Format / Medium Theatrical Fable; Critique of Modern Urbanism
Presentation & Context 2024 Chung-Ang University Theatre
Key Roles Director, Composer
Keywords #PhilosophicalInquiry, #EmotionalDesign, #Storytelling, #CritiqueOfModernity, #SpaceVsHome, #Fable, #Composer
Synopsis
In "Box Boy," there are two worlds: the color-fading "city" and the green-hued "box" world. On a monthly dining-out day, lost on his way home, "Hajan" encounters "Ato," resting on a box. Hajan cannot understand why Ato chooses to live in the "uncomfortable" box instead of a "good" house left behind. Consequently, Hajan handles the keys guarding the "most important house," although they weigh heavily on him.
Through conversations with Ato, Hajan realizes he is the unhappy one despite living in a big, expensive house incomparable to Ato's small, box-like dwelling, where Ato has a loving family. Hajan lives alone, feeling the emptiness of his vast home. However, when his parents visit, Hajan eagerly approaches them, but they only seek the keys...
Contribution & Conceptual Framework
As Director and Composer, my role was to create a modern fable that directly confronts the question: "What is a 'real' home?"
The work asks: "...does the 'space' we inhabit provide us with sufficient 'warmth' and 'relationships'?"
Immersive Staging: The audience was seated on 'boxes', not traditional theatre chairs. This directorial choice immediately removed them from the context of the 'city' and made them direct physical participants in Ato's "box world," blurring the line between spectator and inhabitant.
