The first Korean Show on Broadway, ‘KPOP’, reminds us that joy is a universal experience. ‘KPOP’ follows the journey of 2 music groups striving to become K-pop idols and debut in New York City. This show unites the audience in a shared celebration of music and storytelling. It is a story made to be enjoyed by everyone because embracing the beats of K-pop doesn't require you to know Korean. ‘KPOP’ unexpectedly closed its curtains after a short, two-week run. Its abrupt end echoes the fate of many BIPOC shows on Broadway that have ended too soon. This opens up a larger discussion about the unfair standards imposed on BIPOC representation. Asian stories deserve to be told, and ‘KPOP’ serves as a reminder of the beauty of representation on the grand stage.
Asian theater kids unite
Caption
The first Korean Show on Broadway, ‘KPOP’, reminds us that joy is a universal experience. ‘KPOP’ follows the journey of 2 music groups striving to become K-pop idols and debut in New York City. This show unites the audience in a shared celebration of music and storytelling. It is a story made to be enjoyed by everyone because embracing the beats of K-pop doesn't require you to know Korean. ‘KPOP’ unexpectedly closed its curtains after a short, two-week run. Its abrupt end echoes the fate of many BIPOC shows on Broadway that have ended too soon. This opens up a larger discussion about the unfair standards imposed on BIPOC representation. Asian stories deserve to be told, and ‘KPOP’ serves as a reminder of the beauty of representation on the grand stage.
Credits
Director
Keshia Hannam
Producers
Stephanie Tangkilisan
Editor
Ruolin Luyo
Director of Photography
Alison Boya Sun
Prakhar Deep Jain
Translation
Masuma Khan
Editor-in-Chief
Keshia Hannam
Head of Production
Stephanie Tangkilisan
Producer
Joy Jihyun Jeong
Post Production Coordinator
Skolastika Lupitawina
Assistant Editor
Rendy Abi
Color
Nadya Shabrina
Sound
Ezound Studios
Original Theme Song & Music by
Fabian Mansur
Additional Music by
Captain Qubz – Close to Me - Instrumental Version
Suraj Nepal – Rhythm of Soul ft. Rohit Manandhar
Suraj Nepal -–Mood
Asian theater kids unite
Caption
The first Korean Show on Broadway, ‘KPOP’, reminds us that joy is a universal experience. ‘KPOP’ follows the journey of 2 music groups striving to become K-pop idols and debut in New York City. This show unites the audience in a shared celebration of music and storytelling. It is a story made to be enjoyed by everyone because embracing the beats of K-pop doesn't require you to know Korean. ‘KPOP’ unexpectedly closed its curtains after a short, two-week run. Its abrupt end echoes the fate of many BIPOC shows on Broadway that have ended too soon. This opens up a larger discussion about the unfair standards imposed on BIPOC representation. Asian stories deserve to be told, and ‘KPOP’ serves as a reminder of the beauty of representation on the grand stage.
Credits
Director
Keshia Hannam
Producers
Stephanie Tangkilisan
Editor
Ruolin Luyo
Director of Photography
Alison Boya Sun
Prakhar Deep Jain
Translation
Masuma Khan
Editor-in-Chief
Keshia Hannam
Head of Production
Stephanie Tangkilisan
Producer
Joy Jihyun Jeong
Post Production Coordinator
Skolastika Lupitawina
Assistant Editor
Rendy Abi
Color
Nadya Shabrina
Sound
Ezound Studios
Original Theme Song & Music by
Fabian Mansur
Additional Music by
Captain Qubz – Close to Me - Instrumental Version
Suraj Nepal – Rhythm of Soul ft. Rohit Manandhar
Suraj Nepal -–Mood
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 And my favorite line that I say is,
00:04 "We sing together, we dance together,
00:08 we look sexy together."
00:11 [cheering]
00:14 [music playing]
00:15 [singing in Korean]
00:23 There aren't that many roles for us yet.
00:26 And that's because there aren't that many people
00:28 invited to be in the creative process that look like us.
00:32 [singing in Korean]
00:36 Like, K-pop?
00:38 There's a show about K-pop? This is a scam.
00:41 [singing in Korean]
00:43 I felt like a K-pop star when the panels of our show open
00:47 and you hear them cheering.
00:49 [music playing]
00:52 I've realized that every act that we do as Asian Americans
00:56 in the entertainment space is political.
00:58 This show, K-pop, is political.
01:01 [music playing]
01:03 It's the first Korean show on Broadway.
01:06 It's us taking up space.
01:08 [music playing]
01:14 It follows this larger--
01:16 [music playing]
01:26 [music playing]
01:36 [music playing]
01:54 About their journey and all the trials that they have to go through
01:58 to be K-pop idols in general,
02:01 but also to make their debut in New York City.
02:04 [music playing]
02:10 New Now at 11, what started off as a rally in Manhattan today
02:13 ended in song.
02:15 Turned out to support the first Broadway show celebrating Korean culture.
02:19 But the musical that broke barriers for the--
02:21 [no audio]
02:32 I think there's this misconception that
02:35 there are only so few spots for Asian people.
02:40 And I think that's bullshit.
02:42 [music playing]
02:45 I was born and raised in San Diego.
02:47 Growing up, I would help my parents at the saetakseoul.
02:51 They're dry cleaner.
02:53 And I had three sisters growing up.
02:55 And if I didn't call them noona, they would punch me in the face.
02:58 It's just a very Korean family in general.
03:00 I'd say the three of us are probably the dancers of the cast.
03:03 Yeah.
03:04 We--all three of us have extensive dance training.
03:06 Let's go.
03:07 [grunting]
03:08 [dance music playing]
03:15 Growing up Asian immigrant family,
03:18 I didn't think dancing was a viable career option.
03:21 I was always told that, you know, I was going to go to college,
03:24 do my four years, and then study, like, engineering
03:27 or be a doctor or be a lawyer.
03:30 [music playing]
03:35 I got my BA at Harvard,
03:38 studying computer science, economics, and Mandarin.
03:42 I pretty much stopped dance training
03:45 just 'cause I was, like, working, working, working.
03:47 I graduated from college May of 2021.
03:51 And I was working in finance in venture capital.
03:54 I really didn't like my job.
03:57 I was freaking out and having mental breakdowns.
04:00 [laughs]
04:01 And called my sisters, called everyone I knew and said,
04:04 "I think I'm quitting, and I think I want to pursue acting and dance."
04:07 [music playing]
04:08 [music playing]
04:09 [music playing]
04:10 [BLANK_AUDIO]
04:20 [MUSIC]
04:30 Now it is headed to Broadway.
04:41 [MUSIC]
04:48 We all sat down for our first read through together on our very first day.
04:55 And hearing people speak Korean,
04:58 every person in that room, 99% of us, Asian.
05:04 It was crazy.
05:05 [MUSIC]
05:16 The way that K-pop fandoms operate and the way that even K-pop concerts go down,
05:21 it's such a unique experience because it's so communal.
05:24 [MUSIC]
05:34 I think people realize that this isn't the typical Broadway space.
05:41 Like I can bring my light stick of my favorite K-pop band.
05:44 I can bring my glow sticks and my signs.
05:47 [MUSIC]
05:50 >> There have been fans that have seen the show more than ten times,
05:55 who know all the dances, all the lyrics to the songs, know even all the lines.
06:01 [MUSIC]
06:09 So we found out that we were closing the same day that the public found out.
06:14 It's just yet another show in a long line of BIPOC shows that
06:20 ending way too soon.
06:22 >> After weeks of low ticket sales and mixed reviews,
06:26 the first of its kind Broadway show will close after just 17 performances.
06:32 >> Jesse Green from the New York Times,
06:35 the white gatekeeper of the white Broadway industry.
06:40 When I saw that review, I was pissed.
06:43 But having the first line be, if you don't understand Korean,
06:47 you're not gonna like the show, is just in bad faith and in my opinion, racist.
06:53 Cuz you can have shows like Fiddler on the Roof, or shows like In the Heights,
06:58 or operas that aren't completely in English.
07:04 And how come when it comes to a Korean language show,
07:08 we're put to a different standard?
07:10 Everyone who comes to see the show, it's not required of them to speak Korean at
07:15 all to understand what's being said in the dialogue.
07:18 [MUSIC]
07:28 A lot of the shows that are successful right now are the long running shows, or
07:33 the shows with big names attached, or revivals.
07:36 >> Moving, inspiring, and totally badass musical.
07:44 >> That last performance, you could tell it was something very beyond just a show.
07:49 [MUSIC]
07:54 >> After they saw the show, my dad said he was proud of me.
08:00 That made me feel proud of myself too.
08:06 I know I walk away being so happy and so grateful, and so proud of what we did.
08:13 >> It could literally just be one kid who's now a little bit more interested in
08:17 theater, or one kid who's just a little more comfortable showing up to dance class.
08:22 And if that does something for somebody, then we've already done our part.
08:26 >> That show made up probably more than half of the Asians on Broadway right now.
08:32 Right, even in the history of Broadway,
08:35 we probably increased that number by a third, all in this one show.
08:42 [MUSIC]
08:52 [BLANK_AUDIO]