Rendezvous

As the scale of the webcomic market grows, various works that are derivatives of webcomics are being made. Recently, the webcomics “Infinite Power” and “Secretly Greatly” have been adapted to musical formats, showing a growing trend in the modifications of webcomics to musicals. The Argus met director Chu Jeong-hwa of the musical “Secretly Greatly” that ended last month to discover more about dramatizing webcomics into musicals.


The Argus: Hello, please briefly introduce yourself.
Chu Jeong-hwa (Chu): My name is Chu Jeong-hwa, and I am director of the musical “Secretly Greatly.” I made my debut in 1997 as an actor with the musical “Nonsense” and started to work as a director from 2013.

The Argus: You are the director of the musical “Secretly Greatly.” What made you accept the position?
Chu: Heo Su-hyun, the music director, first introduced me to a representative of the production company. The day we met, the representative offered me a position of directing the musical “Secretly Greatlyˮ and I accepted it. I was glad because I enjoyed reading the original webcomic “Secretly Greatly.” The fact that I should stage the cartoon was a burden for me, but I thought I could do it.

The Argus: Can I hear more about the production process?
Chu: The production company JOO:DA CULTURE made a contract with the artist of the original webcomic first as the company representative thought it would be a good production. The other directors and I went through a pre-production process that decided where the music would be and what kind of choreography would best suit the music. After that, the actors had only eight weeks to practice. They practiced fiercely, like madmen.

The Argus: The webcomic “Secretly Greatly” has already been made into a movie. What makes the musical different from the webcomic and the film?
Chu: As it is a musical, it includes both music and choreography. We use music and choreography as it only handles the most important part of the original story. As I have worked as a musical actor for about 20 years, when I saw the webcomic, I could imagine where the music would be and what lines could be used as the lyrics. I am really grateful to the directors who wrote the music and arranged the choreography as I wanted as well as the actors who worried about and discussed each scene together.

The Argus: What is the difference between the musical “Secretly Greatly” and other musicals?
Chu: Other musicals are also good, but I thought this production featured a deeper story as it was based on the original webcomic. As we did not have much time to prepare, it is a good thing that it was staged without being distanced in its appeal and wit. I think it benefited from the original webcomic.

The Argus: What did you focus on when you prepared the musical “Secretly Greatly”?
Chu:
I was most concerned with the action of the scenes. In film, actors needed to perform the actions only when the scenes are being filmed. However, in musical, actors should perform the actions every time. These are the things that make the actions in the scenes difficult. First, actors must not be injured. Second, the actions of the scenes should seem real to audience members. Finally, actors have to perform every time. We spent a lot of time in preparing the actions of the scenes in short period.

The Argus: What were some of the challenges in adapting a webcomic to a musical format?
Chu: It was diffcult. How can I show the imagination of a webcomic that transcends space and time on the stage? It was a really tough job. I agonized over the themes that the original shows the emotions that emerged in the scenes and then discussed it with the actors, “This is the part that we should express, and we should show it in a musical way.” It was a situation that we must continuously deal with. The hardest part was that we had to perform the immensity of the webcomic in the restricted area called the stage, and the fact that audience members would know more about the original than I did distress me. I was scared to get the appraisal that the musical would spoil the original. I thought the original artist might be worried, but he watched it happily.

The Argus: What was the audience’s response to the musical “Secretly Greatly”?
Chu: I appreciate that many of them liked it and supported us. Many readers of the webcomic praised what we expressed, so the actors and staff members were happy. As the practical circumstances of little theaters are bad, favorable audience comments are a big help to us. We always put on the best show we can. Thus, I am grateful that our efforts were not a waste of time. I realized that if I do my best and produce good work, audience members will appreciate it.

The Argus: What do you think of dramatizing webcomics into musicals?
Chu: It is certain that using stories that are already verified and securing the fans will keep up the trend of dramatizing webcomics into musicals. On the other hand, it is bitter for the creators of musicals. Though they want their works to be validated, producers bring forth modified stories.
It is a good thing that good webcomics are reborn, but producers should not carelessly decide to do this because it is not easy to compress an enormous story into two hours and express it with songs and choreography. Fans often reproach producers and give them a hard time when they fail to produce good work.

The Argus: What is your plan for the future?
Chu: I am preparing my next production. I am planning to study movies for now. When I was just an actor, I was only concerned about myself. However, since I am now working as the director, a desire has come to me to make my fellow directors and actors known to the public. I want the actors and staff members who worked with me to rise to the surface and extend the territory of musicals. Cultural toadyism in the musical industry is harsh in Korea and people employ foreign manpower when they produce big musicals. That is why I want to use movies as a better medium and let people know competent domestic musical manpower. I am trying to do this for the rest of my life, but it does not mean that I am quitting musicals. It is just another challenge that I have to overcome.


The webcomic market is going to grow as webcomics are mass produced and more related businesses. While derivative works are expanding their domains, musicals are also jumping on the bandwagon. Director Chu Jeong-hwa who loves musical admitted that musicals based on webcomics possess potential value, but worried about hastily made decisions. Will not the attitude that is simply following the trend, the expansion of the webcomic market, lead to failure? You can be in the center of the flow if you accept and subjectively utilize the trend derived from webcomics.

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