NYT: The Phantom of the Opera soldiers on in Korea

“I don’t think we should just be sitting on our hands and saying, it’s all doom and gloom,” said British musical theater composer Andrew Lloyd Webber to The New York Times (NYT). “We have got to make the theaters as safe for everybody as we possibly can.” And South Korea, he said, shows that it can work.

“The Phantom of the Opera” has gone on at the Blue Square cultural complex in central Seoul despite the COVID-19 crisis, and the NYT attributed it to “South Korea’s rigorous system of test, trace and quarantine.”

The global tour of the show, which was suspended following an outbreak in the ensemble in April, is now playing eight shows a week in the 1,600-seat theater with the help of hand sanitizer, masks and disinfectant.

“Who knew we’d end up being in the safest place in the world?” said Matt Leisy who plays Raoul, adding that his friends were “freaking out” at the idea that he might go back to Korea.


Taek Kyoon Sohn sohn@donga.com