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| Pansori singer Ahn Sook-sun |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Master pansori singer Ahn Sook-sun will perform "Heungboga" in its entirety in a year-end concert on Dec. 31 at the National Theater of Korea (NTOK).
Ahn is one of the top pansori singers, or sorikkun, of her generation, listed as Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 23 for "gayageum sanjo and byeongchang" (singing while playing the 12-stringed zither). She has also worked for various organizations related to traditional Korean music such as the National Changgeuk Company of Korea (NCCK), the National Gugak Center and the Jeonju International Sori Festival.
For the New Year's Eve concert, Ahn will perform "Heungbo-ga," one of the five surviving pansori plays.
The performance is part of the NTOK's regular ongoing "Complete Performance of Pansori" series. The series has been running over 30 years since 1984 and provides a rare opportunity to appreciate the five remaining pansori works in full. The longest, "Chunhyangga," takes up to eight or nine hours.
Ahn has performed 27 times for the series, covering all five plays ― "Heungboga," "Chunhyangga," "Simcheongga," "Sugungga" and "Jeokbyeokga."
Ahn said, "The five remaining pansori plays can vie with the Four Comedies by Shakespeare."
She will sing "Heungboga" in the style of her teacher Kim So-hee (1917-1995), alongside her colleagues who also learned from Kim, including NCCK members Yoo Soo-jung and Kim Cha-kyong.
"Heungboga," revolves around a poor but kind man Heungbu and his greedy older brother Nolbu. The piece is known for its encouraging-good-and-punishing-evil plot and folksy jokes. Kim So-hee's version added a touch of grace to the original pansori.
For the second act, Ahn will sing folk songs from southern Gyeonggi Province known as "yukjabaegi." It is a brisk and lively folk tune with six words to the line and considered representative of folk songs of the Gyeonggi region.
Kim Kee-hyung, a Korean language and literature professor of Korea University, will be the emcee and commentator of the concert.
After the night concert, audiences can celebrate the New Year with a countdown and fireworks at the outdoor plaza of the theater against the backdrop of Mt. Nam.
For more information, visit ntok.go.kr or call 02-2280-4114.
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