"Uncle Vanya" Lee Seo-jin tries to play after an acting gap.."It's easy to understand because it's menopause." [synthesis]

*This content was translated by AI.

Actors Lee Seo-jin and Go Ah-sung will be on stage for the first time with the play Uncle Vanya.

On the 7th, a production presentation for the play "Uncle Vanya" was held at LG Art Center Seoul in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. Lee Hyun-jung, head of LG Art Center, director Ahn Sang-gyu, and actor Lee Seo-jin, Goa-sung, Yang Jong-wook, Lee Hwa-jung, and Kim Soo-hyun attended the event.

Uncle Vanya reinterpreted Anton Chekhov's masterpiece Uncle Vanya with a modern sense. Adapted and directed by Sang-gyu Son.

"There is a work I want to direct during the classic, and at this point, I thought 'Uncle Vanya' would be comforting for me, and I wanted to share it with the audience," said Ahn Sang-kyu.

He spoke about the message he wanted to convey to the audience as "Uncle Vanya." Ahn Sang-gyu said, "Who dare say that someone lived a wrong life. "I feel like it's an era that hurts others too easily," he said. "It's become easier to judge other people's lives on SNS or the Internet and say something, and I feel that it's violent."

He continued, "I don't swear just because the tree looks like it, but I accept it as it is. But I think it's possible to do that about people, too. In that life itself, at least I think I can be generous about my life," he said.

Actor Lee Seo-jin will play the title role of "Vanya" and Go Ah-sung will play the role of his nephew "Sonya" for the first time since his debut. In this work, Lee Seo-jin takes the center stage of the decomposition work with "Vanya," which cannot let go of responsibility and affection, while expressing skepticism and dissatisfaction with life.

"At first, I refused to do it, of course," Lee Seo-jin said of the reason for appearing on "Uncle Vanya," adding, "I met the director and listened to him, and now I think I'm old enough to judge for myself. That's why I listen to a lot of opinions from young people and people around me," he said.

"People around me said it would be better to try it, and I finally decided to appear because I saw the passion of the staff," he said. "But now I regret it." It's so hard that I think it'll be my last work," he said, smiling.

As for the reason for his initial concern, he said, "I took a long break from acting because I left my work and lived as an entertainer. I had a meeting with the director and talked with the staff in the office, so I felt rejected because it was my first time, but there were many opinions that I could trust the people I met with and work with."

He added, "I was worried because I've done TV or movies, but I've never done a play before, but I accepted the advice that it would be better to try because it seems like a good opportunity has come."

Lee Seo-jin also opened up about the difficulties. He said, "I'm having menopause even before I take charge of 'Vanya', and it's not difficult to understand the role," adding, "I've never lived a regular life before, but it's the most difficult because it's an unfamiliar and new experience to repeat every day while preparing for this work."

"I'm going to perform in May, but it's also a burden to be nervous thinking about the performance since practice in March," he said. "When I asked other actors when this tension disappeared, they said it would be okay when the performance began. I'm very worried because I still have a lot of performances left."

Director Ahn Sang-gyu said about Lee Seo-jin's casting, "I don't watch TV much, but I thought he had a very good sense of humor and a strong sense of responsibility. I don't watch TV a lot, but I thought it was a great responsibility to complain like that and work hard," he said, adding, "You're still working hard enough to blow your nose. He complained, but he's working hard."

Go Ah-sung played the role of Sonya, a character who protects his living base with Vanya and extends to the next generation. He will demonstrate the unrivaled value of his acting career, drawing the solid and delicate texture of a character through "Sonya," which silently handles tomorrow even in a collapsing world.

He said, "I had respect and envy for the actors. I watched a play called "The Life of Others" by director Ahn Sang-gyu, and I was very moved at that time. So I thought I wanted to do "Uncle Vanya," he said.

Lee Seo-jin also had a great influence on the appearance, adding, "The senior was cast first. "If it's not now, when will I play the role of Lee Seo-jin's nephew again?" I didn't know he was this sweet. I'm practicing hard with other actors," he said.

Regarding how he felt about reading the script of "Uncle Vanya," Go Ah-sung said, "I can't remember reading Anton Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya" and read "Seagull" recently. After receiving the script, I read "Uncle Vanya" again and it was amazing, and I felt grateful. "I thought I could say this line with my own mouth for about a month," he said.

He said, "I've made many works with original novels, but when I read the classics, I never imagined I'd play them. I also had a point of comfort through this work, so I wanted to convey my heart to the audience," he stressed.

Go Ah-sung, who will be on his first stage as "Uncle Vanya," said, "Unlike media acting, the biggest difference is that we share opinions and practice together," adding, "I'm a great introvert, but that's not easy."

He emphasized, "If you feel like you're shooting and moving on to the next one, and you're already emptying out what you're shooting, the theater work tries to keep it hot without emptying out the work for about two hours."

"Uncle Vanya" is the third production of a series of productions by LG Art Center after "Cherry Blossom Garden" (2024, starring Jeon Do-yeon and Park Hae-soo) and "Heda Gabler" (2025, starring Lee Young-ae).

Lee Hyun-jung, director of the center, said, "I'm going to post a work that still has a valid message in our time. It aims to convey meaning and value to modern audiences by unraveling the classics in contemporary language. "We intend to create a work that can be universally sympathized beyond the generation and space. "By creating well-made plays based on the high level of production in Korean theater, many audiences enjoy it and focus on improving the possibility of Korean theater," he said.

After watching "The Life of Others," I thought about Ahn Sang-kyu, who appeared as an actor in "Cherry Blossom Garden," that another good director was born. So I suggested the work, and in the case of "Uncle Vanya", there was a part that empathized with the modern audience, so we decided to make it together. It's my first time doing a grand theater play, and I want to open an LG Art Center to potential and talented directors and contribute to the Korean theater industry," he said.

Meanwhile, "Uncle Vanya" will be performed at LG Art Center Seoul and LG SIGNATURE Hall from May 7 to 31.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.