Birds in DMZ

An adaptation of The Birds by Aristophanes
Adapted and directed by Eli Simon and Suk-Man Kim

Costume design by Madeline Kozlowski

Featuring Patrick Sabongui (MFA 2005), Krista Cowan (MFA 2005), Emily Rogge (MFA 2006), and Rick Prigge (MFA 2006), with professional actors in South Korea and MFA students at Korean University of the Arts.

University of California, Irvine
& Korean University of the Arts, Seoul
Pan Pacific Players Research and Collaboration

This project was a collaborative theatrical research effort featuring two of the leading theatre training programs in the world: The Korean National University of Arts, Seoul, and the University of California, Irvine. These two universities joined forces to investigate ways in which Eastern and Western theatrical traditions can be combined to create innovative theatrical endeavors. To this end, the universities created a new theatrical production company: The Pan Pacific Players. Our first collaborative project was an original adaptation of The Birds by Aristophanes. Set in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea, Birds in DMZ was rehearsed and performed in the summer of 2005. The production combined performance elements of traditional Korean Mask Dance Drama, Commedia delle’Arte, instant transformation, clowning, classic Korean music, original masks, costumes, and scenery. The script fused Korean, English, and bird gibberish into a new trans-national theatrical language.

Birds in DMZ was rehearsed in Seoul, August, 2005, and performed at the Suwon International Theatre Festival, South Korea, and at KNUA.

Funded was provided by a Pacific Rim Research Grant from the University of California, The Suwon International Festival, and KNUA research funding.

Korea Times Review