Korean Drama Historical Roots: Invasion Of The Classical Mask Theater Stage

Korean dramas dominate the show. Happy are the lovers. For those who are not, at least they must be familiar with the latest Korean drama titles such as Crash Landing on You, Itaewon Class, to The World of the Married. Welcome to VOI's signature Series Posts. Through this edition, we take a look at history, explore the industry, and peel off various other things about Drakor, including looking sideways, how is the existence of a similar industry in North Korea? Here it is, "Korean Drama Invasion".

The existence of The World of the Married as an industrial product is no joke. The pace of the 2020 industrial drama series is interesting to watch. Last Saturday, May 2, The World of the Married managed to record the highest number of viewers in the history of South Korean television networks.

South Korean Nielsen records quoted by Kompas.com show the 14th episode of The World of the Married reaching a rating of up to 24.33 percent nationally. That figure brought The World of the Married beyond the record previously held by Sky Castle, a 2018 drama series that recorded a rating of 23.78 percent.

This success has spread to various countries, including Indonesia. In Indonesia, The World of the Married was initially limited broadcast on popular video service provider Viu. Netflix then helped buy broadcast rights and catapulted the drama title starring Kim Hee-ae, Park Hae-joon, and Han So-hee into the sky of increasing popularity.

In fact, recently, one of the country's television stations, Trans TV, has also purchased viewing rights adapted from the British series, Doctor Foster (2015). With all the industrial expansion, Drakor is now not only enjoyed by a handful of people. Drakor is now consumed by all ages and social groups.

The period of the COVID-19 pandemic, which requires people to stay at home, also has an impact on the increase in watching drakor activities. The World of the Married, in particular, when referring to the monitoring of Nielsen South Korea.

The World of the Married is perhaps the most successful today. But, the long history of success in Drakor has actually started a long time ago. As well as the entire industrial history. Drakor's greatness was not only built in recent years. Literacy shows that the roots of Drakor greatness have even grown long before the Korean War (1950-1953).

The book Korea: Past & Present (2012) released by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of South Korea explains that the historical roots of drakor come from religious rituals that have existed since prehistoric times. One of them comes in the form of a classical theater performance of the Sandaenori Mask Dance, a dance that combines movement arts, song strains, satire, and humor.

What is unique, the Sandaenori Mask Dance event has a different style from one region to another. “From one area to another there are slight differences in style, dialogue and costumes. Later, this form of theater gained tremendous popularity among rural communities until the early 20th century, ”writes.

The development of the classical theater of the Sandaenori Mask Dance continues into its advanced ages. It evolved until the performance was carried out by broadcasting radio waves. This evolution was marked by the establishment of the radio network Kyosong Pangsongguk - now the Korean Broadcasting System - during the Japanese colonial period in 1927.

Drakor doesn't just evolve in form. Through the Kyosong Pangsongguk radio waves, Drakor also revolutionized the world of broadcasting. Before Drakor and Kyosong Pangsongguk, radios in that country only broadcast Japanese language programs. The love of drakor as a radio drama has opened the wings for traditional broadcasts - including music - to air.

An article entitled The Birth of Broadcasting Media and Popular Music by Lee Jung-yup in the book "Made in Korea: Studies in Popular Music" (2017) describes the early heyday of traditional music and radio drakor on local broadcasts occurred in 1934- 1936. "However, radio still functions as a media publication for Japanese imperialism rather than commercial popular media," wrote Lee Jung-yup.

In that initial period, radio drakor was limited to broadcast hours, which started at 7 pm local time. The first radio drakor to air was a story called The Elder Coachman (1934) by Kim Hee-chang. The title was so popular that in 1936 it began to be serialized.

"Therefore, several cultural elites, such as Kim Yong-pal, Yi Ha-yun, Hong Nan-pa, and Yi Hae-ku, try to represent Korean-nuanced programs in radio programs. Be it traditional music or radio drama series, "it is written.

At that time, the theme of radio drakor was dominated by crime stories and detective stories. The popularity of detective novels from the United States, England, France, and Japan that was being loved by the world at that time also influenced radio drama scriptwriters in South Korea.

The existence of Drakor was suspended due to the outbreak of World War II which was then followed by the Korean War. The resurrection only occurred one year after the ceasefire, namely 1954. At that time, the excitement of the radio drakor was again sparked by a story entitled Cheongsilhingsil. Not separated from the dark era of war, Drakor tells the story of a woman whose husband died because of the Korean War.

“That era was a time when many Korean people were still sad and wanted to cry. The drama provided an opportunity for people to cry and laugh while giving viewers a glimmer of dreams and romance that they could not find in the realities of life at that time, "wrote Kim Hwan-pyo's 2012 book Korea Through TV Drama.

The resurrection of Drakor happened in an extraordinary way since his suspended animation. Two years after the radio drama Cheongsilhongsil, Drakor began to penetrate television. August 1956, the first television drama entitled The Gate of Heaven, aired. The Gate of Heaven is extraordinarily loved. This triggered the appearance of other titles. As in previous eras, there is a certain tendency that occurs in this era: the story is mostly adopted as an adaptation of a stage play or novel.

In that era, drakor politicization occurred. The ruler realized the power of the drakor. Throughout the rule of authoritarian regimes (1948-1987), Drakor was often filled with propaganda messages. However, the audience didn't care. For them, Drakor is the most potent solace. In addition, trends begin to fade into diversity. Included by theme.

“Housewives are starting to be the main plot of dramas on television. Because housewives tend to face more stress in their daily lives. And because many of them do not have a goal of outlet for stress, so they must shift their emotions to television entertainment, especially soap operas (drama series), "wrote Hwan-pyo.

In the 1990s, the South Korean entertainment industry began an era of greater glory. South Korean culture and entertainment industry began to invade the world, including Indonesia. This term is known as the "Korean Wave".

Drakor became the main product that was brought by this big wave. That day, drakor has become an important part of the lives of most of the people of South Korea. Drakor that day was shown on private televisions broadcasting in various countries.

Winter Sonata (2003) became the most legendary title in the history of television dramas. The television series, directed by Seok-ho Yun, is the first drama to air outside South Korea. Japan is the first country to experience a Korean Wave invasion.

Joseph Nye and Youna Kim, in the book The Korean Wave: Korean Media Go Global (2013) explain the great influence of Winter Sonata in the spread of the Korean Wave. The achievements are extraordinary. The drama, starring Bae Yong-joon, unexpectedly entered the Middle East, Iraq to be precise in 2005.

“The Iraqi Defense Ministry initially considered providing Korean films in theaters. But it was later canceled due to fears of crowds of visitors that could lead to accidents or terrorist attacks. For this reason, the final decision will be taken is to choose to broadcast the Winter Sonata via television with local language translations, "he wrote.

In Indonesia, the popularity of the Korean entertainment industry began to invade in 2004. Tito Sianipar, in an article entitled Crazy All Korean (2019) in Tempo Magazine explained: The lighter is a Korean drama series broadcast by private television stations.

"The drama series Full House in 2004 was also shown here. The film was one of the early triggers for young people's love of Korean pop culture. The names of its stars, such as Bi or Rain and Song Hye-kyo, became familiar," he added.

Today, other titles have sprung up. The Korean Wave has increasingly invaded. His success is not only felt, but also recorded in the data. Like The World of the Married which today records many records as the most consumed spectacle.

Next article: Rows of Legendary and Most Influential Drakors for the South Korean Entertainment Industry