▲ South Korean actor Lee Soon-jae, who stars in the new play "King Lear," greets reporters during a press conference in Seoul on Sept. 28, 2021. The play will run from Oct. 30 to Nov. 21. (Yonhap)

 

 

SEOUL, Sept. 28 (Yonhap) -- Actor Lee Soon-jae (88), who is marking the 65th anniversary of his acting career, mentioned the importance of his participation in the new play "King Lear."

"There will be opportunities to act in the future, but I think (King Lear) will be the last and most important work in my life," Lee said Tuesday during a press conference for "King Lear" held at the Inchoon Art Hall of the Seoul Arts Center.

"King Lear," which is considered most sublime and overwhelming of Shakespeare's four greatest tragic plays, deals with conflict and confusion caused by foolishness of not being able to distinguish between the truth and lies.

In the play, Lee plays the role of King Lear, who loses everything in an instant and falls into the abyss of a crazy old man.

Asked about the reasons for participating in the play, Lee said, "Somebody once asked me which role I would like to play next and I thought that a play in which an old man appears as the main character would Shakespeare's 'King Lear.' I had just expressed my personal opinion but it became public and I was asked to star in the play."

Lee then added, "There have been many Shakespeare plays, but there hasn't been a full version, so I suggested to carry out the original version this time. We reached an agreement to make the play three hours and properly dress up as the original."

The 88-year-old actor will appear in all 23 performances as a solo cast. In response to this, Lee said, "I'm ambitious and believe that this role is worth a shot, but also reckless on the other hand," adding, "I need to follow the script and accurately portray the psychological changes of the situation or my character. There are also a few scenes that require power and I have no choice but to repeatedly practice it. I'm doing my best, but I'm still worried."

"The best luck for an actor is to come across great works and directing. The opportunities to experience classics for a play is not easy. Now that I'm older, I can understand the role of King Lear, and I'm old enough to express the character. The results will follow the efforts made during the process."

 

 

▲ South Korean director Lee Hyun-woo, who directs the new play "King Lear," greets reporters during a press conference in Seoul on Sept. 28, 2021. The play will run from Oct. 30 to Nov. 21. (Yonhap)

Director Lee Hyun-woo, who attended the conference together with Lee, said, "This play is the most complete version out of all of Shakespeare's works," adding, "It is the longest masterpiece among Shakespeare's plays, but it shows a well-organized play composition."

"King Lear is full of all kinds of human emotions, from joy to the feeling of falling deep into the abyss of despair. I think this is one of the biggest charms of the play. That's why it's a difficult role for young actors to carry out. Lee Soon-jae took charge of King Lear this time, so I have high expectations as a director and a fan," the director said.

In this performance, King Lear's eldest daughter, Goneril, will be played by actress So Yoo-jin and Ji Joo-yeon. Regan, the second daughter, will be played by Oh Jeong-yeon and Seo Song-hee, while the youngest daughter Cordelia will be played by Lee Yeon-hee.

On Oh's casting reasons for the play, director Lee said, "When I went in for the audition and interview, I was able to confirm the possibility for Oh Jeong-yeon to fulfill the role. I was hesitant at first because I had never seen Oh act, but after seeing her read the script, I became confident that I could help her grow into character. Oh is practicing very hard and is improving very quickly."

Regarding the significance "King Lear" has in the present, Lee said, "King Lear divides and distributes the country to his daughters, but eventually gets kicked out and abandoned by his daughters, making him fall from the best to the worst. King Lear thinks of the pain people in the lower class go through. It is important for a leader to not look at himself but through the eyes of those in need."

The play will be held from Oct. 30 to Nov. 21 at CJ Towol Theater of the Seoul Arts Center.

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