Performances in Dialects: Special Yet Familiar Languages

Generally, actors use standard language onstage. In some cases, dialects are used. Nevertheless, they tend to remain supplementary or serve to describe a character’s background as they might sound unfamiliar. However, getting to know about local dialects through stage productions is enlightening. You will see how a specific word is called in a particular region and why. As such, Molmoi Theater Festival holds great significance.
The theater festival begins by exploring the Jeolla-do dialect. Theater Company Stage and Me is proud to present Mista Romaaance, a hilarious yet touching romance between a woman from Seoul and a macho man from Jeolla-do. It shows a coldhearted man from the countryside recently diagnosed with a terminal illness become a warmhearted man from the city to win a girl’s heart. The second production is Creative Collective Bear’s Eopsiyo. It is about understanding and reconciliation as it follows Hyomin, a high school student who drifted to North Korea because of an accident, along with Korean–Japanese Jeong Yeong and North Korean soldier Jang Euncheol. Catch this rare opportunity to listen to North Korean dialects.

Have You Ever Heard of the Gyeonggi-do Dialect?

Park Jung Sun’s Sarangbang Theater is proud to present Moon Jar Named Bulmaegi. It is a calm portrayal of how Ojeong, who became crippled during the Korean War, makes pottery and understands the importance of vitality after returning to Gamagol Village with his father’s cremated ashes. This theatrical production uses the Chungcheongnam-do dialect, particularly from Asan and Yesan, between the West Coast and the inland area.
Theater Wolf’s My Mother and Her Guest makes the most out of the Gyeonggi-do dialect that is rarely used nowadays. You might wonder whether there is a Gyeonggi-do dialect; however, you will hear what it is like while enjoying the actors’ performances. Hearing old songs released between the 1930s and the 1940s, such as Sweet Eighteen and Tears of Mokpo, will make your theatrical experience more fun.
Creative Collective Hyehwa Salon knows how to deal with an unpleasant situation in an exciting way. In Trap, a client visits an electronic franchise in a remote village in Gyeongsang-do to exchange a product right when the shop is about to close. Employees try their best to serve the client, who is the kind of person they have never met before. However, the more they try, the worse the situation grows.
Meanwhile, Theater Company ACT138, specializing in developing cultural content for teenagers between 13 and 18, translated Gim Yujeong’s famous short novel The Camellias into the Gangwon-do dialect. This was also made into the Gyeongsang-do dialect in 2004. It is exciting to see how this pure love story between a tough yet naive girl and a tactless yet innocent boy incorporates the Gangwon-do dialect.

Same Subject, Different Perspective: Jacheongbi, Two Theatrical Productions from Jeju

Two theatrical productions on the same subject will also be showcased in Jeju: Theater Company Goendangdeul’s 2020 Jacheongbi and Seire Theater Company’s Jacheongbi. Both productions take Jacheongbi from a Jeju myth called “Segyeong Bonpuri ” as their central motif. Jacheongbi is the “agricultural deity of love” who never pulls her punches when it comes to her love life. She is a captivating character who always takes on challenges. The two productions talk about love, trust, and promise—some elements deeply rooted in our lives.
Theater Company Goendangdeul interprets the myth of Jacheongbi with a contemporary touch in 2020 Jacheongbi. A caregiver who takes care of a critically ill patient in a hospital room learns that she is a reincarnation of Jacheongbi, and the patient is that of a servant she accidentally killed in her previous life. It is particularly interesting to see what present-day Jacheongbi does to escape the chain of karma. Theater Company Goendangdeul was our partner for the first edition as One Snowy Day in Spring became a box office hit and recorded as the best.
Seire Theater Company also presents Jacheongbi, which won Grand Prize, Best Script, and Best Acting at the 2012 Gomanaru Local Theater Festival. Unlike Jacheongbi, born to be brave, her servant Seong Sunam is a lazy and goofy person. This story hilariously depicts how Moon, a young man from an aristocratic family who came down from heaven after having a massive crush on Jacheongbi, forgets his promise of love and leaves for heaven again.

Event Schedule