The Last Empress (musical)

The Last Empress (Korean: 뮤지컬 명성황후) is a Korean musical about the Empress Myeongseong of Korea, based on the play The Fox Hunt by author Yi Mun-yol.^[1][2] It debuted on December 30, 1995 at the Seoul Arts Center.^[3][4]

The musical was created by musical director Yoon Ho-jin, who came up with the idea after watching a production of Cats in London. Yoon urged author Yi Mun-yol to write a play about Empress Myeongseong, leading him to write The Fox Hunt in 1994.^[5] The play was adapted into a musical by playwright Kwang Lim-kim.^[2]

The musical's songs were composed by Kim Hee-gap, with lyrics by Yang In-ja (translated by Georgina St. George).^[2] The musical was produced by the Seoul-based company Arts Communication (A-Com).

The original production at the Seoul Performing Arts Center reached one million ticket sales by March 1, 2007.^[6][7] The musical was performed several times in South Korea, including a production in 2021.^[8] In 2025, to celebrate the musical's 30th anniversary, The Last Empress reopened at the Sejong Center in South Korea, playing from January to March.^[9]

The musical also played overseas at the New York State Theater, Lincoln Center, in 1997 and 1998, to favorable reviews. It also played in London's West End in 2002,^[10] the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles in 2003,^[11] and at Toronto's Hummingbird Centre in 2004. The Last Empress was the first Korean musical to be played at Western venues.^[2]