Synopsis

Kongji Park lives in her late father’s house, under the tyranny of her step-mother, Sae Uhmuhni, and step-sister, Patji. One day, an attendant from the Mayor’s office announces that there is to be a masked ball where the Mayor of Dunsan will hold a dance contest in order to choose his date for the Andong Mask Dance Festival. Kongji desires to go, but her step mother gives her an impossible list of chores to accomplish before she can attend the ball. With the help of an ox, a turtle, a flock of sparrows, and the ghost of her mother, Kongji is able to complete her tasks and goes to the ball in disguise. Kongji wins the dance contest, but loses one of her shoes as she runs home afterwards. The Mayor tries to find out Kongji’s identity with the help of her lost shoe, and is almost fooled by Sae Uhmuhni into confusing Patji for Kongji, but learns that Patji has pushed Kongji into a river to silence her. The Mayor saves Kongji and professes his lover for her, but Kongji refuses his hand in hopes of pursuing her dream to become a K-pop star.

Introduction

Last produced in 2013, this HTY mega-hit mixes traditional Korean drumming, dancing, and masks with modern K-POP music and dance moves to create an entirely new telling of the most popular Korean folktale.

Standards

Resources

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Activities

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Make a Hand Drum

Make a Hand Drum

Music and drumming play important roles in Korean performing arts and in HTY’s production as well. One enjoyable experience is to combine art and music...

Write an Original Cinderella Tale

Write an Original Cinderella Tale

Create your own Cinderella story. Try not to copy one you already heard or read. Use your ideas! Remember, Cinderella tales are transformational tales: the...

My Culture/My Self

My Culture/My Self

Guide students to create a collage that exemplifies their own cultural identity.   Materials student-selected images and pictures glue markers   Procedure Copy and distribute...

Draw a Picture of the HTY Play

Draw a Picture of the HTY Play

For the youngest students, guide them to draw the moment when the main character, Kongji, went through a magical transformation. How did the change happen?...

The Korean Cinderella Folktale

The Korean Cinderella Folktale

The more engaged students are with a story, the more they look forward to seeing it on stage. After sharing the folktale version in the PDF, guide...

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Partners

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