A group of young performers from Yeongwol is turning local folk tales into English-language musicals — and they call themselves the "Global Stars."
Nine child performers recently took the stage in Yeongwol, presenting the opening and closing songs of two original productions — "Cave Rock Adventure" and "Baekwol Laundry Site" — both based on local folk tales. The audience responded warmly.
The cast used the performance to gauge how far their training had taken them and to gain real stage experience. They plan to continue rehearsing ahead of a full-scale production scheduled for later this year.
According to Yeongwol-gun in Gangwon Province, the Global Stars course — run through the cultural city center's culture and arts school — has been operating since late May with the goal of staging a complete English musical, with participants learning English dialogue, songs and choreography.
The Global Stars participants showed off the skills they had honed when they performed at "Yeongwol, A Night of Wonders" on Saturday.
The Global Stars are set to return to the "Yeongwol, A Night of Wonders" stage on Saturday.
After those two appearances, the group plans to present full-scale musical performances of both original productions in November at the Yeongwol Culture and Arts Center and at the 2026 Culture Charge Festa.
An official at the Yeongwol Culture and Tourism Foundation's cultural city center said the program had gone beyond simply teaching English lines. "Through the process of preparing toward the goal of an actual performance, we were able to see the passion and growth of the participants," the official said. "We hope the performances to come will leave good memories for both participants and audiences alike."
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