The Korean Cultural Center Los Angeles (Director Haedon Lee), in collaboration with the Korea National Opera (General Director & Artistic Director Sang-ho Choi), will present Opera Voyage at Zipper Hall, Colburn School in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, at 7:00 PM.

This concert is part of the “Touring K-Arts” program, supported by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange. It is jointly presented by the Korean Cultural Centers in Los Angeles, New York, Washington, D.C., and Canada. In addition, the LA concert will serve as the pre-opening performance of the 52nd LA Korean Festival, bringing the beauty of Korean opera and tradition closer to local audiences.

The North American tour will be held across six performances in four cities?New York, Washington, D.C., Ottawa, and Los Angeles. Among these, the LA performance is particularly noteworthy as a key stage for vibrant cultural exchange between Korea and the United States. By introducing the stage of the Korea National Opera not only to the Korean American community but also to the broader mainstream audience, the event is expected to elevate the global profile of Korean arts and foster pride within the Korean community.

This performance will be led by the Young Artist Program members of the Korea National Opera Studio. Established in 2021, the program nurtures the next generation of opera singers by providing systematically designed training and hands-on stage experience to talented vocalists selected through auditions.

For this North American tour, the lineup includes sopranos Heejung Kim and Naoon Koo; tenors Seonghyeon Kim and Jaeyeol Kim; baritones Younghoon Kim and Seungbin Park; along with pianist Sohong Park. Together, these rising stars will present a vibrant and powerful performance, embodying the future of Korea’s opera stage.

The Opera Voyage concert features a diverse program, including the Korean opera Soul Mate (Cheonsaeng Yeonbun), well-known opera arias, Korean art songs, and folk songs.

Part I presents a gala concert of composer Junhee Lim’s opera Soul Mate. This work explores the universal theme of “marriage” through the lens of traditional Korean wedding culture and melodies. Commissioned by the Korea National Opera, it premiered in Frankfurt, Germany, in 2006, leaving a strong impression on international audiences, who praised it as “an ideal combination of Korea’s rich culture with European elements.”

Part II includes beloved opera arias such as “Der Holle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen” from Mozart’s Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute) and “Mein Sehnen, mein Wahnen” from Korngold’s Die tote Stadt (The Dead City). Alongside these are Korean art songs and folk favorites, including Kim Dong-jin’s Shin Arirang, Kim Sung-tae’s Dongshimcho (Child’s Heart), and Cho Doo-nam’s Boat Song.