Veteran actors lend their weight to two classic revivals in Seoul
Sophocles's "Oedipus" and Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice" have drawn some of Korea's most seasoned performers, including Choi Soo-jong, Shin Goo and Park Geun-hyung, back to the stage.
From left: Actors Shin Goo and Park Geun-hyung perform in “The Merchant of Venice.”PARK COMPANY
Sophocles’s “Oedipus” and Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice,” which opened on major stages in Seoul within days of each other, have drawn some of Korea’s most seasoned performers back to the stage.
Both productions are carried by veteran actors whose experience brings new insight to familiar material. Choi Soo-jong plays the titular protagonist in “Oedipus,” while Shin Goo and Park Geun-hyung have reunited in “The Merchant of Venice.”
“Oedipus,” Sophocles’s ancient Greek tragedy, opened at Sejong Center’s Sejong M Theater on July 4. The story follows Oedipus, the king of Thebes, who struggles — and ultimately fails — to outrun the cruel fate that the gods have set for him.
Choi, who debuted in 1987, has played so many kings on screen that he is widely known as the “king of historical dramas.” “Oedipus” marks his first stage role in nine years since the 2017 production of the play “Story of a Fairy Who Could Not Go to Heaven” (translated). He shares the role of the doomed king with musical actor Yang Jun-mo.
Actor Choi Soo-jong, left, performs in “Oedipus,” his first stage role in nine years.SU COMPANY
Director Seo Jae-hyung set out to foreground the man in the myth.
“We wanted to bring audiences a […] more vividly drawn Oedipus, one steeped in his humanity,” he said.
While Choi is more familiar with playing heroes in stories of conquests, having starred in dramas such as “Taejo Wang Geon” (2000-02) and “Dae Jo-yeong” (2006-07), he successfully delivers Seo’s vision: In the span of 90 minutes, the actor transforms from a commanding sovereign into a frail man who unravels after being unable to bear the truth that he uncovers.
The supporting cast, also consisting of veteran actors, more than holds its own.
Park Jung-ja plays Tiresias, the blind prophet of Thebes, and adds an air of mystery to the play. Nam Myung-ryul is a scene-stealer as a messenger from Corinth.
“Oedipus” runs through Aug. 23.
Actors Seo Young-hee, second from left, Nam Myung-ryeol, third from left, and Choi Soo-jong, far right, perform in “Oedipus.” Choi plays the titular role.SU COMPANY
Veteran actors Shin and Park Geun-hyung have once again teamed up for Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice,” which opened at the Haeoreum Grand Theater on Wednesday.
The plot follows Antonio, a merchant who borrows money from a man named Shylock and, under the terms of the bond, risks forfeiting a pound of his own flesh and his life.
Shylock has typically been dismissed as a simple villain, but director Oh Kyung-taek offers another interpretation of the character.
“He is, unmistakably, someone who makes cruel choices, but he’s also lived through a long history of discrimination and exclusion,” Oh said.
Veteran actor Park Geun-hyung fully inhabits that reading. When scorned as a Jew by Antonio, who even spits on him, Park Geun-hyung’s Shylock quietly swallows his rage. That restraint allows the audience to better understand his eventual cruelty.
At the end of the play, when the Venetian court rules that Shylock may not shed a single drop of Antonio’s blood, he crumbles helplessly to the floor. The court also bars him from recovering his money and forces him to convert to Christianity, adding salt to the wound. Park Geun-hyung’s performance leaves the audience questioning whether that judgment is truly just.
Actors Park Geun-hyung, front, and Shin Goo perform in “The Merchant of Venice.”PARK COMPANY
Shin takes on the role of the Duke, who presides over the trial. He moves little and speaks few lines, yet his presence deepens the production's gravity.
After the curtain fell, it was the two oldest actors in the cast, though neither plays a lead, who stepped out last, to the loudest cheers and applause of the night.
The ensemble also features Lee Sang-yoon, Park Myung-hwan, Cho Dal-hwan, Kai, Choi Soo-young, Won Jin-a, Kim Seul-gi and Kim Ah-young.
To one scholar, the revival could hardly be timelier.
“This is an extremely relevant work to be staging, given the current climate of the Israel- and U.S.-led war on Iran and spreading antisemitism,” said Lee Hyun-woo, a professor of English at Soonchunhyang University.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
