Korea is an incredible destination of ultra-modern cosmopolitan cities, beautiful natural sights, and a rich culture built on thousands of years of heritage from a  proud people. One other aspect of Korea that anyone who has ever been there will rave about is the food. It is, in a word, yum-tacular.  A thrilling evening that brings all of Korea’s wonderful aspects and culture together is, in fact, a theatre show about cooking. “Cookin’ Nanta!” is an outrageous, action-packed kitchen comedy where unbelievable technical dexterity meets traditional Korean drumming meets slapstick fun with uproarious characters!

To describe the show, one could imagine Stomp meets Hell’s Kitchen with a bit of Laurel and Hardy.  The musical debut made quite a splash—and won Best Performance—at the 1999 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Since then, it has been successfully staged in 57 countries around the world, including Off-Broadway in New York City 2004-2005. 2019 marks the iconic Korean show’s 20th anniversary year!

Currently, Nanta is the longest-running show in Korea, with several crews of brilliant professional actors at each of the 3 locations: 1) Myeongdong district, Seoul, 2) Hongdae district, Seoul, 3) Jeju Island.

Nanta wows audiences, using knives and cutting boards to create a fascinating combination of traditional Korean samulnori (four instrument) drumming, poongmul farmer drumming, women’s samo-gu 3-drum dancing, and taekwondo martial arts—combined with acrobatics, magic, juggling, fire, audience participation, and Lucille Ball rubber-face humor on an inventive MacGyver set! This performance is a Must See.

The premise of the show focuses on a motley staff of four Korean chefs—with a cantankerous manager—who need to prepare a huge traditional Korean wedding banquet and a wedding cake, by 6 o’clock. Guaranteed laughs for all ages, with delightful subplots including a rom-com story between the pretty chef and the hunky one, and a revenge plot between the newbie chef and the handsome chef—in a race against time and disbelief!

After the show, guests can feast on the legendary Korean street food which is probably just beyond the theatre door.

Cooking Nanta is a show that brings Korea’s love of food and culture together in a show sure to please guests of all ages.

Article by Karen Lyu