'Bernarda Alba' captures women's struggle for freedom
Posted : 2021-02-15 12:57
Updated : 2021-02-15 17:15
By Kwon Mee-yoo
The musical "Bernarda Alba" is a rare phenomenon in Korean theater. The 10-woman show, which revolves around a domineering mother and her five daughters in an Andalusian household in Spain, is a hot ticket despite the pandemic.
The Michael John LaChiusa musical is based on Spanish writer Federico Garcia Lorca's 1936 play "The House of Bernarda Alba."
LaChiusa incorporated elements from indigenous Spanish folk songs and rhythm and percussion coming from hand-clapping and foot-stomping. Combined with flamenco-influenced choreography, the musical eloquently tells of the struggle between freedom and oppression within the house of Bernarda Alba and women's rights, which has advanced yet stays the same in some ways.