Stage Whisper
Whisper in the Wings Episode 583
(upbeat music) - Welcome back in everyone to a fantastic new Whisper in the Wings from Stade Whisper. We are so excited to be welcoming back an amazing playwright who you recently heard on our show when we were covering the Lighthouse series at SoHo Playhouse. And now their show is heading across the ocean to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. So joining us today, we have the playwright, performer and producer, Sora Beck. She's here to talk about her amazing show Selney. I'm from North Korea. As I mentioned, it is part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and it's playing July 31st through August 25th at Pleasant's Courtyard. You can get your tickets and more information by visiting pleasant.co.uk/events or even easier, just head to her website, sorebeck.com. This was such a great show to learn more about and we are so excited that it continues to grow its legs and this time across the sea. So let's not waste any more time. Let's go ahead and welcome on our guests, Sora, welcome to Whisper in the Wings from Stade Whisper. - Hi, Andrew, thank you so much for having me. I'm very, very excited. - I'm so excited that you're here. I'm so excited that we get to delve a little bit more into this piece. Selney, I am from North Korea. Why don't we start by having you refresh our memories and tell us again what this show is about? - Sure, so Selney, I am from North Korea, was inspired by true stories of incredibly courageous North Korean woman defectors. It basically follows a North Korean girl who decides to sell her body to an old man to buy medications for her dying mother. But however, after risking her life by crossing into China, she learns that no man would wanna pay for her underdeveloped body. So she binds herself on the street and she has to figure out how to be safe and protect herself, how not to get killed. - Wow, that's an amazing story. So what exactly inspired you to pen this piece? - So about six years ago, I read a book called Girl with Seven Names by a North Korean defector and it literally shook my entire system because that's when I realized that I'm from South Korea. So I thought, or I believe that I knew what North Korea was about, but after reading that book, I realized that what I knew about North Korea was what my government wanted me to know. So I started a very serious research buying and reading books and watching documentaries and YouTube, anything I could get my hands on. And I started journaling without knowing what it was. And about a year later, when I looked back, I saw that I wrote a small, not small, but like a play and that was the beginning of "Sell Me", I'm from North Korea. - That is amazing. That is absolutely amazing. I love that you're bringing truly an unknown story to the forefront. I don't think we hear enough about that part of the world and what's going on with that. There's a common narrative. There's something that we all, like everyone hears about, but there's also another set. There are several sides, there are many stories from that region of the world that we just never hear about. And I think this is one of them. I had no idea about these kinds of things. So this is amazing. - Now, as you're getting ready to go over to the Edinburgh French Festival, you're fresh off the Lighthouse series, what has it been like developing this current iteration of "Sell Me"? - It was not easy because I had a newborn son at that time. I read the book that I mentioned, I read the book and I was literally holding my son in my arm while I was turning the pages. So I was constantly nursing, beating, changing diapers, but at the same time, I wanted to stay creative. And in a way, this piece "Sell Me" I'm from North Korea is what's been helping me stay sane and creative and growing as an artist. So I started answering that it was not easy, but at the same time, it's been really, really rewarding. - That is so empowering to hear. And what a way to develop the piece while having a newborn, that is amazing. Kudos to you for that. - Thank you. - So as we've mentioned, I mean, this is a story that is rarely heard and it's a very human and powerful story. Is there a message or a thought you're hoping the audiences will take away from the piece? - I wouldn't like people to know that North Korea is not just about nuclear weapons or they're very strange leaders. There are people just like us living in North Korea and they need our help. Right now, they're dying because no one is aware of what is really happening inside of the country. And I would say that they're one of the most, one of the people who need our help the most. And somehow they're just covered by this Black curtain and I wanna be the one who are lifting up the Black curtain and share their sufferings so that the whole world gets to know what is happening, the truth about North Korea. And eventually send the help over there to help them out. - I love, love that idea. I really do because you've nailed it on the head. - My final question for this first part is who are you hoping to have access to your piece? - Oh, everyone. And everyone who's willing to open their mind and wanna learn about this very hidden world. And I promise you, I guarantee you, you're gonna learn so much about their humanity. They're just like us. And I want people to just know and feel that there are people like us in North Korea. And that's all I care in. And therefore I want everyone to watch this show. (upbeat music) (upbeat music) - Well, for the second part of our interview, we love giving our listeners a chance to get to know you a little bit better. Pick your brains, if you will. And I'm really interested to know, you know, what or who inspires you? What playwrights, composers, or shows have inspired you in the past or are just some of your favorites? - So for me, I'm a research person. So I love reading books and that's where I get ideas. And that's how, and tell me I'm from North Korea was the same way. I read this book called "Girl with the Savings Names" and they spiked my whole world. And now my world is expanding and I'm very, very grateful to be able to create and share this work. But another inspiring story or the story that I've been holding on ever since I was young was that like I mentioned earlier, I grew up in South Korea and I was about 12 and I was waiting for a bus and it was a really hot summer like today. And somebody gave me a free ticket to a black box theater show and I was 12 and I didn't know what theater was and I'm sure I had a vague idea but I've never seen a show myself. So I went and I found out that it wasn't even a black box theater, it was on a black curtain theater. And I walked in or rather I crawled in through the curtains and said, despite the time I got there, the theater, the play was already happening. And I sat the front row and I still remember, it just like it makes me cry. I still remember, I just, I knew I found my home and I could see the actors, they were sweating, they were spitting and I just, I didn't mind at all getting their spit in my face because I knew they were my people and like whenever I feel discouraged because you know, we are all humans. So we feel discouraged from time to time or sometimes more than we wish it to be. But that's the story that keeps me going, you know, day in and day out. - I love that what a cool experience, that is amazing. I want that to happen to me. That sounds amazing. So I love how into theater you are. I love how you got into it and whatnot. So I would love to know, what is your favorite part about working in the theater? - People, collaborating, not knowing, working on this unknown thing, almost like unboned thing. And we're, we somehow we're gonna just, you know, we're gonna see how it all comes out and become something that we don't even know what it is yet. And then trusting that we are actually creating something and something will come out of it and meeting people and creating and sharing. And I really think that it's the people, it's the people that I love the most. - Amen, say it again for the people in the back that is a fantastic answer. And I think that rings true with most of not all theater artists. Wonderful and fun answer. And a great lead in to my favorite question to ask guests, which of course is what is your favorite theater memory? - So I was in college in South Korea and I was a bad student 'cause I knew I wanted to be an actor and because I was a, you know, I was this like obedient South Korean girl. My parents wanted me to be something else. So I went to college to study something else that my parents wanted me to be. But I just did not study at all. And I founded this theater club and I spent all my college years in that theater club. And we won many awards. We performed at this like very cool theater venues because we, and I think that everything, like all those things could happen because we were so innocent and pure and passionate and we didn't care nothing at all. And I didn't care about my grade and I didn't care about my parents getting pissed at me because I wasn't getting the grades. But I think that that experience, that favorite theater memory is what's made me who I am today. - I love that memory. Thank you so much for sharing that. Well, as we wrap things up, I would love to know, do you have any other projects or productions coming down the pipeline? You might be able to plug for you. - Yeah, so I've been working with a dear friend of mine and a producer, Dina Taubman, and a director, fabulous director, Hope Salas, about what it's like to be getting old as a female, you know, female body in America. So we had a successful reading last May and we are hoping to do a full production in the spring of 2025. And it's gonna be on my website sometime in the fall. So come and find us. - Wonderful. Oh my gosh, it's exciting. And it leads to my final question, which is if our listeners have been like more information about "Sell Me", I am from North Korea, or about you, maybe I'd like to reach out to you, how can they do so? - Please reach out to me. My website is www.sorabackbazimboyak.com. And also my Instagram is, I am Soraback. My ex, meaning Twitter is I am Soraback as well. And my Facebook is Soraback13. And I would love to hear from you, please. - Yes, wonderful. Well, Sora, thank you so much for taking the time to come back and share the show once again with us. I'm so excited for everyone at the Edinburgh Friends who get to take the show in. This is such a great piece. And I can't wait for it to come back to New York. I'm so excited to see it. But thank you so much for your time today. - Oh, thank you, Andrew, for having me. And I had so much fun, and I hope to come back soon. And share the stories from Edinburgh. - Yes, oh, I can't wait. My guest today has been the amazing playwright, performer, and producer, Soraback, who joined us to talk more about her piece, "Sell Me, I'm from North Korea." It's part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and you can catch it there July 31st through August 25th at the Pleasant's Courtyard. Taking some more information are available at pleasant.co.uk/events or at Sora's website, www.soreback.com. We also have some contact information for Sora that we're gonna be posting on our episode description, as well as on our social media posts. But listen, if you're going to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, get your tickets now. If you're not going, change your plans and get over there and see this amazing show. Again, "Sell Me, I'm from North Korea," playing July 31st through August 25th at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. So until next time, I'm Andrew Cortez, reminding you to turn off your cell phones, unwrap your candies, and keep talking about the theatre. - A nice day's whisper. - Thank you. (upbeat music) - If you like what you hear, please leave a five star review, like and subscribe. - You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram at StageWhisperPod. - And feel free to reach out to us with your comments and personal stories at StageWhisperPod@gmail.com. - And be sure to check out our website for all things StageWhisper and theatre. You'll be able to find merchandise, tours, tickets and more. Simply visit stagewhisperpod.com. Our theme song is "Maniac" by Jazzar. Other music on this episode provided by Jazzar and Billy Murray. You can also become a patron of our show by logging onto patreon.com/stagewhisperpod. There you will find all the information about our backstage pass as well as our tip jar. Thank you so much for your generosity. We could not do the show without you. ♪ I'm way too narrow ♪ ♪ Where I don't care ♪ ♪ Anywhere will you come ♪ ♪ Makes me there ♪ [BLANK_AUDIO]