Yakiniku Dragon

  • 2010/2011 Season
  • Yakiniku Dragon
  • THE PIT

Set in a yakiniku (Korean BBQ) restaurant in Japan, Yakiniku Dragon tells the story of a Korean family living in Japan. The play – by turns comical, sad, and painful – deals with issues defining the present, past and future of the Japan-ROK relationship. When the play premiered, Chong Wishing said his aim was to portray a big history behind a small yakiniku shop. In this complicated history of people living in cramped quarters by an airport, we find a universal tale that must have played out in countless places back in the day.
Like the premiere, this encore production will feature a delightfully mixed cast of actors, comic storytellers and musicians from both Japan and South Korea, making for a lively time at the Yakiniku Dragon.

SYNOPSIS

In a Kansai city, 1970—the year of the World Exposition. In a corner of a society enjoying the fruits of an "economic miracle", the Yakiniku Dragon is open for business on a night like any other. Owner Kim Yong Gil lost his left arm in the Pacific War, but has not allowed this to slow him down. He has two daughters by a previous marriage, and his current wife Young Soon has one child of her own. They also have a son between them. With this motley crew of a family and cast of outlandish patrons, it's another raucous night at the Yakiniku Dragon peppered with laughter, squabbles, and even tears.
Like everything around it, the Yakiniku Dragon is being buffeted by the winds of change.