Writer Park Chunhyu: "Thanks to Korean Audiences, I Insisted on the Original on Broadway"

"The driving force that allowed me to insist on not changing the work on Broadway was the Korean audience. Because I had accumulated so many experiences of receiving deep empathy from audiences in Korea, I was able to say that I wanted to trust and stick with the original work."

Park Chunhyu, the writer of the original musical "Maybe Happy Ending," expressed his gratitude to Korean audiences at a press conference celebrating the musical's six Tony Awards, held on the 24th at Community House Masil in Jung-gu, Seoul. He explained that, as a rookie writer with no notable credentials to boast of on Broadway, the reason he was able to insist on keeping the original version was thanks to the enthusiastic response from audiences during performances in Korea. "Maybe Happy Ending" was staged five times over about ten years in Korea before making its Broadway debut, and at the 2nd Korea Musical Awards, it won six awards including the Grand Prize, earning recognition for its artistic merit. Park Chunhyu said that, thanks to this, he was able to have confidence in the work ahead of its Broadway run.

"Maybe Happy Ending" is scheduled to hold a 10th anniversary performance at Doosan Art Center YeonGang Hall from October 30 of this year to January 25 of next year. Park emphasized that he will continue to preserve the original work. "For the 10th anniversary performance, neither the script nor the music will change. That is something very meaningful to me."

Park Chunhyu, the writer of the original musical "Maybe Happy Ending," which won six Tony Awards, is sharing his thoughts on winning the Tony Awards at a press conference held on the 24th at Community House Masil in Jung-gu, Seoul.
Photo by NHN Link

The original musical "Maybe Happy Ending," which premiered in 2016 at a small theater in Daehak-ro with about 300 seats, made history for Korean musicals at last month's Tony Awards ceremony. It was nominated in ten musical categories, the most for any musical that year, and swept six major awards: Best Musical, Best Book, Best Original Score (Lyrics and Music), Best Direction, Best Scenic Design, and Best Leading Actor, earning the honor of the most wins.

Park Chunhyu said he tried not to get his hopes up when the musical was nominated in ten Tony Award categories, and added that this aspect of his personality is similar to Claire, a character in "Maybe Happy Ending."

"Both Will (Aronson), who I work with, and I are the type of people who try not to expect too much. We tend to fear the disappointment that comes when expectations are not met. It's a personality similar to Claire in 'Maybe Happy Ending,' who is afraid of the pain of love and so decides not to fall in love. When the nominations were announced, I was overjoyed, but I still thought, 'There's no way we'll win. Let's not get our hopes up.'"

Even though the Tony Awards, which he did not dare expect, became a reality, it still does not feel real to him.

"I haven't found the right place to put the trophy yet, so I just left it on the dining table. Eating breakfast while looking at the trophy felt surreal. The fact that such a symbolic trophy is sitting in my humble New York home is amazing, and the weight of the trophy makes me feel that I need to work even harder from now on."

Park Chunhyu, the writer of the original musical "Maybe Happy Ending," which won six Tony Awards, is taking a commemorative photo at a press conference held on the 24th at Community House Masil in Jung-gu, Seoul.
Photo by NHN Link

Park Chunhyu said that his dream is to enjoy the process of creating musicals. He said that, compared to when he worked as a designer, he feels less stress now, but he still does not feel happiness.

"I'm not happy when I'm writing a musical. The only reason I can keep doing this job is because there is work to do. When I was working a regular job, I was more stressed, but I was healthier and earned more money than I do now."

He explained that creating musicals is that difficult, and advised aspiring writers to be prepared for that level of challenge. He also expressed his hope that more support would be provided for musical creators in Korea.

"It would be great if there were more support systems for musical creation, but in fact, there are few countries with as many support systems as Korea. So I am very grateful for that. However, I think there is still a lack of awareness when it comes to properly settling royalties for creators and their works."