bergenPAC to Offer Free KKumdongi Puppet Theatre Show, 5/3

Bergen Performing Arts Center located at 30 North Van Brunt Street in Englewood, New Jersey presents KKumdongi Puppet Theatre's "Climb a Willow to the Sea GOD'S Palace" Saturday, May 3rd at 4pm. RSVP for free admission at 201-816-8160 (ex.218) or email jpark@bergenpac.org.

Climb a Willow to the Sea GOD'S Palace is a live painting puppet theatre. Actors draw 8 different Korean paintings on Korean traditional paper ("Hanji") and the paintings become the background of scenes. Handmade shadow puppets emerge from the painted scenes accompanied by Korean musical rhythm, which allows the audience to be immersed into the old fairy tale. Particularly, young audience members will be captivated with its creative performance and moral lesson.

The story is about brotherly love and filial duty towards parents. The main characters are two friendly brothers who once lived in Kangwon Province in Korea. Their father's last words lead to a disagreement between the brothers, and they go their separate ways. The younger brother follows their father's words and reunites with their father in the Palace of the Sea King but of some disturbing news about his elder brother.

Since April of 1996, Kkumdongi Puppet Theatre has performed their puppet performance, juvenile drama, and cultural education programs. The organization focuses on creating and developing their original plays such as the Kangwon Province Folk Tale Series.

The Korean Cultural Service New York (KCNY) is a government institution supported by the Korean Consulate General. The main objective is to support Korea and U.S. relationship and to promote information on Korean culture and aesthetics in New York.

KCNY opened in 1979, recently celebrating its 30th anniversary. Despite the social stigmas created around the long history of Korea, KCNY has successfully reached its goal in creating a positive and warm impression of Korea and its culture over the years.

For the past 30 years, KCSNY has focused its efforts on broadening the understanding of Koreans and the relationship between Korea and the United States through cultural and academic activities. In the earlier years, it was critical to utilize KCSNY's capabilities to support Korean artists who faced many limitations in New York. Despite its limited space in the past, KCSNY eagerly hosted as many shows as possible to showcase talented individuals. These opportunities eventually opened more doors to Korean artists. Nowadays, KCSNY is equipped with improved facilities and strong relationships with global institutions and local organizations here in New York. Therefore, more opportunities are provided to these artists at different venues and occasions, and we are successfully able to raise awareness of Korea and its culture through these opportunities.

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