Chapter 39: Sasaeng Fan (1)
Chapter 39: Sasaeng Fan (1)
In the silence.
Everyone’s gaze shifted bit by bit.
Amidst that silence stood a high school girl exuding a peculiar atmosphere.
Long, jet-black hair contrasted against pale skin.
At first, they had assumed she was just another girl who had come to the audition relying solely on her looks.
But.
‘Who is she? She looks experienced.’
‘What is she doing right now? Is she acting?’
A quiet, foundational expression was settled on her face.
Beneath it, one could feel emotions vividly surfacing.
Usually, when people refer to "stiff acting," they mean robot-like performances with no facial changes.
However, through minute shifts within a stoic expression, a "robot" can be repackaged as "understated, natural acting."
It was a change defined by a paper-thin margin.
Naturally, this was a look one would expect from a veteran actor, making it a highly jarring sight to see from a high school girl.
‘She’s definitely experienced, that girl.’
If she was still a student, perhaps she was a former child actor who had been active somewhere.
If she had appeared in minor dramas, it was possible they wouldn't recognize her.
‘But.’
While the gathered actors were wary of the girl, they felt a sense of relief deep down.
That style of acting was different from the kind used in theater.
Clatter.
Just then, the closed door swung open roughly.
Everyone’s eyes shifted.
Seo-yeon, who had been calmly preparing her performance, also turned her gaze toward the sound.
The entrance to the waiting room where the actors were gathered.
A woman stood there, gripping the doorknob and breathing heavily.
Wavy brown hair. Drooping eyes.
She was not very tall and had a thin frame.
She looked to be barely in her early twenties.
The most striking thing about her was her haggard, hollow complexion.
For an actor, she had a strangely memorable appearance.
‘Who is that?’
‘Is she an applicant?’
Her attire was as peculiar as Seo-yeon’s school uniform.
She looked like a "fashion terrorist."
Jeans thrown on haphazardly and a plaid flannel shirt.
It was the kind of fashion one might expect from a male engineering student.
Regardless of whether it suited today’s role or not, it was an outfit that provoked a strange sense of discomfort.
‘It’s her.’
Seo-yeon narrowed her eyes as she watched the woman stumble inside.
As if the gazes of others meant nothing to her, the woman went and sat in a vacant seat.
She didn't even have a script in her hand.
She had come empty-handed.
To an observer, she looked like someone who had wandered into the wrong room.
“Excuse me, this is an audition hall.”
When one actor spoke to her just in case, the woman’s eyes moved slowly.
Her eyes rolled with a flash of white—a movement that could only be described as "glaring wildly."
The actor who had spoken flinched for a moment.
She possessed an aura that was far from ordinary.
“I know.”
Her words were blunt.
There was no further explanation, but it felt difficult to say anything more to her.
‘...That’s right. It’s her.’
She looked exactly like she did in the news.
The "role" in this play that Seo-yeon had seen belonged to that woman.
And through that play, she would be cast in a movie.
A person who had garnered massive attention in many different ways.
‘Pyo Ji-woo.’
A woman who might have become a star.
A sasaeng fan with the most terrible talent.
She was the enemy Seo-yeon had to defeat this time.
*
“What do you think? Anyone catch your eye?”
Jo Do-yul, the director of the play, asked as he looked around at the other judges.
The judging panel included Director Jo Do-yul, the assistant director, the stage director, and other production staff, as well as two actors participating in the play.
“As expected of a script by Writer Lee Min-hee, it’s very popular.”
“True. It’s a proven script, after all.”
Close Your Eyes was a play that had already been a major hit in Daehak-ro three years ago.
Its success was guaranteed to the point that they were assembling a new production team and cast to run it again.
“The role of ‘Hong Jeong-hee’ we’re casting this time is crucial.”
“Of course. She’s the character who flips the entire atmosphere of the play.”
The play basically follows the story of the male lead, idol Bae Seong-hak, and a woman with a hearing impairment, Song Min-seo. Since it primarily deals with their romance, there aren't many events that could be called a major crisis. While minor incidents occur, the person who truly shifts the mood is Hong Jeong-hee.
“If we cast the wrong Hong Jeong-hee, the whole stage will fall apart.”
“Exactly. But then again, playing a villain isn't easy...”
“That gloominess needs to come across well. If it’s awkward, it becomes really awkward, you know? But if done well, it’s a role that can leave a massive impact.”
That was why the role was popular among actors.
The screen time wasn't much, but it was a role with a tremendous presence in the play.
Consequently, there were a whopping 500 applicants.
They had narrowed them down to a tenth of that number to conduct this second round of auditions.
“If we’re talking about someone who stands out, maybe Actor Bae Young-hyun?”
“Ah, she’s a good actor. Her skills are proven. She’s quite diligent, too. I heard it hasn't been long since she finished her last stage.”
The judges each mentioned the names of the actors they were interested in.
And among them, one person mentioned a jarring name.
“Ju Seo-yeon. ...You saw her profile, right?”
“Ah.”
At those words, everyone nodded.
Of course they had seen it.
It was as if an unexpected person had appeared from an entirely unexpected place.
“The child actor from that hit drama ten years ago. I never expected to see her here.”
“I was surprised too. I actually watched that drama myself. Back then, I clapped because I thought, ‘Wow, that kid is a really good actor.’”
“...Is that so? I didn't watch The Moon that Hides the Sun (Taesumdal).”
“Goodness, what were you watching back then if not Taesumdal?”
“Action King...”
“Wow, you’re a rare breed. To think I’d meet a precious Action King viewer here.”
“That’s mean, seriously.”
Those who had checked Ju Seo-yeon’s profile let out such comments.
As "Princess Yeonhwa" in Taesumdal, she had reached the pinnacle of what a child actor could achieve.
Furthermore, she was the winner of the Best Youth Actor Award that year.
She had achieved the maximum career possible for a child actor in just one year.
The person who had suddenly vanished for ten years after that was Ju Seo-yeon.
“Why theater?”
“There are plenty of actors who return through theater. Some use it as rehabilitation before going back to movies or dramas...”
They said those words, but their expressions were ambivalent.
Ju Seo-yeon.
In terms of buzz alone, she was a huge catch.
“As for whether she fits the play, well...”
“Her looks are one thing, but hmm. In the end, her only experience is one drama. She likely has zero theater experience.”
“Does she not know that acting for the stage and acting for the screen are different?”
“She’s also a bit young. Though at high school age, makeup can sufficiently cover that.”
This was possible because Seo-yeon was female.
Generally, women finish most of their growth by their mid-to-late teens.
Therefore, there wasn't a huge difference compared to adult actresses.
“She’s quite a dilemma.”
“Too good to let go, but it feels like she might not fit.”
Though they didn't say it out loud, they wondered how well a child actor returning after ten years could actually act. Ten years ago, everyone marveled at her performance as Princess Yeonhwa, but that was child acting.
Now was the time to compare her to adult actors.
She lacked experience, and it was hard to gauge if her first performance in ten years would even reach the level of the old "Princess Yeonhwa."
Certainly, the acting she showed in her free-acting video was flawless.
That was why she had passed the first round unanimously.
However, stage acting and acting seen through a video could be different.
“Actually, there’s one person who catches my eye more than Actress Ju Seo-yeon.”
“Ah, I think I know who you mean.”
The judges, meeting each other's eyes, spoke the name simultaneously.
“Actress Pyo Ji-woo, right?”
The free-acting video they had checked in the first round.
The acting she showed there was nothing short of shocking.
It was raw, but for that very reason, it was a performance more suited to the role of "Hong Jeong-hee" than anyone else's.
“I personally hope this actor takes the role of Hong Jeong-hee. What do you think, Actor Min Seo-ho?”
“Yes?”
“After all, isn't this the role that will be most intensely entangled with Song Min-seo, though in a different sense?”
“Ah, right.”
Min Seo-ho said that while looking at his phone.
He wasn't doing something else, of course.
Having heard the name, he was simply re-checking Pyo Ji-woo’s free-acting video from the first audition.
‘It’s strange.’
Min Seo-ho frowned as he watched it.
‘I feel like I’ve seen her somewhere.’
Was she someone he met at a club?
He shook his head at the thought.
“For me, she feels like someone who might not quite fit. Well, we’ll have to see her in person first.”
“Is that so? Hmm, well, I suppose seeing her directly is the right way.”
Having said that, Jo Do-yul checked his watch.
It was almost time for the audition.
The audition for the role of "Hong Jeong-hee," the villain responsible for the play’s success.
*
Seven in the evening.
The audition began in earnest late in the evening.
Seo-yeon slowly scanned her surroundings.
The tension in the air was incomparable to when she was a child actor.
Back then, the most she had to deal with was the power struggles between parents.
But the people here were all dead serious.
They were people who had come here to make this their profession, to survive in the industry.
Naturally, their spirit was bound to be different.
‘The feeling is definitely different from the auditions I’ve seen before.’
Seo-yeon thought as she calmly closed her eyes.
For the audition, five people entered the set at a time to perform.
In other words, they had to perform in front of others.
If she hadn't experienced the audition for Taesumdal, she might have been flustered.
Even if that was something from ten years ago.
‘She’s calm.’
‘She definitely looks used to this.’
The other actors stole glances at Seo-yeon.
This was a familiar situation for actors who auditioned frequently.
But wasn't Seo-yeon still a high school student?
The fact that she wasn't trembling was proof that she had a lot of experience.
Or proof that she was naturally bold.
Either way, it was an essential element for an actor.
‘Who on earth is she?’
While everyone harbored curiosity about Seo-yeon.
“Next, Actress Ha Si-eun. Actress Hwang Young-hee, and...”
The names of the next actors to audition were called.
“Actress Ju Seo-yeon.”
Slowly, Seo-yeon stood out at the mention of that name.
Ju Seo-yeon.
The moment that name was heard, several actors reacted.
“Ju Seo-yeon? She’s not that child actor I know, is she?”
“No way, surely not.”
“But looking at her face and age...”
Taesumdal was a drama that had defined an era.
In particular, Ju Seo-yeon was an actor who had recorded viewership ratings that would never be seen again for a child actor.
Most of the actors here had been young when Taesumdal aired, but her performance was so impressive that it remained vivid in their memories.
“And, Actress Pyo Ji-woo.”
Pyo Ji-woo, who was to enter the audition hall after Seo-yeon, was also called.
She stood up with a face that looked like she couldn't care less.
Perhaps because of Seo-yeon’s name, which had just been heard, few people paid attention to her.
“Nice to meet you. I am Jo Do-yul, the director of this production of Close Your Eyes, serving as a judge.”
Upon entering the audition hall, eight judges were seated.
Among them, Seo-yeon saw Min Seo-ho, the actor playing the male lead, "Bae Seong-hak."
‘That’s him.’
The man who would become problematic in many ways.
A man who would soon understand Bae Seong-hak’s feelings better than anyone.
‘And.’
Seo-yeon shifted her gaze to the side.
To the woman who had entered the audition hall with her.
Pyo Ji-woo.
“Now then, who should we start with...”
The judges’ gazes moved.
Those gazes were largely pointing toward two people.
Ju Seo-yeon and Pyo Ji-woo.
“Actress Ju Seo-yeon. Please step forward.”
The very first turn.
The first of anything is always the most burdensome.
Auditions were no different.
‘The genius child actor from ten years ago.’
Her radiant appearance caught their eyes.
Would she be able to show acting skills as great as she had in the past?
The judges decided to watch in silence.