The National Changgeuk Troupe will perform a pansori adaptation of Sophocles’ “Oedipus Rex” with an all-female cast at the National Theater of Korea’s Dareum Hall from November 26 to December 5, 2026, gugaktimes.com reported. Every role on stage—including the male title character—will be played by women singers, a casting choice the troupe says draws on pansori’s tradition of one performer crossing gender and age lines.
The production, titled simply “Oedipus,” reimagines the Greek tragedy in which King Oedipus of Thebes hunts the killer of his predecessor only to discover he is the murderer, and that his wife Jocasta is also his mother. Rather than stopping at fate, the changgeuk version focuses on the human will to pursue truth to the end, according to gugaktimes.com.
Why an all-female cast matters for this story
The decision to cast women in every role—Oedipus, Creon, and the blind prophet Tiresias among them—reflects a deliberate artistic statement. tournews21.com quoted director Choi Jin-a, who won a directing award at Romania’s BABEL Festival in 2017 for the play “Oedipus—The One Who Wants to Know,” as saying he wanted to tell the tragedy as a universal human story rather than one tied to a specific gender. The troupe notes that pansori has long allowed a single singer to portray multiple characters regardless of age or sex, and this production extends that freedom to a full-cast experiment.
Who plays whom in the 2026 production
Lee So-yeon, a senior member of the troupe’s changak (singing) department and a holder of the Intangible Cultural Heritage pansori piece “Jeokbyeokga,” takes the title role of Oedipus. Kim Mi-jin, winner of the 2019 Boseong Sound Festival’s presidential prize in the master singer category, plays Jocasta. Lee Yeon-ju portrays Creon, and Min Eun-kyung, who won the presidential prize at this year’s 34th Imbangul National Music Festival, plays Tiresias. Jo Yu-a appears as the messenger and Seo Jeong-geum as the shepherd, roles that expose the secrets of Oedipus’s past, tournews21.com reported.
Lee So-yeon told tournews21.com she wanted to convey “the anxiety and conflict Oedipus experiences, the human side within,” in a delicate performance.
The creative team behind the changgeuk
Choi Jin-a directs his first changgeuk after exploring the Oedipus story in theater. The script is by Bae Sam-sik, who previously wrote the troupe’s “The Trojan Women” and “King Lear.” Music director and composer Jang Seo-yoon worked with composer Jang Seok-jin to build a 16-piece orchestra combining Korean instruments—piri, daegeum, gayageum, geomungo, ajaeng, and percussion—with violin, viola, cello, double bass, and keyboards, gugaktimes.com reported. The score alternates between solo singing and divided chorus parts to heighten the dramatic tension.
Stage design moves away from ancient Greece
The production abandons realistic ancient Greek scenery. Stage designer Lee Tae-seop installed a circular LED screen 7.8 meters in diameter on a sloped stage and projects imagery inspired by human blood vessels to visualize the characters’ inner states and the play’s tension, according to gugaktimes.com. Costume designer Kim Sang-hee chose modern clothing, varying silhouette, fabric, and color to reflect each character’s psychology. Choreographer Lee Kyung-eun, who won the 2025 Seoul Arts Award for dance for her work “Older Worlds,” designed the movement, tournews21.com reported.
Performance schedule and ticket prices
Performances run Tuesday through Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 3:00 p.m. The show lasts 90 minutes without intermission and is suitable for middle school students and older. Ticket prices are 50,000 won for R seats, 35,000 won for S seats, and 20,000 won for A seats. Booking is available through the National Theater of Korea website, www.ntok.go.kr, gugaktimes.com reported.
Frequently asked questions
When and where does the National Changgeuk Troupe perform “Oedipus”?
The production runs November 26 through December 5, 2026, at Dareum Hall in the National Theater of Korea.
Why are women playing the male roles?
The troupe says the all-female casting draws on pansori’s tradition in which one singer portrays characters of any gender or age, letting the production focus on universal human emotion rather than the actor’s sex, tournews21.com reported.
How much are tickets and how can I book them?
Tickets cost 50,000 won (R), 35,000 won (S), or 20,000 won (A), and can be reserved through the National Theater of Korea website, www.ntok.go.kr.
Who is directing the production?
Choi Jin-a directs, marking his first changgeuk; he previously won a directing award at Romania’s BABEL Festival in 2017 for a theatrical version of the Oedipus story.
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