By Min Yea-Ji and Yoon Jihye
Photos = Kim Sunjoo
Video = Kim Sunjoo
Seoul | Feb. 2, 2018
“The Joseon-era Jongmyo Jeryeak royal ceremony used to ring out whenever the nation had a grand affair and hoped for stability, peace and prosperity. Its performance this time bears deep meaning, in that we hope for the successful hosting of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and for peace and harmony across the whole world.”
Yoo Youn Suk, art director at the National Gugak Center, was speaking after a press rehearsal on Feb. 2, describing the recent royal reenactment.
The National Gugak Center recently held its largest-ever reenactment of the Joseon Jongmyo Jeryeak rite in honor of the upcoming Winter Games. It included 57 court musicians making up a traditional orchestra and 32 dancers lined up in rows, and took place at the center’s Yeak-dang Hall on Feb. 2.
The National Gugak Center presents a reenactment of the Jongmyo Jeryeak, the first Korean Intangible Heritage Item of Humanity, in the Yeak-dang Hall at the National Gugak Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on Feb. 2 and 3. The concert is held in honor of the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
The stage was a reconstruction of the Jongmyo shrine, where all Joseon monarchs are honored, and also included elements symbolizing the Winter Olympics.
The performance started with the Jeonpye Huimun (전폐희문, 奠幣熙文) ceremony, in which people formally prayed to their ancestors for a successful Olympics.
The audience also quite appreciated the Jeongdaeeop (정대업, 定大業) and the Botaepyeong (보태평, 保太平), both representative parts of the overall Jongmyo Jeryeak ceremony.
Information about the music and the dance that took place in each section of the overall ritual was provided in English supertitles on both sides of the stage to help non-Korean audience members better understand the show.
First lady Kim Jung-sook enjoys the performance in the Yeak-dang Hall at the National Gugak Center on Feb. 2.
First lady Kim Jung-sook enjoyed the performance alongside ambassadors from New Zealand, Romania, Israel and Zambia. “The first lady came to see the performance, as she hopes that the Olympics are successful and that there will be harmony between people from all around the globe through sports,” said Cheong Wa Dae vice spokesperson Ko Min-jung.
jesimin@korea.kr
