Meet Korean Actress Hyejin Park

Our Blog Stage readers who want to know about being a performer abroad will be interested to read about Hyejin Park, an aspiring South Korean actress who is trying to make her way to the Korean stage, and one day to Broadway. Jun Yong Choi, our South Korean intern/entertainment correspondent, spoke with Park to learn a little more about what it means to be an actor in Korea:

Do you want to be a musical actress in Korea? Maybe you're attractive and have a beautiful voice, but what else?

Hyejin Park, an aspiring actress and an assistant professor of vocal training at Baek-seok Art College, says, "If you want to be an actor or actress, find your passion first."

Today, I interview her not because she is a famous actress. In fact, she has failed at countless auditions. But whenever she was down, she got up again.

"To be an actress who is famous in Korea? It is tough. Yes, it is much more difficult than becoming a Harvard student," she says with a laugh. But it does not sound like a joke when she says it, and sadly, it might be true.

The Korean musical theater industry is not as big as Broadway in the U.S., and depends more on domestic demand, rather than tourism. Fewer performance opportunities, plus a higher density of population, make it an even more competitive field in many ways.

For Park, musical theater is not just a hobby. It is everything. But it wasn't long ago that she decided to become a musical theater actress. Park's biggest performance to date was as Maria in The Sound of Music, for her graduate school's graduation performance. When she stood on that stage, she says she realized, "This is my way that I look forward."

But it has not been easy. She has gone on lots of auditions, but like many actors, experienced more failure than success. Fortunately, Park was able to get a position at Baek-seok Art College. And now, she dreams of being a Broadway actress. For the first step, she is planning to enter an art performance school. But just as most foreign actors worry about their English language skills, Park faces the same problem.

Let's look into Park's daily life: At 9 a.m., she attends an English course to enrich her English communication skills (Park knows that she has to do this if she wants to be a Broadway actress). In the afternoon, she does vocal training for herself, teaches seven students, and exercises to keep herself in shape. She is currently working on an album, as well. She believes in the maxim, "Dreams don't turn away from those who make the effort." So she still keeps trying.

I asked Park, "What is the most important factor to be a good actor?"

"I am eager to send my voice to the crowd," she says. "This is not just a monologue for myself. Actors have to keep trying to communicate with the crowd."

I applaud that she keeps trying to become a Broadway actress, and her positive thinking is an important ingredient. There is no doubt that she is talented and she’s trying hard -- just like the Korean saying: "carving her bone."

I think she deserves to be a great actress, and I hope that someday I can see her on stage at a Broadway theater.

-- Jun Yong Choi