The live performers of Minsokchon are really something to behold. In one arena, you have the folk band, which consists of percussive instruments such as pans and hourglass drums. The men wear headdresses, which can very long feathers or even long ribbons that they throw around like rhythmic gymnasts, except all the tricks are done by flicking their heads around. For the finale, one performer comes out with a very long headdress ribbon. He dances—and even break dances a bit, which spoils the idea of traditional folk dancing—all while keeping the ribbon in motion with his head. It’s pretty darn amazing.
Then you move to another arena, where you watch two women jump into the air with the help of a seesaw to leverage them into flight. The two women come out in traditional outfits, except for two differences. The skirts, which are traditionally long, have been updated into miniskirts. The women also wear sneakers. It was odd, but I can see why they have miniskirts. The women would get caught on their skirts, and also the sneakers protect their feet. They go pretty high up into the air.
After that, a tightrope walker comes out. I was amazed at how limber such an old man was. He’s been tightrope walking for 40 years. 40 years. I don’t know how old he is, but I hope that I’ll be as agile as him when I’m his age. He would hop on one leg across the rope then crack jokes. My sister got very bored since she wasn’t really listening to his speeches. It’s very hard to sit through it unless you understand what’s he is saying, but he does require some time to recuperate in between his sets. After all, he’s no spring chicken. While I was watching the tightrope walker, my sister went to watch other performers do tricks on horseback.
When we made our way to the horse-riding arena, it was very crowded. Unfortunately, it was going on at the same time as the tightrope walking. They really should stagger the shows so that people would give each performance the attention that it really deserves. The people who got bored with the tightrope walker did what my sister did—leave for the horses. What little I did see of it was like a rodeo.
After that, we went to see the traditional Korean wedding. Again, there was a huge crowd, so it was hard to see. At least there was an English translation for this event, but the pace was so slow, my sister didn’t want to continue. Since it was so hot and humid, I didn’t really want to stay either. The best thing to do is go when the weather is better, preferably in the fall, before it begins to get really cold, or the spring, before it gets really hot.