Rediscover the Hidden Genius of Her Time: Kim Mal-bong!

Did you know that the roots of today’s globally popular K-dramas can be traced back to the 1930s?

The musical drama What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?! shines a spotlight on Kim Mal-bong,

a female writer from the 1930’s whose serialized melodramas blazed a unique trail in the male-dominated modern history of art and culture.

This is the first production to celebrate her remarkable achievements.

As you become engrossed in the stories of characters who are not so different from us today, the show will be over before you know it.

On your way out of the theater, you will naturally exclaim, “Indeed! What’s wrong with pulp fiction? It’s so much fun.”

Experience the Golden Age of Art in the 1930s through Three Masterpieces!

The musical drama What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?! brings to life the vibrant cultural and artistic scene of the 1930s.

Blending music genres such as nursery rhymes, comic songs, new folk songs, and popular tunes with comedic elements,

the show presents a lively and delightful portrait of a time when the arts flourished.

Featuring a narrator who pays homage to the silent-film narrators of the 1930s,

the production enriches the story with witty dialogue and playful wordplay that hits the spot for the audience.

Synopsis
What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?! is a multifaceted musical drama that intricately blends various musical and theatrical elements of the 1930s into a compelling performance.

The production features three intertwined stories: Penance, a tale of a man who gets trapped in a closet after secretly cheating on his wife;

Wild Rose, a romantic story about misunderstandings between young lovers centered on bank manager Cho Man-ho who symbolizes the absolute power of capitalism;

and Splendid Hell, which depicts the suffering of gisaeng Oh Chae-ok and the anti-vice movement to abolish licensed prostitution.

2024 Special Invitational Program Picknic

The 2024 Special Invitational Program Picknic is designed to bring exceptional productions by private theater companies to a wider audience, fostering mutual growth and revitalizing the theater community.

Through this partnership with private theater companies,

we seek to fulfill our mission as a national arts organization while providing the public with access to outstanding performances that enhance and expand their theatrical experience.

The name of the program, Picknic, is a blend of the words “pick,” representing the selection made by the National Theater Company of Korea,

and “picnic,” suggesting a fun and enjoyable outing to the theater.

Starting in the summer of 2024, this initiative will continue for the next three years, engaging audiences during both the summer and winter seasons.

Original Work by Kim Mal-bong
Kim Mal-bong, the godmother of melodrama who captivated readers in the 1930s, gained widespread popularity with over thirty newspaper novels published between 1930 and the late 1950s. After the liberation of Korea, she played a key role as a women’s rights activist. 

Directed by Jung Anna
Playwright and director Jung Anna won the Best Production and Best Director awards at the 2014 Miryang Performing Arts Festival for Cheoyong, Odyssey. She has pursued a post-theater approach, focusing on dramatic street theater, site-specific performances, and immersive theater. Dreaming of a world where theater is as accessible to all as water and electricity, she emphasizes the convergence of objects, movement, and music while clearly conveying narrative and drama.

Major Works
2023 What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?!, Romantic Palace: Strange Tales Theater
2022 Alive-Connected, Nighttime Horror Stories, Jungnang, Flower People  
2021 The Forest, Again
2020 Daughters of the Air, Your Life is Art
2014 Cheoyong, Odyssey 

Awards
2023 Performance and Theory Award for Best Production <What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?!>
2023 Best 7 Productions  <What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?!>
2023 Women’s Theater Association Allbit Award in Directing  <What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?!>

2014 Best Production Award,  Best Director Award <Cheoyong, Odyssey>

Soosoofavorit Theater Company
Founded in 2010, Soosoofavorit Theater Company aims to create impactful theater that endures and grows in the heart, much like sorghum that thrives even in harsh conditions, green onions that symbolize infinite vitality, and barley, the oldest grain on earth. Inspired by the idea that “art transforms personal stories into history,” the company dreams of a world where theater is as accessible to all as water and electricity. 
 

Major Works
2023  <What’s Wrong with Pulp Fiction?!> (Selected for Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture Art Creation Support Program), <Romantic Palace: Strange Tales Theater>
2022  <Alive-Connected> <Nighttime Horror Stories> <Jungnang> <Flower People> 
2021 <The Forest, Again>
2020 <Daughters of the Air><Your Life is Art>