Korean Folktales in Contemporary Dance
By Nicole Barrett, DWC Blog Editor & MiYoung Margolis
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month is in full swing. This month is here to celebrate and recognize the contributions and influence that Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans have on the culture in our society. We got the chance to have blog contributor MiYoung Margolis share a story about a Korean folktale that influenced her choreography for her dance company. Read on to learn more about MiYoung’s piece and to learn more about Korean culture!
MiYoung Margolis: “I have presented the original Contemporary Korean Fusion pieces inspired by Korean folktales.
Once again, I would love to talk about “One World” through the Korean Contemporary fusion dance piece since I deeply feel that is what we all need especially after the pandemic.
To me, living in this one world together means ‘Love’. And as we all know, love is all you need.
Embracing our unique heritage, while celebrating our common life journey. Though we all come from different backgrounds, We can come together to create a beautiful performance.
In my choreography, I enjoy blending Eastern to Western and Western to Eastern. To create a fusion of cultures and a performance we can all connect to.I am proud to present an original Contemporary Korean Fusion piece that once again draws from my Korean Heritage
and borrows from another Korean folktale:
Photo courtesy of www.miyoungmargolis.com
The tragic love story of So-Hwa, A Court Lady, who’s unreturned love for the king, left her waiting forever and dying alone. Her remains transformed into the imaginary flower, the “Trumpet Creeper” which to this day, still waits for the king’s return. This story is told by a diverse cast of extremely talented dancers for the screen dance film version. Kang-He and Christie are professional Korean dancers. Parmida is a professional dancer from Iran, with incredible upper-body movement and control. And the amazing Tatiana with her legendary High Kick and professional ballet and contemporary dance background.
I am so glad to be able to bring these dancers together to tell So-Hwa’s story.”
MiYoung performed this piece on May 21st at ACES: Artists of Color Expo & Symposium. We are so happy to have MiYoung share the wonderful story behind her amazing performance! Keep an eye out for more information on future performances on her instagram here! MMDC performs again May 28th at PRIDEASIA.
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