"Life of Pi" premiered in London’s West End in 2021 and was also staged on Broadway in New York in 2023, where it became a box office hit. In 2022, it was nominated in nine categories at the Laurence Olivier Awards and won in five, the most of any production that year. In 2023, it was nominated in five categories at the Tony Awards and won in three, earning widespread acclaim for its artistic merit.
"Life of Pi" began its world tour last year, visiting major cities around the globe. After stops in Canada, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), India, China, and Taiwan, it will finally open in Seoul. The show is scheduled to run for three months, until March 2 of next year.
"Life of Pi" is based on the novel of the same name by Canadian author Yann Martel, which won the Man Booker Prize in the United Kingdom in 2002. The original novel, which tells the moving and hopeful story of Pi, a boy stranded on a lifeboat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker for 227 days, has been published in 50 languages and sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.
In 2012, the story was adapted into a film. Acclaimed director Ang Lee, known for "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Lust, Caution," brought the gripping narrative and philosophical themes to life with grand visuals supported by CG technology. The film won four awards at the 85th Academy Awards in 2013, including Best Director, Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects. It also won in three categories at the Golden Globe Awards that same year.
S&Co stated that it aims to bring the mystical world of the original novel, filled with the wonders of nature, to the stage through innovative technology and imagination. The company also announced that the characters from the original story will be vividly brought to life through the detailed movements and expressions of sophisticated puppets.
The Korean production will be staged as a replica, faithfully recreating the direction of the original creative team. Lolita Chakrabarti, an actor and playwright who has been awarded the Order of the British Empire, wrote the script, while Max Webster, who won the Drama Desk Award for directing "Life of Pi," will direct. Tim Hatley, who has won three Olivier Awards, three Tony Awards, and four Drama Desk Awards, is in charge of stage and costume design. Finn Caldwell, renowned for his outstanding puppet direction in productions such as "War Horse," will serve as puppet designer and puppet & movement director. Nick Barnes, a world-renowned puppet artist who participated in the opening ceremony of the London Olympics, will also be responsible for puppet design.
Park Soyoung, known for acclaimed works such as "Hadestown," "Red Book," and the musical drama "Island 1933~2019," will serve as domestic associate director. Jung Myungpil, a stage director and leading mime artist who has worked as a puppeteer in productions such as "A Thousand Blues," will be the domestic associate puppet & movement director. Writer Cho Minhyung, who has contributed to productions such as "Myeongdong Romance," "Chami," and "Let Me Fly," will be responsible for translation and adaptation.
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