[2026 Parliamentary Audit] From the National Theater Company to Jeongdong Theater: 'Patronage and Expertise' Controversy Reignites at Audit

People Power Party lawmakers Kim Seungsoo and Cho Eunhee criticize a series of appointments to national arts companies
Appointment of children’s theater director draws 332 objections... qualifications under scrutiny
Jeongdong Theater board chair and CEO both publicly supported Lee Jae-myung... debate over patronage appointments
Past stage accident involving National Opera of Korea chief also under scrutiny... police closed case without referral, finding no charges

Controversy over the qualifications of heads of cultural and arts institutions under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism reignited during a parliamentary audit. This followed a series of allegations that key institutions, including the National Theater Company for Children and Young People and Jeongdong Theater, had made “patronage appointments” and “parachute appointments.” The opposition criticized the appointments, saying political connections and a lack of transparency in the selection process had taken precedence over vetting candidates’ qualifications. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has cited the appointees’ experience in the arts and arts administration as the basis for their appointments, and debate over the appropriateness of the selections continues.

Last April, representatives of the “Cultural and Arts Community Members Condemning the Lee Jaemyung Government’s Cultural Policy on Appointments,” including Cultural Solidarity, held a press conference in front of the fountain at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, calling for an end to personnel actions in the cultural and arts sector and demanding their immediate suspension. Yonhap News Agency

At the parliamentary audit of the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee on October 19, People Power Party lawmakers Kim Seungsoo and Cho Eunhee focused their criticism on the selection processes for heads of the National Ballet of Korea, the National Theater Company for Children and Young People, Jeongdong Theater, and the National Opera of Korea. They questioned whether people with political connections had been appointed to key positions without sufficient vetting of their expertise in the relevant arts fields or their ability to run public institutions.

The latest controversy concerns the National Theater Company for Children and Young People, which appointed a new artistic director last month. On September 11, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism appointed Eo Yeonseon, former president of the Gwangmyeong Cultural Foundation, as the company’s inaugural artistic director. Eo previously served as head of the performance planning team and director of the arts company cooperation team at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, head of the theater company Hyeonjang, and president of the Gwangmyeong Cultural Foundation.

However, opposition emerged immediately after the appointment over her limited direct experience in performing arts for children and young people. Performing arts groups, including the Korean Center of the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People, issued a statement calling for her appointment to be rescinded. As of 6 p.m. on September 13, 332 organizations and individuals, including eight associations such as the Korean Playwrights Association and the Korea Women’s Theatre Association, had signed a joint petition.

In their statement, performing arts groups said, “There is no evidence of expertise in performing arts for children and young people anywhere in Artistic Director Eo’s career,” and argued that experience, philosophy, and vision in the genre should be the key criteria for selecting the artistic director.

During the audit, lawmaker Kim Seungsoo raised the controversy over Eo’s qualifications with Park Jeonghee, head of the National Theater Company of Korea, criticizing the appointment by saying, “Someone said it was like sending a veterinarian to work in an obstetrics and gynecology department.” Lawmaker Cho Eunhee also said, “Eo Yeonseon, who has no experience whatsoever working with children and young people, was parachuted into the position,” and asked, “Didn’t 332 people call for the appointment to be rescinded with a joint petition in less than three days?”

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has cited Eo’s experience in performance planning and arts administration as the basis for her appointment. On September 17, Minister Choi Hwiyoung said at a meeting of the theater subcommittee of the Cultural and Arts Policy Advisory Committee, “I feel responsible that we were unable to appoint someone everyone could agree on and support.” While explaining that the appointment was based on an assessment of her expertise in arts administration, he also acknowledged the backlash from the arts community.

The appointment at Jeongdong Theater also came under scrutiny. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism appointed actor Jang Dongjik as a non-executive board chair in February, followed by comedian-turned-broadcaster Seo Seungman as president and CEO in April. Both had previously expressed public support for President Lee Jae-myung.

Jang supported Lee during the 2022 presidential election, while Seo has also continued to publicly support the president. Seo ran as a proportional-representation candidate for the Democratic Alliance of Korea in the 2024 general election but was not elected.

Lawmakers Cho criticized the appointments, saying, “When questions were raised about qualifications under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, the Ministry of Culture said the board chair and the president and CEO were different positions and that the president and CEO ran the theater. Yet two months later, it appointed comedian Seo Seungman, who had likewise supported Lee Jae-myung, as president and CEO.”

Seo Seungman, the newly appointed president of Jeongdong Theater, delivers remarks at a press conference marking his inauguration at Jeongdong Theater Cecil in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 22nd. Yonhap News Agency

Seo debuted through the MBC Comedy Contest in 1989 and has served as head of the theater company Sangsang Nanum and the small theater Sangsang Nanum Theater. He has also directed the traditional Korean outdoor play “Ondal and Pyeonggang,” “Ppaengpajeon,” and the musicals “The Nono Story” and “Tunnel.” When appointing him in April, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism described him as a performing arts and content planner with experience directing broadcasts and performances and running a theater. The issue, therefore, is not whether he has experience in the performing arts, but how his expertise in running a national performing arts institution and his political activities were assessed during the appointment process.

Questions were also raised again about the selection process for the head of the National Ballet of Korea. Lawmaker Kim referred to reports that a professor from a presidential campaign had been considered for the position after former director Kang Sue-jin stepped down in April. He questioned whether the appointment of that person had fallen through after the company’s dancers issued a joint statement, leading to the selection of current director Kim Juwon.

Indeed, on June 6, dancers with the National Ballet of Korea issued a joint statement questioning the qualifications of the next artistic director and the selection criteria. However, Minister Choi Hwiyoung denied reports that a candidate had been chosen in advance, saying on his social media account that the person mentioned at the time had not even been included on the candidate list.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism subsequently appointed Kim Juwon, artistic director and president of the Korea Ballet Festival, as head of the National Ballet of Korea on August 6. Kim graduated from the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Russia and performed as a principal dancer with the National Ballet of Korea for 15 years. She has also served as artistic director of the ballet company at the Busan Opera House.

Park Hyejin, head of the National Opera Company of Korea. Photo by Kang Jinhyeong.

Controversy over responsibility for stage safety management was also raised again in connection with the appointment of Park Hyejin as director and artistic director of the National Opera of Korea. Lawmaker Cho cited a performance accident at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in 2023, when Park was head of the Seoul Metropolitan Opera, and questioned the appropriateness of her appointment.

During a rehearsal for the opera “The Magic Flute,” a stage structure weighing approximately 400 kilograms collided with a performer. The accident left vocalist Ahn Youngjae with a diagnosis of quadriplegia. He died last year after a long illness. Park was head of the Seoul Metropolitan Opera at the time.

When Park was appointed head of the National Opera of Korea in April, labor and arts organizations, including the Korean Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, issued a statement calling for her appointment to be rescinded. They said the safety management responsibilities of those in charge of producing performances had not been sufficiently clarified and questioned whether she met the ethical standards expected of the head of a public arts institution.

Park has previously denied the allegations. At a press conference on May 28, she said that police had closed the case without referring it to prosecutors because no charges had been found, and expressed frustration over the controversy surrounding her appointment. She explained that she had not personally recruited the person involved in the accident and did not learn of the injury until a year later.

This is not the first time appointments to head cultural and arts institutions have sparked controversy. In April, too, members of the arts community called for the qualifications of appointees to be vetted and for their appointments to be rescinded, including those of Seo Seungman as president and CEO of Jeongdong Theater and Hwang Gyoik as head of the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute. Some arts organizations have argued that the leaders of cultural and arts institutions must have the expertise and independence needed to fulfill their institutions’ missions, regardless of their political leanings.

The audit focused on how to assess practical expertise and arts administration skills in selecting institutional leaders, and how to ensure fair appointments independent of political interests. In particular, lawmakers called for clear qualifications and vetting procedures for each position, given the different responsibilities of artistic directors at newly established national arts companies, heads of established public performing arts institutions, and non-executive board chairs.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.