Untitled Document
 I’m
sure all of you know who
Ahn Joong-geun is. He was a patriot who died for our
country. There are many books and movies about the national hero. Last year,
I watched a play called “I’m You나는 너다” at the National Theater of
Korea국립극장. Ahn Joong-geun and his son, Ahn Joon-saeng were the main characters of the play. The famous actor Song Il-gook played
both roles perfectly. He will be playing the roles again this year
in Seoul Arts Center예술의 전당 from May 17 to June 6. Luckily, I had a great chance
to meet him last week with The Kids Times editor-in-chief Julia Baik.
Here’s what he had to say about his roles in the play.
 Yoon:
Good afternoon, Mr. Song. It’s such an honor to meet you. Your acting is really great in
this play. You are playing both Ahn Joong-geun and his son Ahn Joon-saeng.
What is it like to play two different roles at the same time?
Song: Thank you very much for your complement.
Of course, playing both roles is not easy. In order to play the two
different people, I had to learn and understand our history first. Everyone knows
who Ahn Joong-geun is, but his son is not well-known. Playing the role
of Ahn Joon-saeng was a great chance for me to learn about him.
 Yoon:
Could you tell us more about Ahn Joon-saeng, then?
Song: He had to live a hard, unhappy life even though his father was a national
hero. He didn’t even know who his father was, but people expected
him to live like a hero, too. And people harshly criticized him because he
didn’t meet their expectations. I feel really sorry for him and I’m
trying my best to express his feelings in this
play.
Yoon: Do you think children should watch
this play?
Song: Yes, I think it will help them
better understand our history. It is very important to learn our own
history. In fact, all of the actors of this play visited China together
to learn more about Ahn Joong-geun and our history. It was really
helpful for me to play both
roles. I hope many children can learn the importance of our country
by watching this play.
 Yoon:
What does the title “I’m You” mean?
Song: In this play, Ahn Joon-saeng suffers
from an identity crisis because his father
was a national hero but he is not. Then, Ahn Joong-geun tells his
son that “I’m you and your country.” I personally think it means
that our ancestors sacrificed themselves for
our country and each one of us is our country itself. After all, we
are here thanks to our ancestors’
sacrifices.
Yoon: Thank you very much for your time.
Song: It was my pleasure. Thank you!
Kids reporter Yoon Jae-ho (Jeongbal Elementary School) |
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