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June 27, 2015 20:30

Inspired by the pastiche of Buddha figure replicas with no aura of grandeur available at Buddha Bar in Paris and resultant cultural conflicts, this work paradoxically suggests that the Buddha figures show our true face as we go on living our mundane lives, not a face of God.
Its title, Bul-ssang (a Korean word meaning misery) literally connotes both ‘bulsang’ (a Korean word referring to a Buddhist statue) and the miserable lives of worldly people.
A hybrid of various cultures and dances including Indian Kathak, Korean Jindo Drum Dance, Chinese Eighteen Arhat Skills, and Japanese and Mongolian traditional dances harmonizes with the pop artistic sense of installation artist Jeong-Hwa Choi.
Experimenting with extemporaneousness through live music, the work presents a play-like performance on stage. It reveals an old Asian view of the world that, as lotus flowers bloom in mud, holiness can be found in vibrant life itself where complexity and diversity are respected without a hierarchical order, which remains a contemporarily effective principle of life.

Korea National Contemporary Dance Company strives to explore the complex, interconnected nature of contemporary life through the lens of Korean identity in order to engage in an ongoing dialogue with global citizens throughout the world.
The Company has been actively engaged in bringing contemporary dance to wider audiences with the intention of creating a type of contemporary dance that is considered a western art form that highlights Korean identity and its unique cultural characteristics.

choreography by Aesoon Ahn
dancers: Minchan Kwon, Keonjoong Kim, Donghyun Kim, Jimin Kim, Hoyeon Kim, Hyoseung Ye, Minjin Kim, Hwangju Do, Sojung Park, Boae Yoon, Jungin Lee, Minsun Choi, Sangruly Han, Hyoseon Heo
music: DJ Soulscape
scene: Jongseok Kim
installation: Choi Jeong-Hwa
set design: Backhee Ryou
stage manager: Eunjin Jo
production manager: Jeannie Oh
in co-production with Opera di Firenze / Maggio Musicale Fiorentino

Premiere LG Arts Center (2009)

[photo: Choi Youngmo]