On July 24th, photos of the practice room during preparation for the play “Angels in America” at the Unjeong Green Campus of Sungshin Women’s University in Gangbuk-gu, Seoul was unveiled. After the demonstration, director Shin Yoo-cheong, translator Hwang Seok-hee as well as actors Yoo Seung-ho, Son Ho-joon, Go Joon-hee, Jung Hye-in, Tae Hang-ho and Min Jin-woong joined an interview.
“Angels in America” is a play by Tony Kushner in 1991. Set in the US in the 1980s, the play depicts the chaos at the end of the century full of issues such as religion and race and particularly deals with discrimination faced by social minorities.
Yoo Seung-ho is a veteran actor who has been acting ever since he was a child, but this is the first time in 25 years that he has experienced acting on a theater stage. Regarding his decision to participate in this play, the actor said, “There was no specific reason. I just had the feeling that I would do it as if I was possessed. I still don’t know why, but I think it would be very interesting to perform while thinking about the reason I wanted to do this work”.
When asked about his gay character, Yoo Seung-ho said, “I didn’t know much about the look from others that gay people face in their daily lives. I didn’t know about it so I looked for movies and read the Bible”, adding “I wore nail polish and accessories and tried to understand it from gay people’s perspectives”.
Actor Son Ho-joon will also return to the theater stage after a long time. Playing the role of Prior, he said, “I came here because I wanted to learn more. There are many great actors here so I’m enjoying performing and learning from them”. He also revealed that he watched videos of people with similar tendencies to immerse in his character better.
Ko Joon-hee and Jung Hye-in, who are in charge of the character Harper Pitt, also expressed their feelings about challenging their first play. Mentioning her fear of standing on stage, Ko Joon-hee said, “I wanted to learn more through performances. I’m acting again after a long time and I’m very excited to perform with many good colleagues and staff”.
Jung Hye-in, who said she dreamed of becoming an actor after watching a play in middle school, also talked about her ambition. She shared, “I guess it was ‘Angels in America’ that reached out to me. I also want to create a great work that can reach out to the audience”.
Lastly, director Shin Yoo-cheong said, “This work contains many meanings beyond the limitation of a play. It was an experience that turned my life upside down”.
“Angels in America” will begin performing at LG Art Center Seoul and LG SIGNATURE Hall from August 6th to September 28th.
