Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 259

Then, senior! Ill go ahead!

Okay. Dont drink too much, you have a performance tomorrow.

Yes!

The actor Choi Chan-young, who played the role of Park Won-kyung, bowed his head with a bright face and left the waiting room.

I got goosebumps at the end. You were amazing.

Huh. Really?

The stage direction was also impressive. This play is going to be a hit.

The voices of Choi Chan-youngs friends, who seemed to be outside the slightly open door, were heard.

Kim Jong-ho and his manager both smiled at the excited voices.

But why are these guys not coming?

Should I call them?

No. Theyll be here soon.

Kim Jong-ho, who grumbled for a moment, sat on a soft sofa and waited for someone while reading the script again.

Knock knock.

He heard a familiar voice and closed the script with a smile. 

His manager also opened the door of the waiting room with a smile.

In front of the door, there were two shining actors and one actor who was good at acting but not so good at personality.

Jong-ho uncle! Were here!

We enjoyed the play today.

Seo-jun and Park Do-hoon gave Kim Jong-ho a bouquet of flowers with a smile.

He looked unbalanced with two big bouquets of flowers on his grim face, but Kim Jong-ho was very happy.

Thank you both.

Hey, hyung? Cant you see me? Im here too.

Kim Jong-ho didnt care about Lee Ji-seok, who was fidgeting in front of him, even though he was good at acting but not so good at personality.

Lee Ji-seoks manager, Yoon Sung-oh, laughed at the familiar sight and handed Lee Ji-seok a paper bag he was holding.

Lee Ji-seok smiled and took out what was in the paper bag.

Its a happy day for Jong-ho hyung to be on stage for the first time in 10 years. How can we miss champagne! I bought the most expensive one from the store.

Wow!

Seo-jun and Park Do-hoon looked at him with a surprised expression, but soon nodded as if they expected it.

There was a reason why they got along well for a long time despite their bickering.

Ji-seok, you bought this? Thats unusual.

Kim Jong-ho said while stroking his chin.

It was a curious voice, but his lips curled up slightly, showing that he liked the champagne gift.

I cant drink it.

Seo-jun pretended to slump his shoulders as if he was underage. Lee Ji-seok laughed and said.

You can drink it too, Seo-jun. Its non-alcoholic.

Then its not a gift for me, is it?

Non-alcoholic champagne. That was just a soda.

Kim Jong-ho looked at Lee Ji-seok as if to say thats right.

Lee Ji-seok shrugged his shoulders with a playful face.

Then Seo-jun and Park Do-hoon, and the managers laughed at the familiar sight of the two actors.

Then lets go have dinner.

Can we go with you? Dont you have a dinner party or something on the first day of the play?

At Seo-juns question, Kim Jong-ho recalled the actors who left for a celebration party with their families and friends after finishing the first performance successfully. 

They all stopped by the waiting room to say hello to Kim Jong-ho.

There are a lot of families and friends of the actors today. Its the first day, so they should spend some quality time with their families. We can have dinner on the last day of the play.

At Kim Jong-hos words, Seo-jun nodded his head.

Then where should we go?

I have a place reserved.

At Lee Ji-seoks words, Park Do-hoon raised his hand.

The actors and managers moved to the passage that only staff could use, not to the lobby of the Milky Way Center where the audience was.

Should we go in one car?

Then lets take my car.

Shall we?

The three actors got into Seo-juns car, which was the biggest among the actors cars.

Lee Ji-seoks manager, Yoon Sung-oh, decided to go with them and Park Do-hoon and Kim Jong-hos managers decided to go home. 

And Yoon Sung-oh drove Lee Ji-seoks car to follow them.

An Da-ho got into the drivers seat.

The four actors who sat facing each other fastened their seat belts.

Kim Jong-ho carefully put the flowers next to him so they wouldnt get damaged. 

He hesitated for a moment and then coughed and asked.

So, how was the play?

At Kim Jong-hos question, the three actors opened their mouths as if they had been waiting.

They all did well. There was no one who stood out and the dialogue modulation was good for the play.

The emotions of the actors were consistent. Even when the audiences eyes were on the first floor stage where they reenacted the past, the atmosphere of the courtroom on the second floor remained the same.

Thats right. They all looked focused even though they might have been distracted. And it wasnt easy to act the same scene twice with different atmospheres, but they acted convincingly for both the prosecutors and the defenses arguments.

Kim Jong-ho smiled at the compliments that poured out. They were serious actors when it came to acting, so it was a reliable evaluation.

Chan-young did well. The other actors too.

He recalled the police officer who left the courtroom with Park Kyung-won at the end without saying a word, the jurors who looked at the trial with a grim or sobbing face, and the judges who looked down with dignity.

And the witnesses who testified with a tense tone as they recalled their memories.

They all practiced hard.

It was a good thing to be talked about, but it was a burden to be talked about more than he imagined.

The actors felt more pressure as the opening day approached, as the play became more popular due to the false report of Lee Seo-joons appearance.

The only way to overcome the pressure was to practice harder.

Kim Jong-ho, who held the center of the actors who practiced day and night with anxious faces, thought of his three friends who were talking happily about the jurors.

His heart seemed to have widened a little as he spent time with actors who loved acting.

Maybe he could give some advice to his junior actors again.

He smiled, thinking that Lee Ji-seok and Park Do-hoon would be happy if they heard it.

I think we became closer than usual when we do plays.

Kim Jong-ho smiled contentedly and said, thinking of the juror team actors who practiced hard. 

The three actors who loved acting also smiled brightly.

Youre hyungs favorite actors Its been a long time, right?

Thats right. Introduce us next time, uncle Jong-ho.

I want to meet them too.

Okay.

Kim Jong-ho nodded his head.

They were all good actors, so they would get along well soon.

***

[The play Juror! Amazing stage design!]

[Actors Kim Jong-ho and Choi Chan-young, showing off their brilliant acting skills!]

[The past seen from the courtroom! Who is the director?]

[Prosecutor? Defense? Whose argument was right?]

[The author of the novel Juror, Song Moon-seoks other novels to be dramatized?]

[The play Juror, sold out every day!]

-Wow. The stage was no joke. They made a whole new stage.

=Wow You saw it? Im jealous.

=Friendship chance. It was an invitation seat.

=You have such connections Well. Tell me more.

-_______ >> Pro Judge Def

=__ >>_Living room_

=I thought it was just a stage, but it opened like this. The audience was noisy when it opened.

=When the door closed and opened, it changed to a hospital, living room, and outdoor.

-They didnt let the audience sit in the first three rows because of this stage direction.

=So thats why my seat was gone!!

=I dont care if my neck hurts! I want to see it!

-The direction was great, but the actors were also good.

=Kim Jong-ho is obvious, but Choi Chan-young, who played the main character, was also good.

=I got goosebumps at the end!

=The novel ended ambiguously with whether it was the prosecutor or the defense, but the play decided on the prosecutors side and made a twist.

-Why dont they broadcast this?

**

After school.

Before starting the mirror practice, Seo-jun looked over the script and stage direction of the mirror.

After watching the play Juror, which was also based on a novel like the mirror, he saw some parts that he wanted to change.

But after thinking for a moment, Seo-jun closed the script.

He couldnt change anything more unless he could use the stage alone.

The mirror is not that kind of story anyway.

He thought it would be better to do as planned.

Before starting the practice, Yang Ju-hee, who was talking and laughing with the music team kids, joked.

What about music? We cant do it live, right?

Absolutely not.

The third-year music major who was in charge of the music team shook his head firmly with a pumpkin-like expression.

The Yeoul Hall where they had their graduation performance had a space between the stage and the audience seats. 

It was a space where an orchestra could play along with an opera performance.

Ju-hees suggestion was to have the music team play there and give live background music along with the play.

The music team kids also shook their heads vigorously.

Why?

When Kang Jae-han tilted his head, the music team leader laughed.

He remembered when he first met Seo-jun and the actor team who had a late class today.

Seo-jun is too good at acting!

The music team and background team kids nodded their heads.

They couldnt forget that scene on the first day.

Ready, action.

Seo-juns words made him fall into it along with the actor team kids.

The familiar practice room turned into a stage with spotlights in an instant.

The kids stopped playing music or making backgrounds and stared blankly at the actors.

The actors who acted with all their strength as if they were really on stage even though it was practice.

It was so powerful that they thought to themselves that this was why people went to see plays.

Are they practicing for the first time today?

I see why they are called the golden generation.

I laughed so hard when I heard that I dont think I can laugh anymore.

The music team and background team kids swallowed their saliva as they watched the actors who created a beautiful color by turning their surroundings into black and white.

If we play live, we have to watch the play and match the timing. I think Ill be mesmerized by your acting and cant even conduct.

If the timing of the music was wrong, it would create a discord with the play.

Seo-jun, who was momentarily tempted by Ju-hees words, weighed the pros and cons of live performance and came to a conclusion.

Lets record as planned.

Meanwhile, Park Min-hyung, a first-year art major who had a late class today, arrived while the kids were congratulating the third-years.

Im sorry Im late!

No, its okay.

When all of the mirror team kids gathered, Seo-jun got up from his seat.

Then lets start todays practice.

There were less than four weeks left until the graduation performance.