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Hong Kwang-ho
Born (1982-04-06) April 6, 1982 (age 42)
Seoul, South Korea
OccupationMusical theater actor
Years active2002–present
Korean name
Hangul
홍광호
Revised RomanizationHong Gwangho
McCune–ReischauerHong Kwangho

Hong Kwang-ho is a South Korean actor mainly known for his works in musical theater. Hong is best known worldwide for his portrayal of Thuy in the 2014 West End revival of the musical Miss Saigon.

Life and career

Hong was born in Seoul on April 6, 1982. He was first introduced to musical theatre through his sister who was planning to be an actor, and with this in mind he entered Kaywon School of Art and Design after her. Later he graduated from Chung-Ang University with Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting. He made a debut on stage as an ensemble member of the musical The Last Empress. After travelling to London for the West End run of the show he was motivated to be a leading actor, but was unable to land a role for years after returning from the military service.

In 2006 Hong appeared on the Korean production of Miss Saigon as an understudy for Chris. With this experience he landed a role a year later as Haesoo, main character of the musical Cheotsarang (First Love), starring alongside Jo Jung-suk. In the same year he also starred in a Korean production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street as Tobias.

Hong became the center of attention in 2009 for his portrayal of the title characters in the musical Jekyll & Hyde, one of the best-selling shows in Korean theatre. He was especially noted for being the youngest actor to portray the main character. After his run on Jekyll & Hyde, he starred in a new musical Bballae (The wash) as Solongo, the Mongolian immigrant worker.

The same year Hong appeared in The Phantom of the Opera as Viscount Raoul de Chagny. A year after he was chosen to portray the title character of the show, making him one of the youngest actors in the world to portray The Phantom. In 2012, Hong portrayed Yuri Zhivago in the Korean production of the show Doctor Zhivago after reprising his role as Doctor Jekyll. After Zhivago he played the main character (Miguel de Cervantes/Don Quixote) on The Man of La Mancha, and the male lead Bae Bijang on the show Saljjaki Opseoye (Sweet, Come to Me Stealthily). A year after he also starred in Notre-Dame de Paris as Quasimodo.

In 2014, it was revealed that Cameron Mackintosh had chosen Hong to portray Thuy in the new West End revival of Miss Saigon.[1] During his year-long run as Thuy, he was critically acclaimed and lauded by audiences and critics alike, and was awarded WhatsOnStage award for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical.[2] After Miss Saigon and his return to Korea, Hong starred as Light Yagami in the 2015 musical adaptation of Death Note along with Kim Junsu as L.

In 2016, he took part in the musical "Bballae" again. And after "Bballae", he starred as Quasimodo in Notre-Dame de Paris

In 2017, he took part in the musical "Mr. Mouse" as Inhoo. Afterwards he took part in the Musical Cyrano de Bergerac The Musical as Cyrano de Bergerac, and he was awarded with the Best Actor award at the Korea Musical Awards. Afterwards he took part in the Musical "Hamlet: Alive" as Hamlet.

In 2022, he reprised his role from 2015 as Light Yagami in "Death Note: The Musical". It ran from April 1 to June 26 at the Chungmu Art Center.

Theatre credits

Year English title Role Ref.
2002 The Last Empress ensemble
2006 Miss Saigon ensemble,
1st cover of Chris&Thuy
2007 First Love Haesoo
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Tobias Ragg
2008 See what I wanna see robber, newsman
2009 Jekyll & Hyde Jekyll, Hyde
The wash Solongo
The Phantom of the Opera Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny
2010 Phantom
2011 Jekyll & Hyde Dr. Henry Jekyll, Mr. Edward Hyde
2012 Doctor Zhivago Yuri Zhivago
The Man of La Mancha Miguel de Cervantes/Don Quixote
2013 Sweet, Come to Me Stealthily Bae Bijang
Notre-Dame de Paris Quasimodo
2014 Miss Saigon 25th Anniversary West End 2014 revival Thuy
2015 Death Note Light Yagami
2016 The wash Solongo
Notre-Dame de Paris Quasimodo
2017 Mr. Mouse Inhoo
Cyrano de Bergerac The Musical Cyrano de Bergerac
Hamlet: Alive Hamlet
2018 The Man of La Mancha Miguel de Cervantes / Don Quixote
2019 Jekyll & Hyde Dr. Henry Jekyll / Mr. Edward Hyde
2019-2020 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Sweeney Todd
2021 The Man of La Mancha Miguel de Cervantes / Don Quixote
Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 Pierre Bezukhov
2021-2022 Jekyll & Hyde Jekyll/Hyde [3]
2022 Death Note Light Yagami [4]
2023 [5]

Filmography

2008 "Gogo70" - Junyeop
2016 "Miss Saigon : 25th Anniversary Performance" - Thuy

References

  1. ^ "Miss Saigon 2014 Cast - Kwang-Ho Hong as Thuy". YouTube. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
  2. ^ Bannister, Rosie. "Full list: Winners of the 15th Annual WhatsOnStage Awards". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
  3. ^ Kang Min-kyung (August 24, 2021). "홍광호·신성록→조정은·아이비..'지킬앤하이드' 1차 캐스팅 라인업 [공식]" [Hong Kwang-ho, Shin Sung-ro → Adjustment, Ivy .. 'Jekyll & Hyde' Primary Casting Lineup [Official]]. StarNews (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  4. ^ AKP Staff (January 23, 2022). "'Death Note' the musical reveals the full cast lineup including Kei and Junsu". Allkpop. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  5. ^ Kang Min-kyung (February 6, 2023). "[공식] 홍광호→김준수·김성철, '데스노트', 4월 1일 앙코르 공연 개막" [[Official] Hong Kwang-ho→Kim Jun-su·Kim Seong-cheol, 'Death Note', April 1 encore performance begins] (in Korean). Ten Asia. Retrieved February 6, 2023 – via Naver.
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