Park Cheon-hyu, the writer of the musical 'Perhaps a Happy Ending', expressed his admiration for actor Son Seok-koo's literary attitude.
On the afternoon of the 24th, a press conference was held at Community House Masil located in Myeongdong 1-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, to celebrate the musical 'Perhaps a Happy Ending' winning the American Tony Awards. The event was attended by writer Park Cheon-hyu and producer Han Kyung-sook (Director of NHN Link Performance Production), who shared their thoughts.
'Perhaps a Happy Ending' swept major awards including Best Musical, Best Book, Best Original Score, Best Scenic Design, Best Direction, and Best Actor at the 78th Tony Awards held at Radio City Music Hall in New York. Park became the first Korean to win the Best Book and Best Original Score awards.
On that day, Park shared about the sources of inspiration for his work, saying, "I tend to get inspiration anywhere, whether it's in a café or walking down the street listening to music. I sometimes think about who was the first to sing opera in Korea or what kind of business a ghost would run," revealing his free-spirited thought process.
Recalling Son Seok-koo, Park said, "He is an inspiring actor. There was a time he came to see our performance, and when we talked, I found out he was very interested in writing as a writer. He is already an excellent actor, but seeing his ambition in writing made me think I should work harder," he expressed with amazement.
He also mentioned that he receives unique inspiration from rookie actors, emphasizing the importance of cherishing every moment in daily life.
He stated that he responds flexibly to the tasks given to him or the evaluations he receives. "There were comments that this work wouldn't succeed. The first reason was that there was no famous original work, and the local actors were mostly young and not very experienced. However, to me, that was more refreshing," he pointed out.
He added, "Looking at the current success, those unexpected aspects seem to have made our work even more innovative," he reflected.
He also revealed his connection with American film director Steven Spielberg. "The director contacted me after watching our performance and said he enjoyed it, and we had a video call. He participated as a producer in another performance this season but expressed his support for our show, saying he was glad it did well," he added, "There was no talk about adapting our work into a film."
'Perhaps a Happy Ending' depicts the process of Oliver, a helper bot created to assist humans, and Claire discovering the emotion of love, set in a near-future Seoul. The two creators, Park Cheon-hyu and Will Aronson (composer), collaborated on the project. The concept began in 2014, and after a trial performance in 2015, it premiered the following year and has been performed a total of five seasons until last year.
NHN Link, which holds the domestic rights to 'Perhaps a Happy Ending', is producing a 10th-anniversary performance to be presented in Korea. This 10th-anniversary performance is scheduled to be held at the Doosan Art Center's Yeongang Hall in Jongno-gu, Seoul, from October 30 to January 25 next year.
[Ji Seung-hoon, Star Today Reporter]
