[On Stage] Baengdeok in High Heels, Sim Bongsa Awakened to Pleasure... A Noir Reinterpretation of "Simcheong"

National Changgeuk Company’s New Production "Simcheong"
A Bold Reinterpretation of the Original Story

The National Changgeuk Company’s new production, "Simcheong," exudes a distinctly noir atmosphere.

The play opens with the funeral scene of Simcheong’s mother, Lady Gwak. Director Yona Kim, as in her previous works such as "The Ring of the Nibelung" at the 2022 Daegu International Opera Festival and "Tannh?user" with the National Opera Company last year, uses live cameras to show the audience intricate details of the stage through video.

During Lady Gwak’s funeral, the camera lens focuses on Sim Bongsa, who is holding baby Simcheong. Sim Bongsa, wearing dark sunglasses, is dozing off, showing no trace of grief despite being the chief mourner.

At this moment, Baengdeok Eomeom approaches Sim Bongsa. She is dressed in a chic skirt suit, high heels, and sunglasses-an outfit entirely inappropriate for a funeral. It is even questionable whether Baengdeok Eomeom truly exists within the reality of the funeral alongside Sim Bongsa and the mourners. The black-and-white images of Sim Bongsa and Baengdeok Eomeom displayed on the screen above the stage are reminiscent of a scene from a noir film.

Noir deals with themes that defy social ethics. Yona Kim highlights aspects of the original story that could be seen as unethical, attempting a new interpretation. Baengdeok Eomeom is a prime example. She sends Simcheong to Lady Jang’s house as an adopted daughter and profits from the arrangement. Hwaju Seung, the monk who saves Sim Bongsa from drowning, is more interested in receiving three hundred sacks of rice than in Sim Bongsa’s dire situation, even going so far as to threaten that Sim Bongsa will become a cripple if he fails to make the offering.

There is also a sense of coldness in the relationship between Sim Bongsa and Simcheong. Sim Bongsa tells Simcheong that it is only natural for a daughter to provide three hundred sacks of rice as an offering. Simcheong collapses, as if unable to believe he could say such a thing. Ultimately, Simcheong sacrifices herself for her father out of guilt. Harboring deep resentment toward her father, Simcheong even attempts to strangle him while he sleeps. Baengdeok Eomeom silently witnesses this, and Simcheong, startled, recoils. Feeling remorse for having harbored such a dark thought, Simcheong then throws herself into the Indangsu River.

In this adaptation, Simcheong’s enjoyment of life in the Dragon King’s palace from the original story is replaced by Sim Bongsa’s indulgence. It is Sim Bongsa, not Simcheong, who enjoys the pleasures of the palace. After Simcheong plunges into the Indangsu River, Sim Bongsa and Baengdeok Eomeom come into great wealth and live lavishly. Baengdeok Eomeom gleefully scatters bundles of cash on the bed, while Sim Bongsa indulges in pleasure and excess. The play ends with Sim Bongsa facing a harsh reckoning. Upon regaining his sight, he is forced to witness a scene he never wished to see, experiencing intense agony. During a post-performance talk with the audience on September 6, Director Yona Kim shared that she had considered an Oedipal conclusion in which Sim Bongsa blinds himself, not wanting to see the world again, but ultimately decided against it.

Noir often brings to mind violence between people. In the changgeuk "Simcheong," there are no overtly violent action scenes. However, by explicitly depicting Simcheong as an object of transaction, the play starkly presents a reality where money cuts and wounds people as mercilessly as a knife.

Since Yona Kim primarily directs operas, she employs pansori but the production feels closer to opera than traditional changgeuk. In addition to Korean traditional instruments, Western instruments such as violin, viola, and cello are used. The cello, in particular, stands out whenever the play’s cold atmosphere intensifies, lending an unfamiliar tone. Nevertheless, considering that "Simcheong" is the opening work of the National Theater’s newly launched "Changgeuk-Centered World Music Theater Festival" and is intended for international audiences, this seems like a shrewd choice. Above all, the way the production highlights the original story’s merciless aspects and creates new dramatic tension is especially compelling.