Korean Folk Village Ghosts Who Scared Kids Now Take Parents to Task: “Is the House in Both Your Names?”

Bringing joy to adult visitors as well as children
Recently went viral on social media with videos of “ghost-style discipline”

Actors known as the “Korean Folk Village ghosts,” who dress up as ghosts to help children improve their habits, have made headlines for their spirited performances for adult visitors as well. They stage role-playing scenes that resonate with adults, such as scolding them for drinking too much or getting them to promise to put their house in both spouses’ names.

On October 27, Kang Yunjung, who plays a virgin ghost at the Korean Folk Village, Koo Gyohyun, who plays an Eoduksini, and Hwang Mina, an assistant manager on the Korean Folk Village’s Content Planning Team, appeared on CBS radio’s “Park Jaehong’s Hanpanseungbu.”

Actors playing ghost characters at the Korean Folk Village who appeared on a CBS radio broadcast. Screenshot from YouTube's "Park Jae-hong's One-on-One Show."

At the Korean Folk Village, actors dressed as traditional Korean ghost characters, including virgin ghosts, Eoduksini, gumiho, and rabbit ghosts, currently perform role-playing scenes with visitors. Videos of the ghost characters scolding children for bad habits have spread on social media, giving rise to the new term “ghost-style discipline.”

On the broadcast, Kang described what happens at the village: “Most visitors line up in front of me to discipline their children. They say things like, ‘My child won’t eat, sucks their fingers, or watches too much TV.’” She added, “There are so many issues. I ask the child’s name and sometimes talk to them one-on-one. If they go home just like that, it becomes a lesson in manners.”

Recently, however, the ghost role-playing scenes have reportedly been expanded so adult visitors can enjoy them too. Kang said, “Adults come to me for advice as well. If a wife says, ‘My husband never listens to me,’ I ask the husband, ‘Should you listen to your wife or not?’ and get him to promise.”

They drew attention with role-play scenes teaching children everyday etiquette. Screenshot from YouTube.

Koo said, “If someone says they drink too much beer at night, I warn them. Or I’ll stop a father and ask, ‘Have you put the house in both your names or not?’ He hesitates, but if I press him, saying, ‘Are you going to do it or not?’ he laughs and says, ‘I will.’” Koo added, “We can’t let only the children enjoy it, can we? I thought we should let the adults enjoy it too.”

The ghost character makeup reportedly takes considerable effort. Koo said, “It takes 30 minutes to an hour at most. When we do this makeup, we exchange feedback. If we ask the makeup artist to deepen the shadows or raise our eyebrows, they take our suggestions on the spot and make adjustments.”

Meanwhile, the Korean Folk Village is holding its fall festival, “Ghost Saba Ghost Play,” through November 15.

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