Cheong-ju ‘Aeng jwa’ and theater performance in the Japanese colonial period

Abstract

In Korea, play has been neglected compared to other genres. In general, plays are completed with performances of plays. Therefore, it can be meaningful to look at the specific theatrical act performed in the local scene. Theater is a cradle where theater culture can grow. I wanted to pay attention to the theater that represented Cheongju, Aeng jwa(앵좌). Most of all, the theater was operated for public purposes. In Cheongju, drama-related activities were more active than any other region during the Japanese colonial period, which corresponds to the generation of the modern drama. From 1916, when the Aeng jwa(앵좌)-Theater was established in Cheongju, various theatrical performances were performed to perform a Sinpageuk(신파극). It can be said that it influenced the amateur-theatricals of local provincial actively from the 1920s. The residents of Cheongju had a theater, so they could experience Korea s various modern dramas, and they could become the subjects of direct drama.