Korea Nationwide Ballet’s manufacturing of “The Nutcracker” / Courtesy of Korea Nationwide Ballet
When the winter holidays arrive, theaters come alive with traditional favorites and new productions able to whisk audiences away to realms of fantasy, coronary heart and spectacle. Whether or not you crave timeless vacation magic, high-energy musicals or a very unconventional night time out, this season provides loads of causes to commerce a chilly night time out for a seat within the theater.
Vacation classics
The beloved ballet “The Nutcracker” is staged in numerous productions, highlighting its enduring allure as a vacation ballet.
The Korean Nationwide Ballet presents Yuri Grigorovich’s celebrated model on the Seoul Arts Middle’s Opera Theater via Dec. 25, that includes prime principal dancers corresponding to Park Seul-ki and Cho Yeon-jae. In a singular custom, the position of the Nutcracker is carried out by a baby dancer chosen yearly from the corporate’s ballet academy, reasonably than a picket puppet, including a particular allure to the manufacturing.
The Common Ballet Firm’s “The Nutcracker” is predicated on Vasili Vainonen’s Mariinsky Ballet model, which intently follows the unique 1892 St. Petersburg premiere. From the ethereal “Waltz of the Snowflakes” to the various “Land of Sweets,” this ballet is a perfect selection for households in search of a festive outing. It will likely be staged on the Grand Theater of the Sejong Middle for the Performing Arts in central Seoul from Dec. 17 to twenty-eight.
For these in search of a recent tackle a traditional, the Seoul Metropolitan Musical Theatre’s new adaptation of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” brings Scrooge’s emotional journey to stage. On this musical, one actor performs all three of the ghostly guides who go to Scrooge, with Lisa and Lee Yeon-kyung alternating the position. The rating strikes seamlessly from heat melodies to stirring, dramatic numbers. The present runs via Dec. 28 on the Sejong M Theater of the Sejong Middle for the Performing Arts.
A scene from the musical “Lease” / Yonhap
Musicals and performs
Jonathan Larson’s iconic rock musical “Lease” units its story on a Christmas Eve in early‑Nineties New York, tracing the lives of younger artists struggling to outlive, create and love amid uncertainty. Gritty but hopeful, the present’s themes of loss, neighborhood and resilience give it a definite vacation resonance. “Lease” runs via Feb. 22, 2026, at COEX Artium in southern Seoul.
For pure spectacle and popular culture aptitude, “Moulin Rouge!” dazzles with its Parisian cabaret world of windmills, romance and mash-ups of over 70 pop hits, from Madonna’s “Materials Woman” to Beyonce’s “Single Women.” Hong Kwang-ho, Lee Seok-hoon and Cha Yun-hae alternate as Christian, whereas Kim Ji-woo and Jeong Solar-ah share the position of Satine. It runs via Feb. 22, 2026, at Blue Sq. in central Seoul.
A scene from the musical “Moulin Rouge!” / Courtesy of CJ ENM
Tim Burton followers can benefit from the musical “Beetlejuice,” which brings the director’s signature gothic aesthetic and offbeat humor to life on stage. With a set that shifts between the current and the Victorian period, big sandworm puppets and ghostly soccer gamers, the present transforms LG Arts Middle in southwestern Seoul right into a surreal playground. Jung Sung-hwa, Kim Jun-su and Jung Received-young share the position of Beetlejuice, delivering a Korean tackle this American cult traditional from Dec. 16 to March 22, 2026.
One among this season’s most anticipated productions is the primary non-English adaptation of “Lifetime of Pi,” primarily based on Yann Martel’s award-winning 2001 novel. Movie star Park Jeong-min and stage actor Park Kang-hyun take turns portraying Pi, a boy who survives a shipwreck and a 227-day journey at sea with a Bengal tiger. Audiences are handled to breathtaking stagecraft that transports them from a hospital in Mexico to a zoo in India and out onto the Pacific Ocean, all in seamless transition. On the coronary heart of the present is a life-sized tiger puppet, delivered to life by three puppeteers shifting as one. “Lifetime of Pi” is staged at GS Arts Middle in southern Seoul via March 2, 2026.
A scene from the Korean stage manufacturing of “Lifetime of Pi” / Courtesy of S&CO
Forge your individual path
If you happen to’re in search of one thing unconventional to wrap up the yr, “Sleep No Extra” on the McKithan Lodge provides an immersive journey in contrast to the rest in Korea. This site-specific efficiency invitations audiences to roam freely via an enormous Thirties-inspired resort, experiencing scenes impressed by “Macbeth” and Hitchcock movies. With a number of storylines unfolding throughout seven flooring, no two visits are the identical. Visitors are inspired to put on snug footwear and discover solo for the perfect expertise. The McKithan Lodge is positioned close to Chungmuro Station on Seoul Metro strains 3 and 4 and the present is on an open-ended run.
A scene from the Korean manufacturing of “Sleep No Extra,” an immersive theater staged on the McKithan Lodge in central Seoul / Courtesy of Ms. Jackson
