Governor Kim Moon-soo says, “I would like to do this more often.”

Governor Kim Moon-soo gave a pleasant surprise to the audience by making a special appearance in the stage play Chusa, Digilog performed in the ‘Dal’ or small hall of the National Theater of Korea at 5:00pm on November 25, assuming the role of Kim Jeong-hui (penname: Chusa), a renowned calligrapher of the late Joseon Period.

The stage play is a work of performance art that focuses on Chusa’s calligraphic works, combining traditional music, dance, and hi-tech film images. Analog elements and 3D film images create a nice harmony. The Hanmoe Traditional Music Company has been performing the stage play since 2006 and specially cast governor Kim Moon-soo in its eighth performance.

Governor Kim Moon-soo rehearsed earnestly, practicing his reading of an extract of the writing on Chusa’s painting Sehando. He sought advice from members of the troupe, including Director O Eun-myeong, concerning his tone of voice, gaze, gait, and so on. He could only rehearse for half a day due to his tight schedule, but appeared to do well, perhaps because he has innate ability as a stage performer.◇ Governor Kim Moon-soo and other actors/actresses bowing to the audience after the performance. ⓒ G-NEWS PLUS / Heo Seon-ryang

The figure of the aged Kim Jeong-hui gradually becomes distinct in the dark. The enchanting and doleful melody of Korean traditional music spreads across the stage for about a minute. The sound of wind in the distance tells the audience the background is somewhere on the coast of Jejudo Island.

“I think of you on this moonlit night in a remote place on an island…. Useon! (The pen-name of Chusa’s disciple Lee Sang-jeok) How nice of you to send me a precious book again this year. Didn’t they say that you don’t realize that pine trees do not lose their leaves until winter comes? A sage once said that a person who chooses you as a friend for personal gain or influence leaves you when he sees that he can’t get such things from you any longer. ……”

Governor Kim Moon-soo, unrecognizable due to his heavy facial makeup, looked good in the traditional clothing he wore for his role as a scholar of the Joseon Period. When he coughed to display Chusa’s serious illness in his late years, he seemed like a professional actor. Even more impressively, he uttered the voice of an aged scholar famous for his unyielding personality and moral uprightness, expressing the sorrow and loneliness of a life spent in exile.◇ Governor Kim Moon-soo acting in the role of an aged Kim Jeong-hui ⓒ G-NEWS PLUS / Heo Seon-ryang

The full-capacity audience responded enthusiastically to the Gyeonggi Governor’s acting, indicating that his stage role was a success. Kim Mi-jin (34, from Seoul), for one, said, “At first, I thought that governor Kim Moon-soo might make a gaffe or two, but he never did. And his unique vocal tone suited the role perfectly.”

Commenting on the audience’s encouraging remarks, governor Kim Moon-soo said, “I think I performed rather well as a first-time actor. I would like to do it again.”

On stage, he read an extract from a piece of writing on Sehando, a painting that Chusa did himself as a gift for his disciple Lee Sang-jeok, expressing his gratitude for Lee’s taking the trouble to visit him during his exile on Jejudo Island. Governor Kim Moon-soo acted for about five minutes in Act 5 “Unforgettable People – Sehando” in the seven-act stage play.

Act 5 shows how Chusa sought consolation from daffodils and poems during his exile after being belatedly informed of his wife’s death. Sehando, a painting Chusa made for his disciple Lee Sang-jeok, who distanced himself from worldly gains, struck a chord in the hearts of the audience.

Sehando was designated as National Treasure No. 180 for its value as a painting made by a prestigious scholar. Lee Sang-jeok obtained newly published books in China, where he was sent to perform official duties as an interpreter, and sent them to Chusa in Jejudo Island.

Kim Jeong-hui is praised as a genius who knew how to convert letters to paintings and vice versa.◇ Governor Mr. Kim Moon-soo showed himself to be a born actor. His unique vocal tone went very well with the role. ⓒ G-NEWS PLUS / Heo Seon-ryang

After the performance was over, the Gyeonggi Governor said, “It gave me an opportunity to think again about Chusa, who was a scholar with an unyielding personality and stressed the importance of faithful relationships between people. The deep meaning contained in Sehando made me think about what true friendship is.”

The Hanmoe Traditional Music Company is dedicated to studying and developing the country’s traditional creative dances with the main focus on their cultural and artistic values. Since its foundation in 1997, it has engaged in projects aimed at popularizing Chusa’s art works, such as One Thousand Writing Brushes and Ten Indian Ink Stones and Pine Tree.

ⓒ G-News Plus News | Park Gwan-sik malbut@kg21.net