Numerous
groups, each with its own political color, sprouted one after another and folded
as quickly as they came. With the establishment of the Republic of Korea
Government in 1948 and the laying down of a definite political ideology,
confusion ended, and in 1950, a National Theater was formed.
Following the Korean War, the New Drama Society, an organ of
the National Theater, revived interest chiefly in Shakespeare and Yu Ch'i-jin,
one of the foremost Korean dramatists. The boom of motion pictures and TV,
however, deprived the stage of both talent and an audience, and decline set in.
Nevertheless, several groups courageously carried on, creating
what is known as the "small theater" movement. They emphasized
artistic presentations as opposed to the professional endeavors that sought
large theaters and better financial returns for the producer. The more
serious-minded supporters of Korean theater organized the Korean National Center
of International Theater Institute in 1958, and engaged in international
cultural exchanges. A number of other theater groups that where active and
serious in purpose included the Minjung (Populace), Yoin (Woman), Shilhom
(Experimental), Chayu (Freedom), Kagyo (Bridge) and Kwangjang
(Plaza) theater groups.
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Information
provided by the Korean Embassy
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