문화상호주의적 맥락에서 본 비보잉의 한국적 수용- <마리오네트> 개별 사례 분석

Abstract

The essay examines the specific and various factors surrounding Expression Crew’s intercultural adaptation of hip hop and b-boying into the non-verbal b-boying show The Marionette in the contemporary Korean context. The existing discourse of intercultural performance has revolved around western directors’ creative attempts to recreate eastern performance traditions in their own cultural context and postcolonial reactions to such ‘appropriation’ of cultures of the Other. What have been relatively overlooked are intercultural performances by non-western artists and those that utilize ‘low’ or sub-cultures. In this respect, The Marionette provides an alternative intercultural model since the Korean b-boys have successfully recreated American b-boying, a subcultural dance genre traced back to the Harlem youths in the late 20th century, into a distinct show of its own despite its aesthetic and political limitations. More specifically, The Marionette has transformed the originally individualist and battle-oriented dance into an art of professionalism and collaboration with a touch of romantic lyricism that strongly appeals to young Korean audiences. At the center of the intercultural adaptation process lie the enthusiasm and individual circumstances of Expression Crew as well as the peculiar socio-cultural environment of South Korea. The case study of The Marionette shows that intercultural performance cannot be reduced to a single factor such as the director’s vision but multiple socio-cultural and individual factors are involved in its creation. More significantly, as a solid model of intercultural performance, The Marionette demonstrates the possibility that, by staying open to other cultures while remaining critical of them at the same time, theatre today can offer distinct, creative, and culturally diverse performance experiences to its audience.