Jan Creutzenberg
I'm an assistant professor of German language and literature at Ewha Womans University in Seoul (South Korea).
As a scholar of theatre, I do research on various kinds of performing arts in contemporary Korea, both traditional and modern, with a special focus on "cross-cultural" productions of Western classics. I'm also interested in cultural exchanges between Korea, Europe, and the US and translate Korean plays into German (three will be presented at Stückemarkt Heidelberg in 2018).
I concluded and defended my PhD-project on pansori performances at Freie Universität Berlin in 2017, specifically discussing the various ways this traditional form of musical theatre is presented, performed, and promoted today and how it affects heterogeneous audiences of the 21st century.
I am responsible for international relations at regional culture space "pink factory" in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province (see pink-factory.tumblr.com), and coordinate the "Asian Composers Showcase" for Goethe-Institut Seoul (see goethe.de/korea).
Supervisors: Erika Fischer-Lichte
As a scholar of theatre, I do research on various kinds of performing arts in contemporary Korea, both traditional and modern, with a special focus on "cross-cultural" productions of Western classics. I'm also interested in cultural exchanges between Korea, Europe, and the US and translate Korean plays into German (three will be presented at Stückemarkt Heidelberg in 2018).
I concluded and defended my PhD-project on pansori performances at Freie Universität Berlin in 2017, specifically discussing the various ways this traditional form of musical theatre is presented, performed, and promoted today and how it affects heterogeneous audiences of the 21st century.
I am responsible for international relations at regional culture space "pink factory" in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province (see pink-factory.tumblr.com), and coordinate the "Asian Composers Showcase" for Goethe-Institut Seoul (see goethe.de/korea).
Supervisors: Erika Fischer-Lichte
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Papers by Jan Creutzenberg
Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on a wide array of existing ethnographic research, the paper compares processes of transmission and transformation of three different genres: the solo singing-storytelling genre pansori, the ensemble percussion-dance genre pungmul and the various regional forms of mask dance drama subsumed under the label talnori. The paper argues that the artists, who perform these genres, while not unaffected by the expectations of their audiences, have the power to transcend traditional boundaries.
Findings – Due to early professionalization in the nineteenth century, pansori performers could adapt to the changing contexts of market-oriented modernity and survive until governmental intervention in 1962. Pre-modern pungmul and talnori was performed primarily by and for rural communities, resulting in an interruption of transmission when these contexts disappeared and partial re-invention in the wake of official preservation legislation.
Originality/value – The need for repeated performance in historically varying contexts makes the analysis of performing arts particular fruitful for understanding how practitioners of tradition (have to) adapt to change. A historical-comparative perspective provides concise insights into the dynamics of development that informs tradition today. The inclusion of offspring genres (changgeuk, madang-geuk, samulnori) furthermore shows the potential of heritage development beyond the official system of preservation.
Keywords Performance, Korea, Heritage, Tradition, Performing arts, Pansori
Paper type Conceptual paper
* Taroo’s Pansori Hamlet Project
* Tuida’s Hamlet Cantabile
published in Borrowers and Lenders: The Journal of Shakespeare and Appropriation X.1 (spring/summer 2016), eds. Maurizio Calbi and Stephen O’Neill.
http://www.borrowers.uga.edu/783209/show
I consider the opening scene, the depiction of a funeral procession for King Hamlet (the father), as paradigmatic for this approach. In this scene a variety of cultural, religious and historical references are juxtaposed on multiple layers (stage design, costumes, voice acting, music), creating an excess of (possible) meanings. A few key signs establish the situation and offer the spectators, each with an individual background and resulting expectations, a stable base for further interpretations.
Only to some extent does Lee follow in the footsteps of earlier attempts to stage Shakespeare in Korea. Beginning in the 1970s, directors started to employ practices from the Korean tradition in theatre – an attempt to undermine the dominance of “canonical” interpretations of Shakespeare that featured an acting style derived from Western naturalism.
However, productions like Hamyul Taeja (1976), a “koreanised” version of Hamlet, were not free from a nationalistic impetus and, during guest performances in America and Europe, sparked enthusiasm mostly due to their “exotic” imagery. Lee Youn-taek, in contrast, has created a Hamlet for a globalised world: interculturally comprehensible and at the same time individually interpretable.
Conference Presentations by Jan Creutzenberg
In this paper, I introduce and discuss recent cross-cultural p’ansori-projects that address different local and global audiences, focusing on artists based in Korea and Germany. The diversification of production and reception does not leave these artistic exchanges untouched by cultural politics, as many projects rely on funding or commissioning. Besides the interaction between performers and spectators, my comparison therefore also includes the role of institutions that considerably influence the emerging global landscape of p’ansori.
What themes are tackled in cross-cultural collaborations and how much do they rely on tradition? Where and for whom is p’ansori performed? And how do cultural politics play in the selection of support and commissioning? In approaching these questions, I propose a perspective that acknowledges both the artists’ legitimate need of support and their ambitions to create p’ansori that audiences can relate to, in Korea and abroad.
Introductory remarks at symposium “Pansori in Europa: Zwischen Vermittlung und Aneignung” (Pansori in Europe: Between Mediation and Appropriation), Koreanisches Kulturzentrum Berlin, 15 July 2017
This paper focuses on pansori, a singing-storytelling tradition that involves skilled members of the audience calling chuimsae at the right time. These calls of encouragement not only support the singer but also render insider knowledge tangible and can evoke communal feelings. Scholars conceptualize chuimsae both as the result of acquired skills and an expression of a cultural sensitivity peculiar to Koreans. Focusing on my own experiences in three pansori performances, I take a different perspective on the performative effects of chuimsae by discussing how different dimensions of “we” emerge through participation and perception, by myself and others. I argue that my precarious position – standing out both on a visual and audible level – can become a productive starting point for exploring communal processes that emerge in performance.
What alternative approaches do my observations and experiences on site offer in addition to seemingly objective documentary evidence (scripts, sound or video recordings) or other qualitative sources such as interviews? How do language skills, practical knowledge of conventions, and personal relationships contribute to interactions with performers and other audience members? Participant observation that acknowledges and embraces individual difference without denying situational communality may be able to challenge binary conceptions of the “other”, prevalent in distinctions between emic and etic, native and foreign perspectives on Korean performing arts – maybe not only with regard to pansori practice, but other cultural phenomena as well?
Presentation given at conference “Global Korean Studies: Writing Korean Culture” (글로벌 한국학과 한국문화 쓰기), Seoul National University, 22–23 Sept. 2017.
Presentation held at Association of Asian Studies Annual Conference, Sheraton Centre Toronto, 16–19 March 2017
While this ‘golden age’ is extensively covered by historical research, contemporary practices are dismissed as part of an ongoing ‘era of preservation’. According to this prevailing perspective, pansori has become a fossilized relict, destined for extinction. But apart from officially sponsored ‘orthodox’ performances, practitioners of pansori try to reach a wider public beyond the limited scene of aficionados. Their various approaches include performances at unusual locations, newly-created stories about contemporary issues, and the appropriation of other genres that promise popular appeal or carry cultural capital. Although often considered inauthentic, I argue that this ‘new’ pansori in fact draws on the same characteristics – narrative and stylistic flexibility, scenic minimalism – that once allowed pansori to cater to the preferences of radically different audiences.
How can performance analysis help to understand the conditions and concrete effects of pansori today? What kinds of audiences does pansori address in contemporary Korea, a post-colonial society haunted by the spectre of tradition – both icon of a proud past and reminder of an irreconcilable difference? If orthodox pansori can rely on an existing community of aficionados, how can new pansori provide audiences unfamiliar with its traditional conventions a temporary sense of community?
In conclusion, this paper draws a map of contemporary pansori, a variety of practices that navigate between high brow art and popular mass culture in search for ways to (re-)create a living tradition in our times. Furthermore, the performance-centered research provides insights on the transformative power of traditional arts – in Korea and elsewhere.
Pansori, a highly interactive genre of music theatre performed by a solo singer-storyteller and a drummer, is considered one of the most iconic Korean traditional performing arts. Historically, the appeal of pansori was based on its power to strengthen existing communal bonds among its participants, who participated in the performance with rhythmic calls of encouragement. The fading importance of tradition in everyday life, however, rises the issue of how to address heterogeneous groups of spectators not necessarily familiar with the conventions of pansori. Recent governmental aspirations of "globalizing" Korean culture further add to this dilemma: How can pansori reach contemporary audiences?
Stately-sponsored concerts by high-ranking singers primarily aim at the preservation of a "national cultural asset" in its original form. These "orthodox" performances rely on the concerted participation by an informed audience to temporarily evoke communal feelings through the collective re-staging of a lost past. Because of the small number of potential spectators for this rather elitist format, various efforts to popularize pansori have been made, falling mainly under two categories:
First, fragments of pansori are presented in spectacular potpourri-like performances that promote a digestable, unified tradition. These "touristic" shows succeed in reaching broader audiences but tend to discourage active participation, running the risk of commodifying pansori into a mere showcase of a distant, exotic tradition. Second, against this trend a new generation of singers writes new pieces based on current social issues, often employing a critical stance, to revive pansori as a inherently contemporaneous culture. Substituting a shared cultural heritage with shared opinions on Korean society as the basis of communal experiences, the satirical content of these "experimental" performances is difficult to convey in oversea productions.
Although the concrete success of these different approaches varies from performance to performance, the comparison clearly shows that the audience, whether conceptualized as transmitters, consumers or creators of tradition, is a force that cannot be neglected. From the spectator's perspective, it is the moments of communal activity that make pansori worthwhile, both in Korea and abroad.
***
공동체 형성에 대해: 판소리 공연에서의 전통을 보존, 홍보, 재생산에 관한 연구
본 논문에서는 판소리의 역사학적 연구와 공연분석론을 바탕으로 다양한 사례를 통해 동시대적 판소리 공연에서의 전통과 공동체가 어떤 역할인지 논의한다. 세 가지의 판소리 연출방법(정통적으로, 관광적으로, 실험적으로)을 현상학적인 측면에서 비교하므로 전통을 접근하는 다양한 방법들이 어떻게 공동체의식을 나타내는지를 파악하고자 한다. 그리고 판소리를 비롯해 한국과 외국의 전승연희의 전망을 모색하고자 한다.
판소리란 단독의 소리꾼과 북을 치는 고수, 그리고 관객간의 상호적인 것을 말하며 가장 대표적인 한국 전통공연예술 중 하나로 여겨진다. 역사적 측면에서 판소리의 매력은 율동적인 추임세를 외치는 청중들이 공동체적 관계를 강하게 경험할 수 있는 것에 기반을 두고 있었다. 하지만 본 연구자의 관점은 현재 판소리의 전통적인 관습을 모르는 일반적인 관객에게 판소리를 어떻게 대중화시킬 수 있는지에 관한 문제에 주목한다. 최근의 한국정부에서 촉진하는 “한국문화의 세계화”가 있어서 이 문제가 쟁점적이다: 현재 사람들이 어떻게 판소리를 즐길 수 있을까?
국가의 후원을 통해 명창들이 나오는 완창공연은 판소리가 “문화재의 원형”으로서 보존된다는 의미를 가진다. 이런 “정통적”인 공연을 통해 일시적이지만 사라졌던 과거를 재형성하는 공동체의 느낌을 떠울려줄 수 있지만 판소리를 잘 아는 관객들이 많지 않아서 판소리의 대중화를 확대하는 다양한 대안이 필요하다. 이 노력의 대부분은 두 가지 범주로서 다룰 수 있다:
첫 번째는 화려한 옴니버스 공연을 통해 수용하기 편리한 전통을 생산한다는 것이다. 이런 옴니버스식 “관광적”인 공연은 더 폭넓은 관중의 호응을 얻을 수 있지만 관객의 참여를 막는 경향 때문에 이국적인 전통으로 박재화되어 진열되고 상품화 될 위험도 있다.
두 번째는 이 추세에 대안을 모색하는 젊은 소리꾼의 세대는 기본적으로 현대적인 예술로 판소리 문화를 위치짓게 하기 위해 비판적인 태도로서 현재 사회현상을 바탕으로 새로운 판소리 작품을 만들고 있다. 하지만 다분히 “실험적”인 공연 형식과 풍자적인 내용을 현재 한국 사회에 대한 공통의 의견을 바탕으로 공감을 형성하고자 하기에 해외공연에서는 (한국 현재생활을 잘 모르는 관객에게) 의미 전달하기가 어려울 수도 있다.
어떤 연출방법이 성공하는지는 구체적인 공연에 따라서 다를 수도 있지만 위의 비교연구를 통해 전통의 전승자나 소비자, 아니면 창조자던지 중요한 것은 무조건 판소리 관객이라는 사실을 알 수 있다. 관객의 입장에서 판소리 공연이 볼 만한 것이라는 이유는 한국이든지, 해외이든지 공동체적인 활동이라는 것이다.
Besides potpourri-like touristic programs that showcase fragments of pansori as part of a digestable, unified tradition, the most representative performances of pansori are set in a conservative frame, both in imagery and intent: full-length performances lasting several hours, performed by high-ranking singers at national institutions. Although often criticised as musealizing a living tradition as a "national treasure", this "orthodox" pansori still might evoke communal feelings based on a shared cultural heritage in a collective re-staging of a lost past by an informed audience.
Outside this stately-sponsored system aimed at the preservation and presentation of a supposedly original form, some established pansori singers experiment with new source material, often ostentatively putting pansori in the service of a political message. Historical examples generally followed the orthodox approach: attempting to create a performative bond among the spectators by commemorating an emotionally loaded past. More recently, however "creative" pansori performers began to address contemporary social and political problems in order to revive the counter-cultural spirit of traditional pansori that was rooted in everyday life. Their aspired community is based not so much on a common national identity but rather on a shared political vision, raising the potential of pansori performances abroad to be more than an exotic display of difference but a means for intercultural dialogue.
Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on a wide array of existing ethnographic research, the paper compares processes of transmission and transformation of three different genres: the solo singing-storytelling genre pansori, the ensemble percussion-dance genre pungmul and the various regional forms of mask dance drama subsumed under the label talnori. The paper argues that the artists, who perform these genres, while not unaffected by the expectations of their audiences, have the power to transcend traditional boundaries.
Findings – Due to early professionalization in the nineteenth century, pansori performers could adapt to the changing contexts of market-oriented modernity and survive until governmental intervention in 1962. Pre-modern pungmul and talnori was performed primarily by and for rural communities, resulting in an interruption of transmission when these contexts disappeared and partial re-invention in the wake of official preservation legislation.
Originality/value – The need for repeated performance in historically varying contexts makes the analysis of performing arts particular fruitful for understanding how practitioners of tradition (have to) adapt to change. A historical-comparative perspective provides concise insights into the dynamics of development that informs tradition today. The inclusion of offspring genres (changgeuk, madang-geuk, samulnori) furthermore shows the potential of heritage development beyond the official system of preservation.
Keywords Performance, Korea, Heritage, Tradition, Performing arts, Pansori
Paper type Conceptual paper
* Taroo’s Pansori Hamlet Project
* Tuida’s Hamlet Cantabile
published in Borrowers and Lenders: The Journal of Shakespeare and Appropriation X.1 (spring/summer 2016), eds. Maurizio Calbi and Stephen O’Neill.
http://www.borrowers.uga.edu/783209/show
I consider the opening scene, the depiction of a funeral procession for King Hamlet (the father), as paradigmatic for this approach. In this scene a variety of cultural, religious and historical references are juxtaposed on multiple layers (stage design, costumes, voice acting, music), creating an excess of (possible) meanings. A few key signs establish the situation and offer the spectators, each with an individual background and resulting expectations, a stable base for further interpretations.
Only to some extent does Lee follow in the footsteps of earlier attempts to stage Shakespeare in Korea. Beginning in the 1970s, directors started to employ practices from the Korean tradition in theatre – an attempt to undermine the dominance of “canonical” interpretations of Shakespeare that featured an acting style derived from Western naturalism.
However, productions like Hamyul Taeja (1976), a “koreanised” version of Hamlet, were not free from a nationalistic impetus and, during guest performances in America and Europe, sparked enthusiasm mostly due to their “exotic” imagery. Lee Youn-taek, in contrast, has created a Hamlet for a globalised world: interculturally comprehensible and at the same time individually interpretable.
In this paper, I introduce and discuss recent cross-cultural p’ansori-projects that address different local and global audiences, focusing on artists based in Korea and Germany. The diversification of production and reception does not leave these artistic exchanges untouched by cultural politics, as many projects rely on funding or commissioning. Besides the interaction between performers and spectators, my comparison therefore also includes the role of institutions that considerably influence the emerging global landscape of p’ansori.
What themes are tackled in cross-cultural collaborations and how much do they rely on tradition? Where and for whom is p’ansori performed? And how do cultural politics play in the selection of support and commissioning? In approaching these questions, I propose a perspective that acknowledges both the artists’ legitimate need of support and their ambitions to create p’ansori that audiences can relate to, in Korea and abroad.
Introductory remarks at symposium “Pansori in Europa: Zwischen Vermittlung und Aneignung” (Pansori in Europe: Between Mediation and Appropriation), Koreanisches Kulturzentrum Berlin, 15 July 2017
This paper focuses on pansori, a singing-storytelling tradition that involves skilled members of the audience calling chuimsae at the right time. These calls of encouragement not only support the singer but also render insider knowledge tangible and can evoke communal feelings. Scholars conceptualize chuimsae both as the result of acquired skills and an expression of a cultural sensitivity peculiar to Koreans. Focusing on my own experiences in three pansori performances, I take a different perspective on the performative effects of chuimsae by discussing how different dimensions of “we” emerge through participation and perception, by myself and others. I argue that my precarious position – standing out both on a visual and audible level – can become a productive starting point for exploring communal processes that emerge in performance.
What alternative approaches do my observations and experiences on site offer in addition to seemingly objective documentary evidence (scripts, sound or video recordings) or other qualitative sources such as interviews? How do language skills, practical knowledge of conventions, and personal relationships contribute to interactions with performers and other audience members? Participant observation that acknowledges and embraces individual difference without denying situational communality may be able to challenge binary conceptions of the “other”, prevalent in distinctions between emic and etic, native and foreign perspectives on Korean performing arts – maybe not only with regard to pansori practice, but other cultural phenomena as well?
Presentation given at conference “Global Korean Studies: Writing Korean Culture” (글로벌 한국학과 한국문화 쓰기), Seoul National University, 22–23 Sept. 2017.
Presentation held at Association of Asian Studies Annual Conference, Sheraton Centre Toronto, 16–19 March 2017
While this ‘golden age’ is extensively covered by historical research, contemporary practices are dismissed as part of an ongoing ‘era of preservation’. According to this prevailing perspective, pansori has become a fossilized relict, destined for extinction. But apart from officially sponsored ‘orthodox’ performances, practitioners of pansori try to reach a wider public beyond the limited scene of aficionados. Their various approaches include performances at unusual locations, newly-created stories about contemporary issues, and the appropriation of other genres that promise popular appeal or carry cultural capital. Although often considered inauthentic, I argue that this ‘new’ pansori in fact draws on the same characteristics – narrative and stylistic flexibility, scenic minimalism – that once allowed pansori to cater to the preferences of radically different audiences.
How can performance analysis help to understand the conditions and concrete effects of pansori today? What kinds of audiences does pansori address in contemporary Korea, a post-colonial society haunted by the spectre of tradition – both icon of a proud past and reminder of an irreconcilable difference? If orthodox pansori can rely on an existing community of aficionados, how can new pansori provide audiences unfamiliar with its traditional conventions a temporary sense of community?
In conclusion, this paper draws a map of contemporary pansori, a variety of practices that navigate between high brow art and popular mass culture in search for ways to (re-)create a living tradition in our times. Furthermore, the performance-centered research provides insights on the transformative power of traditional arts – in Korea and elsewhere.
Pansori, a highly interactive genre of music theatre performed by a solo singer-storyteller and a drummer, is considered one of the most iconic Korean traditional performing arts. Historically, the appeal of pansori was based on its power to strengthen existing communal bonds among its participants, who participated in the performance with rhythmic calls of encouragement. The fading importance of tradition in everyday life, however, rises the issue of how to address heterogeneous groups of spectators not necessarily familiar with the conventions of pansori. Recent governmental aspirations of "globalizing" Korean culture further add to this dilemma: How can pansori reach contemporary audiences?
Stately-sponsored concerts by high-ranking singers primarily aim at the preservation of a "national cultural asset" in its original form. These "orthodox" performances rely on the concerted participation by an informed audience to temporarily evoke communal feelings through the collective re-staging of a lost past. Because of the small number of potential spectators for this rather elitist format, various efforts to popularize pansori have been made, falling mainly under two categories:
First, fragments of pansori are presented in spectacular potpourri-like performances that promote a digestable, unified tradition. These "touristic" shows succeed in reaching broader audiences but tend to discourage active participation, running the risk of commodifying pansori into a mere showcase of a distant, exotic tradition. Second, against this trend a new generation of singers writes new pieces based on current social issues, often employing a critical stance, to revive pansori as a inherently contemporaneous culture. Substituting a shared cultural heritage with shared opinions on Korean society as the basis of communal experiences, the satirical content of these "experimental" performances is difficult to convey in oversea productions.
Although the concrete success of these different approaches varies from performance to performance, the comparison clearly shows that the audience, whether conceptualized as transmitters, consumers or creators of tradition, is a force that cannot be neglected. From the spectator's perspective, it is the moments of communal activity that make pansori worthwhile, both in Korea and abroad.
***
공동체 형성에 대해: 판소리 공연에서의 전통을 보존, 홍보, 재생산에 관한 연구
본 논문에서는 판소리의 역사학적 연구와 공연분석론을 바탕으로 다양한 사례를 통해 동시대적 판소리 공연에서의 전통과 공동체가 어떤 역할인지 논의한다. 세 가지의 판소리 연출방법(정통적으로, 관광적으로, 실험적으로)을 현상학적인 측면에서 비교하므로 전통을 접근하는 다양한 방법들이 어떻게 공동체의식을 나타내는지를 파악하고자 한다. 그리고 판소리를 비롯해 한국과 외국의 전승연희의 전망을 모색하고자 한다.
판소리란 단독의 소리꾼과 북을 치는 고수, 그리고 관객간의 상호적인 것을 말하며 가장 대표적인 한국 전통공연예술 중 하나로 여겨진다. 역사적 측면에서 판소리의 매력은 율동적인 추임세를 외치는 청중들이 공동체적 관계를 강하게 경험할 수 있는 것에 기반을 두고 있었다. 하지만 본 연구자의 관점은 현재 판소리의 전통적인 관습을 모르는 일반적인 관객에게 판소리를 어떻게 대중화시킬 수 있는지에 관한 문제에 주목한다. 최근의 한국정부에서 촉진하는 “한국문화의 세계화”가 있어서 이 문제가 쟁점적이다: 현재 사람들이 어떻게 판소리를 즐길 수 있을까?
국가의 후원을 통해 명창들이 나오는 완창공연은 판소리가 “문화재의 원형”으로서 보존된다는 의미를 가진다. 이런 “정통적”인 공연을 통해 일시적이지만 사라졌던 과거를 재형성하는 공동체의 느낌을 떠울려줄 수 있지만 판소리를 잘 아는 관객들이 많지 않아서 판소리의 대중화를 확대하는 다양한 대안이 필요하다. 이 노력의 대부분은 두 가지 범주로서 다룰 수 있다:
첫 번째는 화려한 옴니버스 공연을 통해 수용하기 편리한 전통을 생산한다는 것이다. 이런 옴니버스식 “관광적”인 공연은 더 폭넓은 관중의 호응을 얻을 수 있지만 관객의 참여를 막는 경향 때문에 이국적인 전통으로 박재화되어 진열되고 상품화 될 위험도 있다.
두 번째는 이 추세에 대안을 모색하는 젊은 소리꾼의 세대는 기본적으로 현대적인 예술로 판소리 문화를 위치짓게 하기 위해 비판적인 태도로서 현재 사회현상을 바탕으로 새로운 판소리 작품을 만들고 있다. 하지만 다분히 “실험적”인 공연 형식과 풍자적인 내용을 현재 한국 사회에 대한 공통의 의견을 바탕으로 공감을 형성하고자 하기에 해외공연에서는 (한국 현재생활을 잘 모르는 관객에게) 의미 전달하기가 어려울 수도 있다.
어떤 연출방법이 성공하는지는 구체적인 공연에 따라서 다를 수도 있지만 위의 비교연구를 통해 전통의 전승자나 소비자, 아니면 창조자던지 중요한 것은 무조건 판소리 관객이라는 사실을 알 수 있다. 관객의 입장에서 판소리 공연이 볼 만한 것이라는 이유는 한국이든지, 해외이든지 공동체적인 활동이라는 것이다.
Besides potpourri-like touristic programs that showcase fragments of pansori as part of a digestable, unified tradition, the most representative performances of pansori are set in a conservative frame, both in imagery and intent: full-length performances lasting several hours, performed by high-ranking singers at national institutions. Although often criticised as musealizing a living tradition as a "national treasure", this "orthodox" pansori still might evoke communal feelings based on a shared cultural heritage in a collective re-staging of a lost past by an informed audience.
Outside this stately-sponsored system aimed at the preservation and presentation of a supposedly original form, some established pansori singers experiment with new source material, often ostentatively putting pansori in the service of a political message. Historical examples generally followed the orthodox approach: attempting to create a performative bond among the spectators by commemorating an emotionally loaded past. More recently, however "creative" pansori performers began to address contemporary social and political problems in order to revive the counter-cultural spirit of traditional pansori that was rooted in everyday life. Their aspired community is based not so much on a common national identity but rather on a shared political vision, raising the potential of pansori performances abroad to be more than an exotic display of difference but a means for intercultural dialogue.
I consider the opening scene, the depiction of a funeral procession for King Hamlet (the father), as paradigmatic for this approach. In this scene a variety of cultural, religious and historical references are juxtaposed on multiple layers (stage design, costumes, voice acting, music), creating an excess of (possible) meanings. A few key signs establish the situation and offer the spectators, each with an individual background and resulting expectations, a stable base for further interpretations.
Only to some extent does Lee follow in the footsteps of earlier attempts to stage Shakespeare in Korea. Beginning in the 1970s, directors started to employ practices from the Korean tradition in theatre – an attempt to undermine the dominance of “canonical” interpretations of Shakespeare that featured an acting style derived from Western naturalism.
However, productions like »Hamyul Taeja« (1976), a “koreanised” version of Hamlet, were not free from a nationalistic impetus and, during guest performances in America and Europe, sparked enthusiasm mostly due to their “exotic” imagery. Lee Youn-taek, in contrast, has created a »Hamlet« for a globalised world: interculturally comprehensible and at the same time individually interpretable.
In the cinema things look different. Kim Ki-duk's »Wild Animals« (1996) and Hong Sang-soo's »Night and Day« (2008) are both set in Paris. However, Unlike the drama series »Lovers in Paris« (2004), these movies do not show a picturesque City of Lights and their protagonists are far from success. Desolate, speechless and haunted by their past, they are drifters in an uninviting cityscape that does not resemble the usual postcard images.
My approach does not take the mediated images as representations of real places. Instead I analyse the cinematic means in staging the city that support or undermine the respective dispositions of the characters. While the Parisian exteriors that are featured in both movies generally do not invite touristic identification, the places depicted and the ways of locating the characters therein differ highly.
»Wild Animals«, a harsh and brutal story of two Koreans working their way up in a criminal association, shows Paris as a fragmented city: an anonymous "asphalt jungle" constructed of mostly marginal places. This hostile setting acts as a symbolical arena for tackling questions of nationality, ethnicity and sexuality.
In contrast, the Paris of »Night and Day« features a variety of lived-in spaces that offer opportunities for everyday interaction. In this organic "city of signs" the social isolation of the displaced protagonist —a Korean painter taking a time-out in France—comes even more to the fore.
While »Lovers in Paris« uses the city only as a scenery, »Wild Animals« and »Night and Day« use the original locations to negotiate the relationship between their characters and the city spaces that surround them and that they—more or less successful—try to penetrate. This way both films contribute to the discursive making of a city that goes beyond Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame.
In my opinion this “interpretative openness” may be due not only to the diversity in material Yang uses, but also to the fact that the images her works evoke resist being reduced to so-called “Korean“ topics or being attributed to dubious concepts of “Asianness”. This distinguishes her from some of her more famous compatriotes who, after having gained a certain notoriety, seem to reproduce their hallmark works, charged with symbolistic meaning, again and again all over the world.
While most of Haegue Yang’s works bear strong autobiographical allusions, those do not rely on national or regional symbolisms. Instead, they call upon topics like migration, travel, and home, thus questioning the notion of “Koreanness” itself. Her œuvre suggests, however, a strong parallel between her life as an artist that engages in “practices of oscillation” (a term borrowed from art historian Joan Kee) and at the same time deals with these practices in her art. In my paper I want to analyse this relation and the way it affects the interpretation of her works.
The works I discuss include the installation »Storage Piece« (창고 피스)—several earlier works stacked on standard pallets to save storage space—, the site-specific intervention »Sa-dong 30« (사동 30번지) located in an abandoned house in Incheon and the video essay »Unfolding Places« (펼쳐진 공간) that is usually presented as part of room-sized installations. In addition to the works themselves I also take into account various types of paratexts that surround them: the exhibitions Yang participates in, the respective catalogues and publications, as well as selected reviews and interviews.
Trying to maintain an analytical balance between formal aspects and the cultural and autobiographical references evoked, I present evidence supporting my assumption of Haegue Yang dealing with her “oscillating life” artistically. My thoughts on this specific artist’s work may finally suggest a more differentiated view on practices, things and concepts that are labeled “Korean”.
My approach is strongly nurtured by the belief, that “art from Korea” (as from any other part of this world, by the way) has more to offer than just the experience of difference. It demands to be taken seriously as art that creates spaces separate from the physical one, open to innumerable interpretations supported by the diversity of the viewers’ backgrounds. In my opinion the works of Haegue Yang are an invitation to this way of looking at art.