On August 16, 2025, Gwanghee was presented at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles as a dance drama commemorating the 80th anniversary of Korea’s liberation.
Hosted by the Korean American Federation of Los Angeles and organized by the Korean American Dance Association, the production brought together the Kim Eung Hwa Korean Dance Company and the GoEunChum Noh Jung Ae Dance Company. More than 60 performers joined the stage, including principal dancers Lee Hye Ran, Kim Soo Young, Angela Ahn, and Hong Hae Na.
Gwanghee follows a young woman who loses her father during the Donghak Peasant Revolution, grows up learning traditional dance in a gyobang, and later joins the independence movement as Korean culture and traditional arts are suppressed under Japanese colonial rule. The work honors the lives and resilience of Korean women while carrying their memory into the present.
Under the artistic direction of Kim Eung Hwa, the production blended traditional Korean dance and pansori with contemporary movement, period-inspired Charleston choreography, and music including “Bird, Bird, Blue Bird.” The result joined historical storytelling with a living, evolving stage tradition.
Performance details
Date: August 16, 2025, 7:00 PM
Venue: Wilshire Ebell Theatre, Los Angeles, California