Sageuk fantasy musicals gain popularity as theater lovers, general audiences become 'willing to surrender to magic'

A scene from the ongoing sageuk, or Korean historical drama, fantasy musical ″Man in Hanbok″ [YONHAP]

 
Over the past decade, Korean musical theater has looked outward for inspiration. Many of the large, commercial productions that drive the local scene feature Korean actors in blond wigs and medieval European costumes as they call themselves and others names like Armand and Mercédès.

 
Of course, those shows still exist and remain among this year’s best-selling musicals, but a new genre is emerging as a potential rival. Among this year’s top-selling production, a growing number fall under the sageuk — or Korean historical drama — fantasy genre, with some even making an impact abroad.
 

The cast of “Swag Age: Shout Out, Joseon!” poses in front of the Gillian Lynne Theatre in London on Sept. 8. [PL ENTERTAINMENT]

 
The genre blends recognizable historical settings with noncanonical relationships and fictional tropes such as time travel and supernatural encounters. Consequently, rather than offering linear retellings of past events, sageuk fantasy works ask audiences to suspend their disbelief and engage with history on an emotional, personal level.
 
“Musicals about Korean history that twist the facts have been gaining momentum in the competitive market in recent years,” said musical critic Lee Su-jin. “Until now, Korean musicals typically [...] centered on Western culture. Now that Korean culture is recognized globally, combining fantasy [with our own history] actually expands the range of stories we can tell on the local stage.”

 

A scene from the sageuk fantasy musical Shadow that closed in November at the Baekam Art Hall in Gangnam District, southern Seoul. [BLUE STAGE]

 
For instance, “Man in Hanbok” — with hanbok referring to traditional Korean clothing — opened in December and is adapted from Lee Sang-hoon's 2014 novel of the same name. The musical draws on one of the Joseon Dynasty's (1392-1910) greatest mysteries: the disappearance of royal scientist Jang Yeon-sil. The story does not reconstruct his life chronologically but instead unfolds across multiple timelines, from the Joseon Dynasty to Renaissance Italy and the present day.
 
The production currently ranks as the 31st most popular musical of the year on Interpark and holds an audience rating of 8.9 out of 10 on the platform.

 
“Man in Hanbok” is produced by EMK Musical Company, one of the country’s largest musical production houses, known for its large-scale, visually elaborate adaptations of Western literature and history, including the biographical musicals “Marie Antoinette” and “Mozart!” 
 
“Man in Hanbok” marks EMK’s 10th in-house musical and its first to be rooted in a Korean historical setting.

 

A scene from the ongoing sageuk, or Korean historical drama, fantasy musical ″Man in Hanbok″ [YONHAP]

 
EMK CEO and Executive Producer Eum Hong-hyeon described the project as a response to a shifting cultural climate. “As Korean culture receives more and more global attention, we’re sensing how quickly things are changing,” he told reporters during a press conference on Dec. 9. 
 
As a result, Sageuk fantasy possesses both artistic and commercial potential for today's audiences.

 
The genre departs from previous sageuk musicals in Korea, which often prioritized historical accuracy. Productions such as “Hero,” focusing on independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun; “Sejong 1446,” depicting the creation of hangul; and “The Last Empress,” centering on Empress Myeongseong, frame history as something to be respectfully reproduced, meaning that they function more as dramatized lessons than speculative narratives. 
 
Sageuk fantasy, by contrast, is far less concerned with faithfully reproducing history. Fiction becomes a way to explore gaps in our knowledge of the past, including undocumented interior lives and unresolved trauma that continue to resonate in the present.

 

A scene from the sageuk fantasy musical Shadow that closed in November at the Baekam Art Hall in Gangnam District, southern Seoul. [BLUE STAGE]

 
The two-person rock musical “Shadow,” which closed last month, offers a perfect example. Inspired by the 1762 death of Crown Prince Sado — who was sealed inside a rice chest by order of his father — King Yeongjo, the show reimagines the chest as a time travel machine, through which the prince encounters his father not as a tyrant king but as a vulnerable child. The production ranked 89th on Interpark’s annual top 100 list.

 
Sageuk fantasy has also found success overseas. “Swag Age: Shout Out, Joseon!” which imagines a fictional period within the Joseon Dynasty, held a one-day performance in London’s West End in September and was nominated for Best Concert Production at the BroadwayWorld UK / West End Awards. The musical envisions an ancient Korea where poetry functions as a national ideology and as a means of civilian expression. When the government bans poetry, the musical's characters rebel, and their songs and verses carry messages of hope and freedom.
 

A scene from the hit sageuk fantasy drama series "Bon Appétit, Your Majesty" that aired this year through Sept. 28. [SM ENTERTAINMENT]

 
Of course, sageuk fantasy also appears in Korean dramas, films and literature, but live musical theater gives the genre a distinct intensity that cannot be achieved by other mediums — one shaped by an implicit agreement between performers and audiences to believe in the impossible, critic Lee noted.

 
“Musicals are a very specific genre,” she said. “[People] suddenly singing simply doesn’t happen in real life. But fantasy, to begin with, lacks realism. So when [the act of bursting into song] enters a space that likewise already doesn’t exist, these two ‘impossible’ elements [are compatible and] can produce synergy, creating a kind of magical space.”

 
“For theater lovers and audiences willing to surrender to that magic,” she added, “sageuk fantasy musicals can be incredibly satisfying.”

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]