The critically acclaimed masterpiece Hymn of Death—beloved across drama, theater, and musical—makes a powerful return to the stage.
On the 4th, the team behind the musical Hymn of Death, now back for its eighth season, revealed its opening schedule and a star-studded casting lineup.
Hymn of Death is an original musical inspired by the 1926 disappearance of genius playwright Kim U-jin—who sparked Korea’s first modern theater movement—and the nation’s first soprano, Yoon Sim-deok, in the Korea Strait on August 4, 1926. Since its 2013 premiere, its tightly woven story and stirring music have consistently earned rave reviews from audiences.
The show is a fact-meets-fiction “faction,” adding a mysterious, unnamed man to the real-life figures Kim U-jin and Yoon Sim-deok. It deftly crosscuts past and present to trace their journey from their first meeting in 1921 to the moments just before their disappearance in 1926.
This season, the role of the prodigious playwright Kim U-jin will be played by On Joo-wan, Im Jun-hyeok, Seon Han-guk, and Lee Jin-hyuk. The tragic soprano Yoon Sim-deok will be portrayed by Choi Yeon-woo, Yeo Eun, Jung Woo-yeon, and Kim Soo-yeon. The enigmatic “Man of Unknown Identity,” who holds the key to the case, will be taken on by Kim Ji-on, Yoo Hyun-seok, Won Tae-min, and Kim Chan-jong. With beloved veterans returning alongside fresh faces, anticipation is already soaring for the new onstage chemistry.
Meanwhile, the gold-standard original musical Hymn of Death will run from June 16 to September 6, further cementing its status as a perennial fan favorite.