“Knife-like precision even for the arm angle, practising with tears flowing”

Musical actor Shin Youngsook and Luna have returned as mother and daughter. They are acting in the roles of Donna and Sophie in the musical ‘Mamma Mia!’, which will be performed at LG Art Center until 14th Septeember. This is not the first time that these two have met. They have already worked together in ‘Rebecca (2017)’ and ‘The Last Kiss (2018)’. Even so, the reason these two’s meeting in ‘Mamma Mia!’ is special is because they will be acting as mother and daughter and allowing the audience to sympathise with them.

Maybe it’s because of this, but even before the interview started, the two of them displayed extraordinary affection. Luna cheered and ran towards Shin Youngsook once she saw her, and Shin Youngsook greeted Luna with an embrace. The interview began as the two sat down and for quite some time, asked about each other’s wellbeing. It’s hard for even best friends to be so happy to see each other.

<Below is the Q&A of Shin Youngsook and Luna’s Interview>

Q: Firstly, please tell us how you feel about being casted for ‘Mamma Mia!’.

Luna (Sophie): ‘Mamma Mia!’ is a project I have been waiting for for 10 years. My mother likes ABBA, so we’ve watched the movie more than 100 times. Every time I watch it, I think about wanting to play ‘Sophie’ at least once someday. As you know, the competition for this casting was 250:1. It was so hard that through the auditions, I thought ‘Ah, I would be sad if I don’t get this role, but at the same time even if I pass, I will be worried’. Sophie’s acting and singing is really difficult. It’s one of the hardest practices I’ve ever had. I went in to the first performance with my hands shaking. I was extremely nervous.

Shin Youngsook (Donna): People tend to say “If you’re doing ‘Mamma Mia!’, it must be enjoyable and comfortable, right?”, but that’s a misunderstanding. In all these years, ‘Donna’ is the toughest role I have ever had. First of all, Donna and Sophie have a lot of air time, and it’s not easy to convey the deep story of this mother-daughter pair. 3 years ago when I first took on the role of ‘Donna’, there were so many things to do that I would cry as I practiced every day. Now, I’ve grown much more and am able to be more relaxed, so it’s okay.

Q: Seems like practicing for ‘Mamma Mia!’ is hard. From the perspective of an audience, it honestly doesn’t look that bad. With how exciting the numbers are, it also feels like the actors will be very excited [while performing]. Looks like it was not all as it seemed?

Shin Youngsook: It’s really hard. Even in one scene, there are many actions that you have to adhere to. In the scene where I sing ‘Dancing Queen’, the hand in which you hold the mic is designated, and even the angle of the arm movements are fixed. As there are many movements that have to be done in a short period of time, [there are times where] I wanted to cry. In the past, I was so nervous about getting a movement wrong, to the point of vomitting before the performance. However, when I manage to perform perfectly and without any bells and whistles through practice, it feels really good.

On days when I’m not scheduled to perform, there are times where I sit in the audience and watch. I’m more nervous [than the performers] while watching, because I know better than anyone else how much hardship the people up there went through. I was sitting in a chair but I felt drained. It was even to the point where I thought ‘it would be better if I was performing’ [rather than watching]. I also watched Luna’s performance. I was anxious as if it was really my daughter standing on stage. My family doesn’t really come to watch ‘Mamma Mia!’ either. They know how much suffering I went through, so they say they can’t bear to come watch.

Luna: In my heart, I wanted to do well, but my body wasn’t following. You have no idea how upsetting that is. Firstly, there are barely any scenes that I’m not in (laughs). While acting, it’s so hard to find the appropriate level. She’s the brightest of all the characters that I’ve played, but you can’t be too bright or too serious [while playing her]. It’s important to be able to naturally act out the lovely but at the same time tear-inducing mother and daughter pair for 2 and a half hours, so I sharpened my skills while crying.

Q: The two of you have already met in ‘Rebecca’ and ‘The Last Kiss’. You two were practically enemies in ‘Rebecca’, so how is it like meeting as mother and daughter in ‘Mamma Mia!’?

Shin Youngsook: Luna has such great energy. She has a positive personality and she is an actor with an open mind, so she learns quick. In a situation where we have done 3 projects together and are close, it is really helping me emotionally as she is acting as my daughter. While practicing, we would say “Luna seems like she will really run around and live on an island”. She’s resembles Sophie’s image that much. And she’s always been good at singing. I become happier too, working with her.

Luna: I rely on [Shin Youngsook] unnie a lot. Watching as she practiced for ‘Mamma Mia!’ even while performing ‘Excalibur’, the thought of “When will I be able to perform like unnie” occurred to me lots of times. As she puts so much focus into practice that no matter how tired I feel, I can’t make it obvious, it’s impossible for me not to feel respect for her. Also, in her previous work she mainly played roles with strong characters, but in ‘Mamma Mia!’, she plays Donna who has a strong drama element to her. Watching her act out the image of Donna, who looks tough but is also delicate, I once again feel that she really is a ‘born actor’.

Q: Even if we live in different countries or have different ways of living, I think that the theme of ‘mother and daughter’ can be empathised with no matter where we are. It is an important reason why ‘Mamma Mia!’ is so loved. While playing these roles, which part did you empathise with the most?

Luna: Sophie is really similar to me. In the musical, Sophie is really curious about who is her real father, and she sends letters to the three man. Including the goofy side of her that if curious [about something], has to find out, her defiant and positive about everything personality is similar to mine, so it helped me in understanding the character.

Shin Youngsook: Since it is a story about a mother and daughter, there are times where I get so overwhelmed by difficult emotions that it’s hard to even act. Those maternal emotions that rise up in me without me knowing, there are times when those real emotions come and I don’t have to act. These are different emotions to those I felt while acting as Donna 3 years ago. As such, if I am able to play Donna again a few years later, I’m anticipating being able to show another side of ‘Donna’ as a mother.

Q: For ‘Mamma Mia!’, the curtain call is also a highlight. That’s when the audience also dances.

Shin Youngsook: I may even be doing ‘Mamma Mia!’ because of that delight. Although singing 3 songs one after the other is hard, the energy that the audience sends is so amazing that I feel ‘I’m glad I did this project’. I do see people who are so excited during the performance that they are moving their bottoms. And then during the curtain call their excitement levels explode. They make us excited too.

Luna: At those times, the thoughts of having dragged through the past 2 hours difficutly disappear in a ‘poof’. Don’t know where all that energy comes from.

Q: It also shows how much strength ABBA’s songs give.

Luna: My mother really loved ABBA, so even though it wasn’t during my time, there were many numbers that are familiar to me even when I hear them. The original the songs have always been sophisticated and had such unique vocals. As a singer, I tend to follow these aspects. However, in the musical, I have to sing as Sophie in a new way, so I am mixing the two methods appropriately as I sing.

Shin Youngsook: I’m suddenly reminded of Cho Youngpil’s concert. I wasn’t a fan to the point where. I would look for his songs to listen to, but I still knew all the songs he sang at his concert. That’s when I realised how influential of an artist he is. I think it’s the same for ABBA. In addition to that, their lyrics are also so unique. Because they have lyrics that are familiar and also fun, like ‘Does your mother know?’ or “I quit cigarettes’, they are able to transcend generations and countries. I am in awe whenever I sing [the lyrics]

Q: Luna, when time has passed and you are at the age where you can play Donna, do you have any plans to do so?

Luna: Of course. I, too, want to be a cool mother like Donna, and in reality if the opportunity arises, I can’t let it get away. If I am able to play ‘Donna’, it would be a huge honour for me.

Shin Youngsook: If that happens, wouldn’t Luna be the first actor in ‘Mamma Mia!’ history to play both ‘Sophie’ and ‘Donna’? I hope that Luna will continue doing musicals. Although there still is the prejudice of being an ‘idol’, fame is not enough to be able to take on roles. You have to be someone who is able to do dozens of live performances to be [a musical actor]. On that point, Luna is multi-talented and is always growing, so I believe she can do it. You can do it, right?

Luna: I definitely will! I understand how important the ‘Mamma Mia!’ expierence is. Even looking at someone like Youngsook unnie, I am able to feel how amazing the preciousness of ‘experience’ is. I’m still lacking and still someone who has a long way to go. Like the opening and ending song ‘I Have a Dream’, I want to someone who does well at new challenges.

Shin Youngsook: All the actors are memorising the lyric ‘If you believe, it will happen’ like it’s a spell. I hope that the audience will be able to gain great courage and strength from watching ‘Mamma Mia!’.

Source

translations by hamsoonie

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