My name is pronounced like sun in the sky + letter J.
I am a theatre director, sometimes writer & other things. I'm originally from Seoul, South Korea. I now mostly live and work in New York City while searching for opportunities across America and the world. I collaboratively create narrative-driven theater that is maximalist, kaleidoscopic, epic and political as well as intimate, personal and emotional. As a leader of artistic processes, I am committed to radical inclusion and progressivism. Drawing inspiration from my liminal cultural position between South Korea and America, I seek and make up stories that fall outside presumed societal narratives.
photo by Walls Trimble
Directing:
- TBD DirectorFest with the Drama League of New York. Upcoming January 2019
- Riot Antigone by Seonjae Kim & collaborators
- Ars Nova ANT Fest. June 2017
- First Floor Theatre at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. February 2017
- Prelude Festival. October 2017
- Bryn Mawr College Mainstage. November 2017
- The Way created by Seonjae Kim and Brandon Powers. Co-dir Brandon Powers.
- 92nd Street Y. March 2018 (workshop performance)
- 999 Festival. May 2018 (workshop performance)
- The Architecture of Rain by Stefani Kuo. Checkmark Theatre Company. March 2018 (staged reading)
- Sister by Natalie C. Houchins. March 2018 (workshop performance)
- Oswald by Tony LePage and Josh Sassanella. New work series at New York Theatre Barn. December 2017 (staged reading)
- Legs by Leah Nanako Winkler. Asian American Mixfest at Atlantic Theatre Company. August 2017 (staged reading)
- Indira & Condoleeza by Rajiv Joseph. Asian American Mixfest at Atlantic Theatre Company. August 2017 (staged reading)
- Nice Nails by Aaron Ricciardi. July 2017 (reading)
- What Women Need: A Fundraiser for Planned Parenthood. Selections by Jacklyn Backhaus, Boo Killebrew, Jenny Rachel Weiner, Dipika Guha, Sofya Weitz, Shakina Nayfack, Cate Yu, Alena Smith, Baryshnikov Arts Center. June 2017
- Sister Mok-Rahn by Eunsung Kim, translated by Dayoung Jeong, PEN/World Voices Festival. May 2017 (staged reading)
- Surplus Novel by Seonjae Kim and Scarlett Kim, adapted from Dictee by Theresa Hak Kyoung Ja, La MaMa Umbria Next Generation Residency (workshop)
- You're Amazing!!! by Leah Nanako Winkler, Williamstown Theatre Festival. June 2016
- That Noise by Dominic Finocchiaro, Williamstown Theatre Festival. June 2016
- Ella Maythorne by Anna Baryshnikov
- Dixon Place, February 2016 (co-dir. Brandon Powers)
- Williamstown Theatre Festival, August 2016 (workshop)
- Baryshnikov Arts Center, October 2016 (staged reading)
- Leftovers by Tomas Nieober, TinyRhino. Sept 2016
- A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare, Rabid Bat Theatricals at Moody's Pub, Chicago, IL. August 2014 (co-dir. Sammy Zeisel)
- Cloud 9 by Caryl Churchill, Sit & Spin Productions at Northwestern University. February 2014
- kids by Seonjae Kim and Sammy Zeisel, adapted from Just Kids by Patti Smith, WAVE Productions at Northwestern University. September 2013
- Kafka on the Shore by Frank Galati adapted from the novel by Haruki Murakami, Sit & Spin Productions at Northwestern University. December 2012
- Moksori/Voice by Seonjae Kim and Scarlett Kim, Chicago Fringe Festival. September 2012
- A Perfect Wedding by Charles Mee, Sit & Spin Productions at Northwestern University, February 2012
- Not I by Samuel Beckett, Concord Academy. May 2010
- Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov, Concord Academy. April 2010
- Tea by Velina Hasu Houston, Concord Academy. April 2009
Assistant/Associate Directing:
- Dance Nation by Clare Barron, Playwrights Horizon, dir. Lee Sunday Evans. Upcoming April 2017.
- KPOP by Jason Kim, Helen Park and Max Vernon, Ars Nova/Ma-Yi/Woodshed Collective, dir. Teddy Bergman. 2017 (Associate)
- Amélie by Craig Lucas, Daniel Messé and Nathan Tysen, Center Theatre Group/Walter Kerr, dir. Pam MacKinnon. 2016-2017 (SCDF Mike Ockrent Fellowship Observer)
- Freedom Riders: The Civil Rights Musical by Richard Allen and Taran Gray, New York Musical Festival, dir. Whitney White. 2017 (Associate)
- Nature Whatever by Sarah Einspanier, New Georges Water Residency, dir. Morgan Green. 2017
- Fost Fest created by Teddy Bergman and Jason Gray Platt, Future of Storytelling Conference, dir. Teddy Bergman. 2016
- Poster Boy by Craig Carnelia and Joe Tracz, Williamstown Theatre Festival, dir. Stafford Arima. 2016
- Head Over Heels by Jeff Whitty with music by The Go-Gos, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, dir. Ed Iskandar/Bill Rauch. 2015
- Kentucky by Leah Nanako Winkler, Ensemble Studio Theatre, dir. Morgan Gould. 2015
- A Perfect Wedding by Charles Mee, Atlantic Conservatory, dir. Matt Dickson. 2015
Awards/Honors:
- Mike Ockrent Fellowship, Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation. 2016
- Van Lier Directing Fellowship, Asian American Arts Alliance. 2016
- (Finalist) Fall Directing Fellowship, Drama League Directors Project. 2017
- (Finalist) Logan Fellowship, The Hypocrites. 2016
Education/Training:
- Northwestern University, BA in Theatre, Cum Laude, Module in Devising & Adaptation. GPA: 3.8
- Williamstown Theatre Festival Directing Corps, June-August 2016
- Directors’ Lab West, May 2016
- La MaMa Umbria Next Generation Residency, August-September 2016
- La MaMa Umbria Director’s Symposium & Playwrights’ Retreat, June-August 2015
- SITI Company Summer Theatre Intensive, June-July 2010
Download PDF Resume:
| resume_theater.pdf |