Hoon Sook Moon receives Korea's top prize
November 5, 2011
Tongil Foundation
Julia (Hoon-Sook) Moon, founding member and General Director of Universal Ballet.
Julia H. Moon, director of Universal Ballet, was awarded the Kyung Ahm Academic Award Nov. 4 for her contribution to the development of ballet in Korea.
The award was made by the Kyung Ahm Education and Culture Foundation, a private foundation that annually recognizes Koreans who have made outstanding contributions in their respective fields.
"Julia H. Moon, already well-known internationally as a ballerina and the leader of Universal Ballet, has made great contributions to popularizing ballet among Koreans and to elevating Korean ballet to a global standard," the Foundation said in explaining its decision to award Mrs. Moon (far left in photo below).
The prize, which comes with a 100 million won cash award, is considered the most prestigious in Korea. Past recipients in the arts category include the violinist Kyung Wha Chung and pianist Kun Woo Paik. Mrs. Moon is the first to receive the award in the field of dance.
"I would like to share this award with the members and staff of Universal Ballet who have worked with me over the past 27 years to develop ballet in Korea, popularize it and bring it to a world level," Mrs. Moon said in a Twitter Message.
Universal Ballet is partly funded by Tongil Foundation.
Other recipeints this year were as follows. Prof. Young Shik Kim of Seoul National University (Department of East Asian History) and Prof. Hee Seong Gil of Seogang University (Department of Religion) were jointly awarded in the humanities and social sciences category. Prof. Byeong Hee Hong of Seoul National University (Department of Chemistry) received the award in the category of natural sciences. In the life sciences category, the award went to Prof. Gyu Yeong Go of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Graduate School of Medicine). In the category of engineering, the award went to Prof. Seung Woo Kim, also of KAIST (Department of Mechanical Engineering). In addition, Dr. Byoung Sun Park, a historian living in France, was awarded the prize of special merit.
Universal Ballet World Tour
Hoon Sook Moon
September 2011
Members of Universal Ballet in front of the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco, where they performed in July 2011
Hoon Sook Nim recently spoke about Universal Ballet's role in bringing beauty to the world, in the context of the current global tour the company is undertaking, and about faith. Two senior Universal Ballet staff members also added their observations.
Question: What was your response to True Father asking Universal Ballet to do a global tour?
Hoon Sook Nim: It was very providential and meaningful that with the sixtieth anniversary of the Korean War last year, the Little Angels visited, under Father's blessing, each of the countries that had fought alongside Korea during the Korean War. Without the United Nations troops, Father would not have been saved from Hungnam prison camp. This year was, in a way, the last opportunity to directly thank the people who fought for Korea's freedom because they are now all in their eighties and nineties. Their contribution is significant not only because their sacrifice saved Father, but also because it was the first war that the United Nations fought.
I think it was appropriate that the Little Angels did this tour because they are a children's performing arts group, and children represent the future and hope. The Little Angels are so pure and innocent and have a special charm, so wherever they go, they move everyone's heart.
Last year, as Father heard the reports of the Little Angels tour, he gave the direction that Universal Ballet should also embark on a world tour. The nature of the Little Angels' performances and Universal Ballet's performances are somewhat different, however. They can perform in convention centers and hotels as well as in larger theaters. Universal Ballet, however, is more difficult because with full length ballets we need to be in a fully equipped theater.
Normally, we begin preparing for international ballet tours one or two years in advance. For our first tour to the West in 1998, Universal Ballet started preparing in 1996. When you're travelling with seventy people, and two forty-foot containers filled with scenery, costumes, and lighting and audio equipment, much preparation is needed. Also, when you arrive at a theater, a local crew of thirty or forty technicians is needed to set things up. All of this needs to be paid for, and it's very costly. In the case of most ballet companies, such a tour would usually be government#sponsored or supported by a wealthy patron or a corporation or business.
For Universal Ballet, without Father's spiritual and financial blessing, such a tour would be totally impossible. For the past couple of years, we haven't done any major international tours because of the high cost. So it is a great blessing that True Parents have given us this opportunity to tour again. Very few companies in the world today can embark on such an ambitious tour.
For twenty-seven years, True Parents have unconditionally supported this company. Especially in the days when the focus in Korea was on economic development and nobody thought about art, a time when ballet was very primitive in this country, Father's support for ballet and the arts was visionary.
This year people are saying that ballet is a major popular trend. The movie Black Swan came out this year, and one of the most popular comedy programs here in Korea has a segment called "Ballerino" that is very popular. Also, the famous Korean figure skater Yuna Kim did a piece called "Giselle," after the famous ballet, at the recent World Championships in Moscow. Traditionally, ballet is an art form that people find hard to understand, but trends like this are breaking down the barriers. The concept in Korea has been that ballet is just for an elite group of people, but this year, ballet has become much more popular among a much larger sector of the population.
Also Korean ballet dancers are now winning competitions everywhere. When we started this company, and when I was a dancer, Dr. Pak'- was managing the company. He would come speak to the dancers, and would say things such as, "Korea is going to be the Mecca of ballet." And I would be thinking, "My goodness, he is a real Don Quixote!"
But it's actually becoming a reality. The Varna International Ballet Competition is the biggest and most difficult ballet competition in the world (It's often referred to as the "Ballet Olympics"). It is the longest-running international ballet competition. Out of the thirteen medals they awarded at last year's Varna competition, seven went to Korean dancers. For one country to win so many medals is almost unheard of. It hasn't happened since the very early days of the competition when the Russians were very dominant. And this is happening in other places too, not just in Varna. In ballet competitions everywhere, Korean dancers are taking the highest awards and prizes. So in these last few years, ballet in Korea has risen to the point where Korea being the "Mecca of ballet" is no longer a far-fetched dream.
Father' wrote, "Heavenly Art Creating a World of Beauty" at the inauguration of the Universal Ballet Academy in Washington D.C.
Question: Why are Koreans are doing well?
Last month at the Tchaikovsky Competition, five awards were taken by Korean people, including two opera singers, a violinist and two pianists. This has never happened in the competition's history! This is the most prestigious musical competition in the world. Then you have the "Korean Wave" -- Korean pop singers, actors and TV dramas gaining popularity around the world. In Europe, America, Canada, and now the Middle East, Southeast Asia, everywhere -- people are going crazy about Korean performers. I was speaking with some typical young North Americans, and they knew more about the current Korean pop stars than I do! I was amazed. Reading it in the newspapers is one thing, but when you meet Americans face to face who talk to you about Korean pop, and actors and singers -- and they want to learn Korean -- you can really feel how powerful the Korean Wave is.
I was recently in San Francisco, and the consul general was telling me that they have begun Korean language classes in a public high school, as a regular language choice for high school students. He said it's going very, very well.
Father has been saying, for ages, that the world must speak Korean. Yet we all questioned whether that would really be possible. But because the Messiah, Father, should be accepted by the world, God's providence is moving in that direction. How much we have fulfilled our responsibility is another question. We all know, with the present difficulties that we face, that we have fallen very short. Yet Heavenly Father's agenda keeps moving forward. It's amazing to see how this is happening in such a short period. I believe the Korean Wave, with Korean artists gaining international attention, and now Pyeongchang being chosen for the Winter Olympics, are providential.
Although in 1984, when Universal Ballet was started, few people were thinking about culture here in Korea, now all major companies are marketing in a cultural context. Almost all the biggest companies have small theaters in their headquarters buildings, concert halls with 250 or 500 seats. Everybody is thinking about culture and its value. One might say that the Little Angels and Universal Ballet were the first Korean Wave, and in that sense Father was way ahead of everyone.
I see our world tour as a big gift from True Parents to the world. It's a great opportunity that not many companies in this world can dream of. I think that in Father's mind it is an extension of what the Little Angels started last year with the Korean War sixtieth anniversary tour.
Korea is no longer a country that receives support. After that war, we were a country receiving a lot of aid. Now we are a country that has transitioned to one that is giving aid. In that sense, I believe Father wants to give to the world and would like Universal Ballet to do that.
We have been touring since the very early days of the company, but the purpose of our tours have changed and developed over the years as the company has grown and developed. In our early tours, our goal was to introduce Universal Ballet around the world and to let people know that there was good quality classical ballet in Korea. At the same time, it was a challenge to ourselves to perform on the international stage and see where we stood in the world of ballet. While doing this, we sought to gain worldwide recognition from people in ballet and from the international press -- confirmation that we had become a world-class ballet company.
Our 2011-2013 world tour is different. Just as Korea has developed from a country that needed assistance to a country that is sending aid to other countries, Universal Ballet also, more than receiving recognition from the ballet world, would now like to make a substantial contribution to the development and legacy of the art of ballet. If you look back at ballet history, it is clear that the Ballets Russes influenced and uplifted ballet in Europe in the twentieth century. Universal Ballet should and can be a company that can uplift and bring new inspiration to the world of ballet now in the twenty-first century.
Another purpose of this tour is to actualize our vision, Ye Cheon Mi Ji (Heavenly Art Creating a World of Beauty) on the world stage. There is a saying in the Bible that people shouldn't hide their light under a bushel. Universal Ballet is a bright light of beauty we would like to share with the world.
Hoon Sook Nim speaking about ballet at Arts Council Korea's Artists' House, where artists are invited to speak about their work
Question: What do you see ballet, and in particular Universal Ballet, offering humankind?
Dostoyevsky said, "Beauty will save the world." When you look at the beauty of mountains, oceans or forests, something connects you very deeply with the spiritual, with God. In that sense, ballet is like the highest form of physical beauty. When you have the elements of highest professionalism and the right motivation and heart behind it, that's when I believe art has the power -- as Father says, "Heavenly Art Creating a World of Beauty" -- to make this world a better place.
"Heavenly Art Creating a World of Beauty" (Ye Cheon Mi Ji) is from calligraphy Father wrote after we opened the Universal Ballet Academy in Washington, DC. Since the time I stopped dancing, I have been searching for a way to express Universal Ballet's vision. To find it, you have to go back to the source.
In our case, that source is Father. The words Ye Cheon Mi Ji embody what ballet is, a heavenly art form; and I believe that it is also what Father would like to see from this company, what the art of ballet should give to people. So we adopted Ye Cheon Mi Ji as Universal Ballet's vision and motto.
Question: You have begun giving talks about ballet to corporate personnel and other groups.
Yes, I've done this for Posco Steel Corporation, Samsung Insurance, Shinsegae'' and with other large companies in Korea; I have spoken to groups of VIP customers and groups of CEOs.
When I speak to a group of CEOs about ballet, they come out understanding ballet much, much better, so that the next time they come to a performance they have a much deeper understanding of what they are watching.
Since ballet is an acquired taste, another thing I do is that before each of our performances, I give a ten-minute explanation of the ballet and its movements. The key is understanding what the audience needs. It is important to make it easier for them. You have to keep finding new ways to reach out to people. That's what I try to do, and we've been very pleased with the results.
After I spoke at a program recently where high-level artists were invited to speak, two girls came up to get my signature. They said, "We heard your explanation before a performance, and since then we we've been to all of your performances for the past two years. If we hadn't heard your explanation, we wouldn't have become this deeply interested in ballet." That was rewarding to hear.
Question: Is there something you would especially like to say to our members around the world?
These are difficult times. Faith is always put to the test. It is easy when things are going well. As one Christian friend of mine said to me, "I believe in Jesus now, but would I have believed in him when he was being crucified?" It was very difficult to believe in Jesus when he was being put onto the cross. The people who had been close to him ran away. But now when so much of the whole world believes in Jesus, it's very popular, sometimes even advantageous, to believe in him. It's very easy to be Christian because much of the world is Christian. Faith is about believing when the whole world is not believing, or when there is a test.
I think it's a very difficult time right now for us. But consider ballet: You can do Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty or Giselle, with brilliant costumes and sets -- but the morning after the performance, you go back to that rigorous daily ballet class. No costumes, no makeup. You put on your rehearsal clothes, you look into that mirror and you go back to the basics. If you lose your basics, you lose everything.
It's the same in faith; you go back to the basics. Lots of things may be going on that make you confused, or make you question or even shake your faith to its roots. Things will always happen, but that doesn't change the root, the essence of what Father has given us. If you always go back to the basics, the simple teachings that Father has given us, they will always guide you in the right direction.
Don't lose sight of what's really important, the essence of what Father has brought to us and to the world -- the teaching of the Divine Principle, the universal values that have been set by Heavenly Father. They are like the law of gravity; they're not going to change.
Some of the laws made by Heavenly Father govern the way the world operates physically. But there are also moral and spiritual laws that Heavenly Father has put into place, which no one can escape or defy. Those are what we have to keep our eyes on, and we must apply them in order to work out the problems that we face.
Hoon Sook Nim, seen here at the August 6, 2011 celebrations, remained in America after Universal Ballet's performances in San Francisco and Vancouver in order to spend time with True Parents.
Question: Could you add a word based on your experiences with the True Family?
I would like to say that the True Children have such a huge burden to carry. Living here in Korea I often see firsthand how Hyung Jin Nim and Kook Jin Nim attend True Parents and I am always very moved by their devotion. There is so much we can learn from them. Their undivided loyalty and love for True Parents is something blessed family members and the second generation should observe and inherit.
Some people find it easy to criticize True Children. But if you have never been in their shoes you really don't know what it is like. Externally, the True Children's lives may look comfortable and privileged. But the True Children, who now have to take what True Father has created here and carry it on into the future, have a great responsibility. This is true for blessed family members as well, but especially the True Children who are in leadership positions have a much, much heavier burden.
No one can equal True Father. No single child of True Parents can embody Father's leadership, his charisma, his spirituality, his stamina, his love...which means the True Family must work together.
I feel each of the True Children embodies a different aspect of True Parents, like different colors of a rainbow. Kook Jin Nim has incredible business acumen and a very deep heart; Hyung Jin Nim has incredible spiritual sensitivity and sincere humility; Hyun Jin Nim has incredible diplomatic charisma; In Jin Nim is a fantastic speaker, a leader with great wisdom and is also very artistic; and like the sun, Sun Jin Nim is always giving positive energy and love to the members. I hope that together they can carry on Father's legacy and tradition.
Although I am member of the True Family, I am not a True Child. I am just a second generation blessed child. I have been in the True Family twenty-seven years now, and I feel that all of the True Children are special.
They have had difficult childhoods, and they have difficult responsibilities now. As long as the True Children are absolutely following True Parents, who are the substantial representatives of Heavenly Father on the earth, they need our undivided, unconditional support. The task ahead of them is not easy. They need our encouragement. In particular, first generation leaders need to live the Divine Principle of Cain serving Abel, not just teach about it in lectures.
The True Children are the lineage of True Parents, our true Abels. They need a great deal of support and I hope our leaders and members can give that to them. True Children are not perfect, just as none of us are. Sometimes they may make mistakes, just as we all do. Often, I feel people are too quick to criticize, and it is painful to see this. When True Children are attending our True Parents absolutely, we need to give them our support and understanding so that, together, we can be victorious for Heaven.
Looking through the eyes of two Universal Ballet staff members
Ballerinas who portray village women, backstage before a performance of Shim Chung
Question: What is the major difference between this tour and others Universal Ballet has done?
Soyoung Lim (International Planning Director): In the past, when the company was not known, we had to self-present, which was very costly because we had to take care of all the expenses involved in the tour, from airfare, hotel and meals to theater rental, technicians, equipment, and even local marketing and promotion. On the foundation of the early tours where we received great reviews and recognition from local critics and from important papers such as the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Times (London), La Repubblica (Rome), El Pais (Madrid) and Dance Magazine, we are now being invited by theaters and local presenters. They normally cover all the local costs, which comprise 50 -75 percent of the cost of the tour. Although we still have a financial burden, it is much less than before, and for us this is a great step forward.
Costs apart, it must be a headache to prepare and send out the full company and everything they use to perform.
Anne Inoue (Company Manager): If we are performing only one ballet, it usually requires two forty-foot containers, which need to be sent out from two to six weeks ahead of time, since they travel by sea. And, of course, air tickets and visas for seventy people is no small task!
Question: Can you say what it is about ballet that makes it a "heavenly art"?
Soyoung Lim: When Hoon Sook Nim tells people about ballet history, she always says that "ballet is beauty." The art that is ballet pursues beauty. Like sports, such as soccer, wrestling or swimming, ballet involves body movement. However, when playing soccer, for instance, when you get tired, you can scowl, groan or sigh, but in ballet, no matter how tired you are, you should never let it show. In sports, the players work out in such a way that they have large muscles, but in ballet you need to be strong, while at the same time maintaining a beautiful body line at all times. Ballet is all about beauty.
It is an art that pursues both external and internal beauty. A new branch of ballet, modern or contemporary ballet, has emerged, which is somewhat different.
Anne Inoue: Modern ballet doesn't necessarily express only beauty, it expresses other emotions too....
Soyoung Lim: But classic ballet is all about fairy tales -- about good winning over evil; those storylines are the backbone of a ballet performance.
From the spiritual point of view, ballet is an art of goodness and it pursues goodness. Moreover, many of the ballet moves depict pushing off from the earth to jump higher into the sky as if attempting to reach heaven. All these things combined tell us that ballet is indeed a heavenly art.
Anne Inoue: We should mention that Hoon Sook Nim gives lectures to CEOs, quite influential people -- using quite excellent PowerPoint presentations. She teaches them about the history of ballet and why the presence of ballet is good for society. Her work is not just in this building but in corporate Korea -- Samsung, Hana Bank, Choong-ang University.
Question: Hoon Sook Nim is educating people in Korea about the value of ballet?
Soyoung Lim: Yes. And also before the performances, Hoon Sook Nim comes out onstage and explains to the audience how to watch ballet.
Anne Inoue: She started with the contemporary ballets, which we usually do one season of each year, but now she has added pre-curtain talks for the traditional ballets as well. Many people don't feel they know what ballet is, so they are not comfortable watching it. They don't know what to look for.
Left: Hoon Sook Nim dances the title role of Shim Chung, ca. 2000; Right: Overjoyed at finding his daughter alive, Shim Chung's father regains his sight.
Question: Which countries will you visit on the world tour and what ballets will you perform?
Soyoung Lim: One main pillar of our repertory is Shim Chung, the ballet we created based on the ancient Korean folk tale.' The concept of filial piety is at the core of this work. We plan to tour forty cities around the world with Shim Chung and we have already given performances in Taipei, Singapore, San Francisco and Vancouver. Later this year, we will perform in Japan and in Muscat, the capital of Oman.
The performance in Oman will be special for us because it is the last place we are visiting this year as part of our tour, and Oman is holding a grand opening for an opera house in June. That opera house is the first major opera house to be built, not only in Oman but in all the Middle East, and we are going to give a performance there in commemoration of its opening.
Question: So, you are part of the opening festival.
Soyoung Lim: Yes. Besides us, the La Scala Theater Ballet from Italy, the America Ballet Theater from the United States and the Royal Ballet from United Kingdom have been invited, as has the Lincoln Center Jazz Band, led by Wynton Marsalis.
All the companies that have been invited are world renowned companies, and the fact that Universal Ballet is one of those invited is meaningful and special for us.
We have also been invited to perform in MOSCOW, in ballet's homeland of Russia, next year, at the Stanislavsky Theater, which has the highest standards for ballet and opera. We will also tour five nations in Europe, including France, for a month and a half.
Ballet began in Italy, developed in France and became a performance art in Russia, and we have been invited to give performances in France and Moscow next year, and in Italy in 2013, so we will be visiting all of ballet's homes -- from the current Mecca of ballet if you will -- during this world tour. We will also be performing in the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, next year, and in 2013 we are planning to tour five cities in South America, including venues in Brazil, Argentina and Chile.
All this has been made possible because Universal Ballet's artistic quality is now more acknowledged worldwide than it was in the past.
Anne Inoue: Some of our overseas trips are arranged with promoters or theaters that we knew previously, and some are with relatively new ones. Ms. Lim has sent hundreds of letters to develop new touring contacts.
Soyoung Lim: There is a ballet boom in Korea now. In the past, ballet did not draw a large audience in Korea. Nowadays, however, people are becoming increasingly familiar with ballet. On television there are Korean soap operas where the lead character is a ballerina. Even in comedy programs, they have little skits about ballet. In the past, you couldn't have imagined ballet becoming popular like this. I like to think that one of the driving forces of the ballet boom is Universal Ballet and our participation in the popular Korean TV entertainment show One Night, Two Days.'-
One of the biggest reasons ballet can now be seen on TV and in movies, and that a ballet boom is sweeping across the nation, is that both Universal Ballet, a private organization, and the Korean National Ballet, which is government sponsored, have continued to give great performances over the years.
Universal Ballet receives grants from Rev. Moon, while the Korean National Ballet receives its funding from the Korean government. When running a ballet company, finances are a heavy burden, and picking the right productions and maintaining the artistic level are very important. In Korean society, it is very difficult for a private company to do all that.
Anne Inoue: It's hard enough in countries such as the U.S., where there is a tradition of private support for the arts, but here in Korea there is so little private support for the arts. Even government support for the arts is not very extensive.
Soyoung Lim: Rev. Moon's support for the ballet is comparable with the national level support a government might give. Until now, Universal Ballet has been better known internationally than the Korean National Ballet.
Ballet also benefits from the fact that we are now living in the visual era. The world is becoming globalized, for which reason many people are more interested in the visual aspect than in language. This is why nonverbal performances are becoming popular around the world. In light of this, ballet is the perfect performing art for this era.
The fact that Universal Ballet was founded in 1984, twenty- seven years ago, before Korea was globalized, shows that the founder was farsighted. In that regard, I think the founding of Universal Ballet was destined by heavenly fortune.
Who could have imagined such things twenty-five years ago? Back then, who in Korea would have thought that nonverbal performances would become popular worldwide, that cultural walls would break down and that the world would become globalized? Most people couldn't have understood that.
Schedule information is correct at time of going to print; for updates please go to www.ubcballet.com or the company's Facebook page. Universal Ballet's Korean performances outside Seoul are not listed here.
Julia (Hoon-Sook) Moon's Universal Ballet Unites East And West In World Tour
Julia Hoon Sook Moon -- A new role in life after dance
Lee Chan-weon
August 10, 2010
Julia Moon, former prima ballerina and current chief executive officer of the Universal Ballet Company (UBC) in Korea, danced a cameo in the Seoul staging of the Korean folktale ballet "Simcheong" in May. It marked her return to the stage as a ballerina -- nine years after she had retired as a dancer to take the helm of the country's largest private ballet company.
But her command performance wasn't her only stage appearance in recent years.
Since 2008, she has been making frequent appearances on the stage -- not as a dancer but as a commentator -- prior to the company's performances. She gives a brief introduction to the plot and explains the meaning of different movements by demonstrating them herself.
The introduction is part of the company's efforts to make dance more accessible to audiences. The company also provides Korean-language subtitles during the performance to facilitate understanding.
The company was established by Rev. Sun Myung Moon, her father-in-law and the founder of the Unification Church. Formerly known as Julia Pak, she changed her name after marrying her fiancé, who died in a car accident, in a posthumous wedding. Before joining the UBC, Moon was educated at the Royal Ballet School in London and has danced with the Ohio Ballet and the Washington Ballet.
During recent interview with the JoongAng Daily, Moon seemed proud that Korean dancers are increasingly being recognized in the global ballet arena. This year, a handful of ballet dancers have earned top prizes in international competitions and gained promotions in overseas companies.
"Just 10 to 15 years ago Korean ballet fell far short of other culturally-advanced countries," she said. "But it has advanced rapidly in recent years and we are experiencing a boom. Korean dancers are so hungry to learn, which I think is something that helps them excel."
The following are excerpts from the interview.
What was it like to be on stage after a nine-year hiatus?
Although I danced on the stage for only two minutes, the effort I put into the performance was the same as what I expended for a two-hour production. I wasn't spinning and jumping on stage, but my heart was pounding like crazy on the first day of the show. Then I thought, 'Oh, I've forgotten what it feels like to be on stage in front of an audience.' But it is so much more comfortable to me to express myself through music and space. Also, it was really wonderful to feel the camaraderie with the dancers on stage.
I've been managing the company for nine years and I still feel like fish in a bird cage, so to speak. On stage, I felt like fish back in its water bowl.
Do you want to perform again?
I had decided not to dance again, but since I didn't have a farewell performance I wanted to take the stage one more time. Now that I've done it, I have to say that those two minutes on stage made me feel 10 years younger, literally. Even the next morning when I looked at myself in the mirror I was surprised that my face looked different. I don't know how to explain it. You feel so alive. The gaze of the audience gives you energy. After the performance, someone told me my face seemed to have changed from that of a CEO to that of an artist. If there were a good role, I would think about doing it again -- such as the mother of Juliet in "Romeo and Juliet."
How do you keep in such good shape since you stopped dancing?
Initially I thought I had to do ballet at least two or three times a week. But that didn't really happen. Realistically, I had to have meetings and other events as a CEO. Since retiring, I have danced just three to four times a year. Mostly I do jeol (Buddhist ceremonial bowing). Jeol is good for physical and mental health. I believe all religions come from one source. The meditation part of Buddhism is so nice.
A large number of dancers retire around 40. They then have to find a job, but often have few choices. How did you deal with this?
After retiring, most dancers feel lost. For this reason there are career transition centers for dancers in Europe, the U.S. and Canada. They help dancers transition from professional dancer to a new career. They are taught they were good dancers, which is something not many people can do, and that they have all the ingredients be successful in anything they do. You don't want to lose these people, who are highly creative, motivated, versatile and strong. In Western countries, retired dancers become doctors, lawyers, salesmen, businesspeople and therapists.
Inspired by those centers, I brought the concept here and built a similar institution five years ago. But what I found out is that a sizable portion of dancers in Korea are so stricken with their current financial hardship that they cannot afford to think about the future. So I changed the name to professional dancer support center. The center provides physical therapy for dancers and continues to find other ways to support dancers. I think Korean society should give greater recognition to dancers. Korean dancers hate it when people ask what they are going to do after they stop dancing because they are reluctant to even think about it. But dancers should be taught to start thinking about what they are going to do after they retire. I envy musicians in a way because we dancers who use our bodies inevitably lose stamina as we age -- just when our maturity level expands to allow us to fully express ourselves.
What is the most demanding part of being a CEO?
While dancers invest in themselves in performance and exchange energy with the audience, CEOs' lives are based on everyday life -- like watering the garden. My difficulty as CEO is that I've never studied management in school, while other CEOs have gone through formal management training such as an MBA degree. I'm not the kind of person who likes to wave a flag and say people should follow me. But I try to create an environment where trained managers in marketing and PR can do well. I also read a lot of management-related books. It's sort of learning on the job.
Earlier this year, UBC dancers appeared on "One Night, Two Days" [a popular entertainment show on KBS TV]. And many say the show provided the public with a good chance to get to know ballet. What else is the UBC doing to make ballet accessible?
I realized after retirement that the gap between my perception of ballet and that of the general public was incredibly huge. Nine out of 10 ordinary citizens think ballet is difficult and boring, I've found. It was a shock to me. When I was dancing I vaguely thought I needed an audience to watch me but my focus was not on them but on my performance. So UBC launched a Korean subtitle service in 2008 -- like operas do. It's like football -- you can't fully enjoy it if you don't know the rules. The same applies to ballet, I thought. The cast of the Modern Ballet Project did a performance in Gwanghwamun Square in July to promote the work and the PR and marketing team has developed an iPhone game application about Simcheong. You always have to be alert in Korea because trends change so rapidly here.
What is next for you?
Now that I'm 50 years old, I think I need to develop a management system that I can transfer to my successor in 10 to 15 years. There are private companies that regress in the second generation of management. I am preparing so that does not happen with my company.
Julia (Hoon Sook) Moon awarded Korea's Order of Cultural Merit
Jo Jeong-Jin
October 16, 2010
The Seyge Times
Mokpo, Korea: Julia Moon (right) receives the Order of Cultural Merit, Hwagwan Class, from Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Yu In-chon on Oct. 16, 2010. Photo courtesy of Universal Ballet.
Julia Moon, general director of Universal Ballet, has been awarded the Order of Cultural Merit, Hwagwan Class. The honor was conferred on her by Yu In-chon, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, on Oct. 16 in Mokpo, South Cholla Province, during a ceremony marking the 2010 Day of Culture.
The Order of Cultural Merit recognizes persons who have made exceptional contributions to the development of culture and arts in Korea. Among ballet dancers, Kim Yong Geol and Kim Ji-young were recognized with the award in 1998, after winning first prize, couples, in the 8th Concours International de Danse de Paris.
In 1984, Ms. Moon was a founding member of Universal Ballet, Korea's first professional ballet company in the private sector, and she became its prima ballerina. She later became the first Asian to be invited by the Kirov Ballet to perform at the Mariinski Theatre, where she appeared in Giselle, Don Quixote, and Swan Lake.
Ms. Moon retired from the stage in 2001 and became active in the management of the company. During her tenure as general director, she has focused on broadening the audience base for ballet in Korea and engaging in social service projects. In a performance of Giselle in March 2008, Universal Ballet became the first Korean ballet company to provide real time Korean subtitles during a performance.
Ms. Moon's efforts to gain a broader audience for ballet in Korea are not limited to efforts in the theater itself. She frequently provides lectures on ballet at companies, museums, universities and other venues around Korea.
(Translation by Tongil Foundation)
Hoon Sook (Julia) Moon: A Swan Prince, A Dragon King
Seo Ji-eun
May 18, 2010
JoongAng daily, Korea
An exciting new cast will perform 'Swan Lake,' while technology promises to make 'Shim Chung' as immersive as it has ever been.
The current production of "Swan Lake," is a contemporary version choreographed and reinterpreted by Matthew Bourne. Provided by the LG Arts Center Two ballets, "Swan Lake" and "Shim Chung," are opening -- make that reopening -- in Seoul for yet another season this month.
The two are quickly becoming staples of the local ballet scene. Renowned choreographer Matthew Bourne's masculinity-charged Swan Lake is being performed for its fourth season here since 2003, while Shim Chung from Korea's Universal Ballet Company will return after six years with an "upgraded underwater scene" thanks to a digital projector.
As many are already aware, Matthew Bourne's production puts an interesting twist on Tchaikovsky's romantic ballet, radically reinterpreting the myths and legends upon which it is based.
While the original is a standard in the tradition of romanticized male-female love, Bourne's Swan Lake put a man in the role of the lead Swan, putting love between men at center stage. That provocative move has added to the debate over homosexuality here and, of course, served as a major attention grabber. According to Bourne, the swan symbolizes everything the prince aspires to be -- power, beauty and freedom.
The Universal Ballet will stage its 24-year-old ballet "Shim Chung" for seven days this month. Dancers shot an actual underwater scene in an aquarium, and the digital video clips will be used as a backdrop. Provided by the Universal Ballet Company What sets this year's performance apart from its predecessors? According to a spokeswoman with the LG Arts Center, the organizer and venue for the ballet, it's the "cast members."
Jonathan Olivier, who plays the swan this time, is "brilliant. His jump is fantastic," she said. Critics say the British dancer is Bourne's greatest find of late. Sam Archer, who took the role of Edward in the "Edward Scissorhands" ballet in its 2006 Seoul production, has taken the prince role.
Shim Chung is based on a 1,500-year-old Korean folk tale, retold through the medium of Western ballet in lavish style. Dancers put on Korean traditional costumes that the Universal Ballet said "emphasize Oriental beauty."
Since its debut in 1986, the hybrid ballet has been staged some 150 times in 40 cities around the world, including such celebrated venues as Lincoln Center in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and the Los Angeles Music Center. The work is the first creative piece based on a traditional tale from the Universal Ballet, Korea's biggest private dance troupe.
The three-act ballet is about a heroine named Shim Chung who voluntarily plunges herself into the Indangsu sea and becomes an offering to the Sea Dragon King to help her blind father regain his eyesight. The king, impressed with the girl's filial piety, places her in a lotus flower and sends her back to land.
The ending is happy-ever-after, with the girl marrying the king of the land to become a queen, and her father regains his eyesight. Filial piety, including sacrifice by children for their parents, is a prime Confucian value that is less important in Western culture, the ballet company said.
"A highlight of this production of Shim Chung is the fantasy world-like underwater scene, which has been created through digital video," said Julia Moon, general director of the Universal Ballet, in a recent press conference. "You will see a different, further evolved version of Shim Chung," she added with confidence.
The video depicts Shim Chung sinking into the water in the first act and the underwater palace shown in the second act. Performers will dance against the projection, using it as a backdrop. To prepare for the underwater scene, the ballet company's three lead dancers spent 13 hours in an aquarium at an underwater film shooting set in Gyeonggi in April.
A moonlit pas de deux, or duet dance, between Shim Chung and her husband the king is also known as one of the more notable scenes in the ballet. Five established and budding ballerinas - Hwang Hye-min, Kang Ye-na, Ahn Ji-eun, Kang Mi-sun and Han Seo-hye - will take turns in the lead role for a total of eight performances during the week-long run.
Director Moon, herself a prima ballerina for decades, appears in the ballet in a cameo for two minutes, playing an older Shim Chung. She retired in 2001 after sustaining an injury while dancing as Shim Chung, but held no farewell event or press conference at the time to cap her 40-year career.
Swan Lake, which started Wednesday, will continue until May 30 at the LG Arts Center in southern Seoul. Tickets cost 60,000 won ($52) to 120,000 won. For details, visit www.lgart.com or call (02) 2005-0114.
Shim Chung will run from May 24 to May 30 at the Opera Theater at the Seoul Arts Center. The cast changes every day, and the schedule can be found at the UBC homepage, www.ubcballet.com. Ticket prices are 10,000 to 80,000 won, and reservations can be made at www.sacticket.co.kr.
Let's Make Every Day a Day of Victory of Love
Hoon Sook (Pak) Moon
January 2, 2010
Day of Victory of Love, the Cheon Jeong Peace Palace
Hoon-sook nim and Choi Yeon-ah nim, both of whose husbands are in the spirit world, lighting candles; for the second year, following Hyo-jin nim's ascension, they jointly performed the ceremonies for the ascended True Children.
Our victorious King of Kings, True Parents of Heaven, Earth and Mankind! Members from around the world! Yesterday, we said farewell to 2009, a busy year with its share of difficulties, and we began Year 10 of Cheon Il Guk, together with our True Parents at the forty-third celebration of True God's Day.
Today we have gathered to commemorate the twenty-seventh Day of Victory of Love. I feel very honored to have the opportunity to speak in front of True Parents and all the members gathered here on this very meaningful day.
It is now twenty-seven years since Heung-jin nim passed into the spirit world and took on his mission as heavenly commander. Heung-jin nim is working hard day and night from the spiritual world to support the completion of True Parents' work on earth, so that True Parents may be glorified.
Twenty-seven years ago, Heung-jin nim was a young man of seventeen years. I didn't know Heung-jin nim that well when he was alive, but everyone felt he had a quiet, compassionate and thoughtful character. Also, he loved and cared for the members very much and always tried to live for the sake of others. He lived a life of devotion, often doing cold shower conditions; once, when had run into a sharp corner, ripping his pants and injuring his leg, he said in a small voice, "Than you, Heavenly Father." Heung-jin nim considered any injury he suffered an opportunity to set an indemnity condition before Heaven.
More than anything else, Heung-jin nim loved True Parents. Even when he was very young, his biggest concern was for True Parents' health and safety. Many times he would help the security protecting True Parents, and he was always quietly asking other members of the second generation if they were prepared to give their lives for True Parents. Being a devoted son, Heung-jin nim went to the spirit world as an indemnity offering for the sake of the heavenly providence centered on True Parents, thus substantiating his words that one should be prepared to give his life for True Parents.
Brothers and sisters, if you were sending your beloved child, whom you loved more than life itself, to the spiritual world before his or her time, would you be able to contain your personal grief and hold back your tears for the sake of God?
When True Parents sent their precious son to the spiritual world as an offering, they first thought of Heavenly Father. Every time Satan attacked the most precious true lineage by striking the True Family True Parents overcame their pain and sorrow, greater than death itself, and did not shed tears of personal grief.
Satan directly attacked the True Family, but True Parents offered Heung-jin nim to Heaven as a loyal and devoted son and by making the condition of uniting completely with God, shininaeilche isang, True Parents brought victory by overcoming Satan's realm of death through true love.
From this internal point of view, we can see that like the unbending faith and love Isaac had toward his father Abraham, Heung-jin nim had absolute faith and love for True Parents, and that True Parents' absolute faith and love for Heavenly Father was greater than their grief in losing their son.
True Parents sublimated, through true love, Satan's realm of death, where everything is destined to collapse, and upon that foundation, sent Heung-jin nim to the spiritual world as its Heavenly Commander; and by doing so gained the spirit world's angelic army, united the physical and spiritual worlds, and established the triumph of the Day of Victory of Love.
In 2009, with the publication of True Father's autobiography, As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen, the truth about True Father's life has been revealed to everyone in the world. When I read As a Peace-Loving Global Citizen, I was deeply moved and felt tearful repentance to the bottom of my soul. Indeed, is there anyone else on earth who has offered his entire life for the sake of God, mankind and world peace in the same way as our True Father? There has never been anyone like him in the past, nor will there be in the future. There is only one King of Kings and the True Parents of Heaven, Earth and Mankind.
The Day of Victory of Love is the day when we honor and celebrate the victory of true love. As I read True Father's autobiography, I realized that it is not only January 2 that is the Day of Victory of Love, but that every single day of True Father's ninety years of life has been a day of victory of love.
In order to accomplish God's will, Father embraced the fallen world, and struggled with his physical being, his blood, sweat and tears, and Mother, at his side, supported him, without anyone knowing or understanding her offering of absolute faith, absolute love and absolute obedience. Our True Parents are truly the True Parents of Heaven, Earth and Mankind that God has sent, the King of Kings, the Messiah that mankind has been waiting for, and this has been revealed through True Father's autobiography.
Fulfilling our filial duty as children, we, too, should become victorious through true love by living and making each and every day, 365 days a year, a day of victory of love. In Year 9 of Cheon Il Guk, we celebrated the most glorious, awesome and historic day in which all of heaven and earth, all of mankind and the entire creation should rejoice. That day was the day the True Parents of Heaven, Earth and Mankind were enthroned as King of Kings.
On the coronation day, the purpose of creation was finally fulfilled and Heavenly Father, who had been among us only in insubstantial, spiritual form, finally stood before us in substantial form. God has taken visible form. The invisible God and visible True Parents have become one, completely united in one body. Now God has become visible and we can directly attend God as our True Parent. As we hear God's breath and feel the warmth of His body, we can also experience the deep joy of God's heart.
We must realize, understand, and inscribe in our hearts that living in the same era and directly witnessing and being part of this historic moment is not only a great blessing but a tremendous and fearful responsibility as well.
The year 2010 has now dawned. This is the year when the glory of the King of Kings, of True Parents, can spread to the world, to heaven, to the ends of the earth. The establishment of Cheon Il Guk brings heavenly fortune, and the King of Kings, True Parents, can expand the will of heaven to bring new life and salvation to all the people of the world.
A little while ago, I led the Universal Ballet on a tour to Athens, Greece. Athens is one of the places where St. Paul witnessed and preached in the early days of the Christian church. However, even St. Paul, who became the cornerstone of the early Christian church, was not successful in witnessing in Athens and had to move to Corinth and continue his work there.
However, a few centuries later, Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the state religion and converted the Parthenon, the central temple on the Acropolis in Athens, where the Greeks worshipped their gods and goddesses, into a Christian church.
Could St. Paul or anyone else in his time have imagined that Rome, a city where Christians were suppressed, persecuted and even killed would someday become the worldwide center of Christianity?
When I heard these stories, I felt confident that the day is not far off when the Unification Church, which has been so strongly persecuted, will go beyond the national level and become a world religion that can truly bring the unity of religions before God and when all mankind will attend the King of Kings, our True Parents.
The time has come when the world cannot help but change. True Parents completed the last remaining indemnity with the helicopter accident in 2008, and they were crowned King of Kings in 2009. 2010 is the year True Parents will substantially rule heaven and earth. We are in the age when all people can receive salvation by receiving and following the King of Kings, our True Parents.
The only thing that stands in the way is that we have not recognized our own shortcomings and weaknesses, which means that we are still a burden and a source of worry for True Parents.
I want to express my sincere gratitude to True Parents, who forgive us and forgive us again, even though we do not deserve it, and who love us and love us again and again, even though we have no qualification to receive their love.
Although unworthy, I want to support Heung-jin nim, the Heavenly Commander, and I am committed to offering my most sincere effort to return ever-greater glory to True Parents during this New Year.
Today, on the twenty-seventh Day of Victory of Love, we offer our respects to True Parents, who have now become the King of Kings, and at this historic time, with a heart of self- sacrifice, we must become one with Heaven's providence, and with the faith that Hyo-jin nim, Hye-jin nim, Heung-jin nim, Young-jin nim, Dae-mo nim as well as the four great saints and all the angelic forces are with us, let us pledge our loyalty to and work together with the True Children who are here on earth to establish Cheon Il Guk.
True Parents of Heaven, Earth and Mankind! I humbly offer this message with my fervent hope that as the King of Kings you may be glorified and blessed with long life.
Thank you.