Transforming Sorrow into Joy

Synopsis
Consisting of performers from the lowest social class of the Joseon dynasty, the Namsadang troupe used to sing and dance on the street from village to village under the permission of Joseon’s noblemen. "Gom-bang-yi-teot-da" was their jocular jargon meaning "allowed to perform." Bound by their social status but never succumbing to their fate, Namsadang lightheartedly expressed their sorrow and joy. This work depicts modern people ＇s life with the Namsadang troupe twirling a sangmo, traditional Korean hat. In this way, the performance expresses human existence by combining the Korean sentiment and artistic value. Based on the sounds of the kkwaenggwari and pansori, it reinterprets Korean content in a modern way and integrates modern dance movements. By doing so, it embraces modern times’ global, universal sentiments including the Korean one.