Musical honors 100th anniv. of Independence Movement
‘Pechka’
The year 2019 marks the 100th anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement and the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, set up by independence activists to fight Japanese colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
Among heroic independence fighters, Ahn Jung-geun holds a reputation at home for the 1909 assassination of Ito Hirobumi, a four-time prime minister of Japan and the first resident governor of Korea. Ahn was arrested on the spot and executed in the following year.
Nonetheless, not much is known about the numerous independence fighters who were active in Vladivostok, Ussuriysk and Partizansk from the end of the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom until the nation’s liberation in 1945, as well as the lives of Korean residents in the Russian Far East.
Choe Jae-hyeong, whose nickname is “pechka,” a Russian word meaning fireplace, is an unsung hero of the Korean independence movement.
Born in the “nobi,” or slave, social class in North Hamgyeong Province (now North Korean territory) in 1860, Choe moved to Ussuriysk, Russia, in 1869 in search of a better life.
There, overcoming all kinds of contempt and prejudice and accumulating tremendous wealth, he jumped into the anti-Japan movement.
Choe supported overseas independence fighters through providing financial aid and military equipment. For the sake of Korean settlers in Russia, he built 32 schools and ran a newspaper business to educate and cultivate a nationalist spirit.
During the Japanese colonial period, the Japanese administration intended to snuff out Korean language and culture, making Japanese the official language of business and education.
As a patron of Ahn, Choe played a key role in an ingenious plot to assassinate Ito at Harbin Train Station.
The interim government, of which Choe served as the finance bureau chief, was integrated in 1919 in Shanghai, China, and the existence of independence fighters in eastern Russia was forgotten.
Even after liberation, it was hard to find evidence and trace historic records of the independence movement in Russian territory due to geographical, political and diplomatic factors.
“Russian regions were at the center of the independence movement between the end of Joseon Kingdom and 1922, but they have been undervalued due to the perennial division of the Korean Peninsula over the last 70 years,” Park Hwan, a professor at the University of Suwon, writes in his book “Pechka, Choe Jae-hyeong.”
Choe was killed in a street battle against the Japanese army in April 1920. Back then, Japan dispatched troops to Siberia in order to incapacitate Russian revolutionary forces and Korean independence activists. At that time, about 300 Koreans were killed and 100 were arrested while Russia suffered more than 5,000 casualties.
After Choe’s death, a memorial ceremony took place in front of the Eternal Fire monument in the Red Square in Ussuriysk. Russians and ethnic Koreans have continued to hold an annual ceremony to honor him.
The Korean government awarded Choe the Order of the Merit for National Foundation and National Medal in 1963 to honor his distinguished services. However, reconstruction and restoration of his home and documents are set to start this year, almost a century after his death.
Act of remembrance for centenary
K-Value Creators, an organization under the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs consisting of professional and amateur actors, has worked together to make a musical titled “Pechka” in commemoration of Choe.
This project goes hand in hand with the patriots ministry’s move to restore homes and commemoration halls of independent activists, including Choe, starting this year.
The musical “Pechka” retraces Choe’s life in Russia before and after Japan colonized Korea in 1910.
“We decided to turn Choe’s life into an original musical to shed light on the noble spirit of the military martyr/patriot who dedicated his life for the independence of Korea,” art director Giuseppe Kim told The Korea Times.
“It saddens me to find out Choe, the man who sponsored Ahn’s resistance against Japan, paid Ahn’s lawyer’s fees during trials and looked after Ahn’s family, being overlooked by Koreans.”
Director Kim revealed he initially wanted to highlight female independence activists, but there were not enough resources or data to trace the history of their activities.
“The majority of female activists who fought for Korea’s independence were forgotten partly because Korea has long been male-dominated and many took on supporting roles. One of the few who took the initiative was Jo Maria, Ahn’s mother,” Kim said.
Jo Maria played a pivotal role in Korea’s independence movement beyond the activities of her son. After Ahn’s death, she sought asylum in Russia with her family and then in Shanghai after the establishment of the provisional government. While tracing her footprints, the story of Choe struck Kim.
“Choe, despite his nobi status and poverty-stricken beginnings, became a shaker among Korean independence activists and a major figure in the Korean-Russian community,” Kim explained.
Choe was the first Korean student to attend a Russian school. After leaving his home at age 11, Choe was spotted and raised by a Russian captain. Thanks to them, he could make a voyage around the world. Ingrained with cultural and linguistic sensibilities of both societies, Choe amassed his fortune through trading military supplies before age 30 and became the only high-ranking Korean official in Russia.
Dubbed “Korea’s Carnegie,” Choe used his money to support ethnic Korean armed forces and form the independence organization in Sinhancheon (New Korea village) in 1919.
The three-decade quest to achieve independence is narrated by Olga, Choe’s daughter, in the musical.
“In the musical Olga, played by veteran actress Kim Sung-nyo, narrates the story of Choe’s life as he held a hidden, yet important role in supporting the Korean independence fighters living away from their homeland,” Kim said.
In the musical “Pechka,” audiences will get a chance to listen to adapted Pushkin Korean poems.
“For me, as the art director and composer of Pechka, it was important to create the libretto in collaboration with Alexander Pushkin’s poems and Korean literary works to interweave two cultures.”
“Arirang,” the song that expresses the tragedy of the divided Korean Peninsula, will also be played during the show.
“Pechka is an exemplary story that goes far beyond an independence activist’s story. It voices the matters of value, honor and country. This musical tells that great values that existed in the past can still be present nowadays. After all, the choices we make eventually determine who we are,” Kim said.
Never forgotten
Actress Kim, who plays Olga in “Pechka,” is a legendary figure in “changgeuk,” a Korean opera style based on pansori, a traditional type of narrative folk music.
Since 2012, she has served seven years as the artistic director of the National Changgeuk Company of Korea, introducing diverse new formats and styles to appeal to larger audiences.
New storylines were added and experimental stages were designed, all in an effort to introduce a new paradigm to changgeuk, changing it from something considered difficult and old to something cool.
When asked why she decided to accept a relatively small part in “Pechka,” Kim said the director’s passion for musical theater and continued request for the narration moved her.
“At first, I thought it would be sim- ple because all I was asked to do was sit down and read my lines, without having to memorize them,” Kim told The Korea Times. “However, it later turned out I have to sing, too!”
Kim also mentioned her family history may have affected her somewhat in her decision to participate in the musical.
Her father, who was a writer-director for “gukgeuk,” a Korean form of theater performance, was born in Hamgyong Province but moved to South Korea because he was anti-communist. Her mother was Park Ok-jin, a top actress in “yeoseong gukgeuk,” an all-female genre of theater performance that was popular in Korea during the 1950s. Thanks to them, Kim began treading the boards at the age of five.
“I never intended it, but it turns out I have acted in plays and musicals that revolve around Korea’s turbulent modern history. We, actors, want to be true to the story while also giving it something extra,” Kim said.
Kim is noted for her monodrama “The Fairy in the Wall,” in which she plays 32 different roles from a five-year-old to an old man. The play is set in the 1950-53 Korean War and the ideological witch hunt that coincided with the war. Given her accom- plishments both as an actress and artistic director, Kim argued that there are things to be re-examined in order to take “Pechka” to a new level.
“I like the music programs in Pechka, but the plot is fluff,” she laughed. “We still need to deepen the story, give twists and turns to solidify the storyline.”
But Kim wore a stern face when talking about the message of the musical, which is what it is all about. “It is definitely a must-see musical to remember the past century that Korea has walked through and to never repeat the same mistakes,” Kim said.
“The independence activists, they are never to be forgotten.”
The musical “Pechka” takes place on Feb. 20 at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in central Seoul. For more information, visit kvaluecreators.com or call (02) 2059-5060.
This musical tells that great values that existed in the past can still be present nowadays.