_Il-Song Kim (editor-in-chief of TheApro)

During the 10^th Arts Management Awards in 2021, the Theater Company San won the special award presented by the president of the Korea Arts Management Service. On the occasion of this annual event, Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Korea Arts Management Service reward arts businesses and companies that excel in management. The Theater Company San, which will celebrate its 20^th anniversary in 2022, has collaborated with local artists in Jeongeon County, Gangwon Province to make use of the unused space Arari Village and to present the permanent musical performance Ari Arari nationwide. The jury acknowledged the Theater Company San’s contribution to symbiotic local development and selected the company as the winner. Hoping that this case is helpful for other companies that are planning or considering collaboration with local areas, I called Mr. Jung Hwan Yoon, artistic director of the Theater Company San.

Jung Hwan Yoon(source: Theater Company San)

Since last year, you have had a hard time due to the pandemic. And based on your painful memories, you produced a work to comfort Korean citizens. Personally or as a group, how was this year for you?
In August 2020, some of our company members tested positive for Covid-19 so we became the first case of a virus cluster in the Korean performing arts scene. Right after facing this predicament, we canceled our shows and took quarantine measures. Thanks to this prompt response, we were able to prevent further infection. The actors stayed in hospitals and residential treatment centers. But we didn’t have any manual for how to run the company after their recovery. In addition, their infection even stigmatized them. So we weren’t able to do anything for the rest of that year. Afterwards, I wanted to share our experience with others so we talked about making a performance dealing with the pandemic. This is how we came to present One Day, Suddenly…! in June 2021, on the basis of our own experience. I wanted to not only share our experience but also comfort our company members who had gone through a painful period.

This award seems to be rewarding you for your hard time. Once again, I congratulate you. It would be the result of networking with a local area in an exemplary way. Could you first tell us about how you started considering a collaboration with a local area?
Our company was founded in 2002 so we are about to celebrate our 20th anniversary. At the beginning, we didn’t depend on any financial support to perform. But as our members got older, they started their own families. So it became difficult to work without any financial support. There was a limit to using our own resources. Then our work weakened. We were presenting performances existing in our repertory but we found it hard to produce new ones. Naturally, we began receiving financial support but for the past five to six years, we didn’t get any support. So we thought, “Aren’t engaging in competition?” We (performing arts company) should be a supplier to meet the audience (who generate demand). But instead, it seemed that the Arts Council Korea or foundations were suppliers and that we were generating demand for support. Meanwhile, over 80% of Korean arts companies or audiences are in Seoul or the Seoul Metropolitan Area. Ultimately, companies in Seoul and the Seoul Capital Area are in a race to get financial support. So we turned to other local areas in Korea. Rather than competing with other artists in Seoul, we decided to collaborate with another local area to produce performances and to meet the local audience who have potential to generate demand. We also thought that it would be great to bring the performance produced in the local area to Seoul. This is how we started the collaboration.

So this is how you began collaborating with Jeongseon County for the production of your musical performance Ari Arari in 2018. Could you explain why you chose Jeongseon?
It wasn’t my choice but it was Jeongseon that chose me. Celebrating the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Jeongseon County was planning to develop the local folk song “Jeongseon Arirang” into the local area’s special brand in order to modernize and popularize the song. So in August 2017, they commissioned me to do the job. At that time, I wrote a script and directed the performance Ari Arari which was performed on Feburary 10, during the Winter Olympics, as a representative traditional Korean performance. It has been staged as a permanent performance for four years, every market day. Starting from Ari Arari, we naturally did other projects with the local area.

Musical performance Ari Arari (source: Theater Company San)

Was their any resistance from local artists? It wouldn’t have been easy.
Local artists did think, “They will take away our (local) money.” They would have thought so because of their previous experiences. In ths past, many companies from Seoul collaborated with the local area to perform just once. After that, they took away the money for their labor cost, without transferring their know-how. That was why there was such mistrust. In short, two things were the most challenging for us: first, their cold attitude toward newbies and second, their mistrust. So as we started the collaboration, we decided to make a structure that would enable the local artists to be self-sufficient after we leave. Five years passed and now, it is a little easier for us to work there.

I also heard that local cultural foundations don’t give opportunities to local arists.
The two problems are interlinked. Cultural foundations seem to be close to institutions of civil servants. One of their biggest characteristics is their staff’s rotation. To carry out a performing arts project, it is necessary to understand local companies’ activities or the local audience’s demand. But at the time when those working at cultural foundations are about to understand these matters, they are transferred. So no wonder the foundations lack professionalism. That is why local artists move to Seoul where the performing arts scene is bigger. When I first came to Jeongseon, there was nothing there. The county had neither theatre companies nor associations. As we worked there, a local theatre company was founded so our project was transferred to that company.

You ran a variety of projects other than performances.
I personally believe that education is the most important. So I have always trained people including our company members. While collaborating with the local area as well, I focused on education in order to train those who will do the job after I leave. Of course, our work in the performing arts field is characterized by acquiring know-how through experiences. So I have tried to give them many opportunities to experience the performing arts scene. To be more specific, I organized workshops to help them experience the entire process of production from planning a performance to wrapping it up. Many of them experienced such a process for the first time back then. But now, they have their own company to run their projects.

Education program ‘katharsis’ (source: Theater Company San)

You also planned a game culture (things to enjoy) through the Arari Village.
The Arari Village is a small folk village you can visit in just twenty minutes. This is open to everyone for free. But in the past, people didn’t know much about this place. So we made a suggestion based on the trust we had gained during our 2018 performance. Our suggestion was to present an outdoor performance making use of the entire folk village so that tourists coming to Jeongseon could enjoy themselves a little more before leaving. The event was an occasion for visitors to watch the performance and to play traditional Korean games (e.g. arrow throwing game) all over the village. I just said that there is a project run by the local theatre company. This is the project.

Running such a wide range of projects including performances, education and others, have you had any challenging or rewarding moments?
As I explained before, the challenging moment came when we faced the local artists’ cold attitude toward newbies and their mistrust. But such a challenge seems to disappear as time goes by. We didn’t start the collaboration to make money or to insist on our own way of management. And we stayed the same. After some time, they acknowledged our truthfulness. Meanwhile, all our projects require the willingness and support of those working at public institutions. So we found it challenging when we couldn’t cooperate with them. It was frustrating at that time. But I was lucky because all the civil servants who participated in our projects were “out of their mind.” They carefully listened to what I said and they were also enthusiastic about solving administrative problems. Thanks to their help, everything went smoothly. What was rewarding was the luck of meeting them.

Many companies are considering collaboration with local areas. What is the most important in collaboration with a local cultural institution (company)?
What is the most important is to meet enthusiastic civil servants who work with you just like doing their own job. In parallel, you need to remind yourself that you are going to take root of culture in the local area and that you will transfer your experience and knowledge to a local company. In short, people and your attitude are crucial.

Arari village (source: Theater Company San)

Then what do local cultural institutions (companies) need to keep in mind?
Ever since the launch of local governments in Korea, the number of local festivals has increased. But there aren’t many unique festivals. If things work in one place, everyone does the same things. Their repertories are also similar. For example, with the popularity of trot, a genre of Korean popular music, everyone performs it. Rather than that, just one performance expressing a given area’s own culture is more effective. We have performed Ari Arari in Jeongseon for four years. Those who watched the performance say, “I didn’t know that there is such a performance in this rural area of Jeongseon.” And they bring others. They also go shopping, contributing to the local economy. A four-day festival takes billions of won. So wouldn’t it be better to perform eight months a year with the same amount? I would like you to think about that.

Don’t you have any plan to apply this success model to other areas?
If I have a chance, I want to apply it to other local areas as well. We have worked with a theatre company in Sokcho City for two years. Those in the local theatre scene are very willing to work with directors from Seoul. I believe that by experiencing each other, we could make totally new colors. Isn’t that what cultural exchange is about?

Lastly, do you have any recommendation for local cultural institutions or arts companies that are considering collaboration?
When I first came to Jeongseon, its civil servants said, “All Koreans know the song ‘Jeongseon Arirang.’” That is because in Jeongseon, you even hear the song in public restrooms. So the local residents think that those in other areas would also know the song. But these days, it is even rare to see those who know the original version of “Arirang.” Indeed, among the 100 actors who participated in our audition, only five of them knew “Arirang” and only one of them knew “Jeongseong Arirang.” So you need to put aside your preconception that everyone knows about what is yours and that what is yours is good. And you need to evaluate the value of your own thing from outside. You need to look at your value from outside. For you, it may be special but for others it may be of no value. For you, a thing would be a part of daily life but for others, it would be a valuable memory. In this way, you should change how you evaluate values in your local area. I think the way of thinking and approaching the local culture needs to change. That way, you could produce high-quality content.