Warm Like Spring-Musical School Episode #1: Election of the Student Council President
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- Writer 총관리자
- 보도일자 2012-01-04
The Foreign Exchange Nanum (Sharing) Children’s Troupe made their debut at the Queen Sunheon Building auditorium on the 23rd, a warm day with spring in the air. Despite fears that the performance would draw a small audience because it fell during exam period, the troupe was met with a full auditorium of both children and adults.
This first performance of the Children’s Troupe was initiated by The Research Institute of Asian Women at Sookmyung, and was sponsored by the Nanum Foundation of the Foreign Exchange Bank. The Troupe’s performance has a special meaning in view of the fact that its members are from both multicultural and unicultural families in Korea. Musical School Episode #1: Election of the Student Council President, had two successful showings, at 2 pm and 5 pm last Saturday, thanks to the cooperative, multicultural team effort of the cast members over the course of several months.
The musical unfolds as it follows the election of a student council president in a model multicultural school, well portraying the troubles and challenges that children from multicultural families have. It also celebrates, with fun and movement, the learning experience children go through in acquiring different values. Jeong-min Park, a member of the Baeksugwangbu troupe, directed the musical while Hae-sook Kang, the producer of SBS Naughty Boy Research, handled the script and 20 elementary and middle school students formed the cast.
Children spend long hours at school with peers of different backgrounds, without a sufficient understanding of or education on multiculturalism. As the musical reveals how children resolve and overcome differences and outbursts, it takes on great meaning not only for children but also for adults who have a fixed concept of a single-race nation.
Han Young-sil, the president of Sookmyung Women’s University, congratulated the cast and crew on their successful debut and stated that, thanks to the musical, its viewers can be imbued with a mature sense of citizenship so as to accept cultural variety and welcome multicultural families as precious members of society. The director of the troupe, Mr. Joeng-min Baek showered generous praise and affection on the students, who hadn’t had any prior experience on the stage, for their lengthy practice and training time, which resulted in a small miracle.
Though the actors were teenagers, they performed with a calm and enthusiasm that made for a near perfect performance. Musical School Episode #1: Election of the Student Council President was a piece of work which radiated the effort, camaraderie and warmth of heart that was put into it.