– All images in the article are from NHN Link MusicalStory Summary:In the future, thirty years from now, assistant robots have entered every household. Claire and Oliver are both outdated models of helperbots, living alone and no longer needed. One is cheerful and optimistic, while the other is cautious and reserved. They meet when Claire’s charger malfunctions, forcing her to knock on doors for help, and together they embark on a journey to Jeju Island…*The following content contains spoilers, read with caution*
After some twists and turns, I ended up watching the original musical “Maybe Happy Ending” (hereafter referred to as MHE), and it was truly a dream come true to see MidoRing’s performance… Thank you, fate.In the blink of an eye, MHE has reached its tenth anniversary. Starting from a workshop in 2015, it has continuously evolved based on a solid script and musical composition, making its way to Broadway, producing a Chinese version, winning numerous awards, and reaching this commemorative milestone.The cast for this tenth-anniversary performance is outstanding. Besides Mido, I was particularly eager to hear actors Park Ji-yeon and Park Jin-joo. The actor playing Oliver, Shin Sung-min, was someone I wasn’t familiar with before; I had only seen recordings of the version by Ding Wensheng and worried there would be a gap. However, he performed very steadily live, showcasing his own gentle style, though I felt the chemistry with Mido’s Claire was slightly lacking.Mido was simply mesmerizing… Just watching the early recordings confirmed this, and it was magnified infinitely in person. She embodied Claire, with sparkling eyes, an outgoing honesty, genuine excitement, and the joy of a successful little prank, along with a red nose from crying, and an ankle that was hurt due to a malfunction… The robot-like mimicry was always present, and her natural singing voice and expressive movements were incredibly moving.This play transitioned from a small theater to a medium-sized one, and the upgrades in stage design, props, lighting, and background supported this expansion, increasing the possibilities for stage direction while maintaining elegance, making certain scenes even more vivid and impactful.Just like Claire and Oliver driving to Jeju Island, the functional transitions between the original chairs, “car,” and luggage were enhanced by the stage’s elevation and the changing scenery on both sides, allowing for a more dynamic interweaving of storytelling and memories. (In this performance, Claire wore new pink sunglasses here, which were adorably youthful!)
Jeon Sung-woo & Park Ji-yeonThe stage design, live piano, and string accompaniment gave this musical a sense of “breathability.” This sense of breathability was not limited to this; in many moments that required pauses and echoes, a sublime sense of whitespace was created.I think this is why I feel that no segment of this work is sung just for the sake of singing; every transition flows naturally, and you can feel that warmth flowing gently, always a warm moment that can touch your heart.Claire learned from humans that there are no eternal feelings or emotions, so she promised Oliver early on, “Let’s not fall in love”; while Oliver’s former human “master” James treated him as a close friend. Even though he is no longer needed, this sincerity has led Oliver to save money in hopes of finding him— the design of James coming to the piano to play in place of the piano teacher in memories was truly good.Oliver ultimately had no place in his old master’s home, and Claire took him to Jeju Island to find her favorite fireflies, twinkling here and there… The emotions were pushed to a peak by the strings, and suddenly the sky was filled with stars, and tears flowed from my eyes earlier than I expected… I was amazed by these small yet miraculous beautiful moments in life, just as they were amazed by these little creatures that could shine without needing to be charged. This impulse and joy were so pure.
Bang Min-ah & Jung HwiOliver and Claire gradually began to understand their feelings for each other, a feeling called “love”—it is joy, it is sadness, it is longing, it is your smile, your gaze, your appearance, your thoughts, your soul…What should we do since we couldn’t keep our initial promise?The two explored their first serious physical contact, their first hug, their first kiss… The vibrant and thrilling strings, along with the frantic yet magnetic movements that repeatedly touched and fit together, were brilliantly choreographed, clearly showing the electric current between the two adorable little robots and the butterflies that were about to burst from their bellies.
Jeon Mi-do & Shin Sung-minThe latter half of the plot truly made my emotions rise and fall along with Claire and Oliver. The beautiful moments are so fleeting; knowing we cannot love yet still giving our all to love, knowing it cannot last, we decide to forget each other.But you must remember how to take care of the flower pot, and not forget how to use the paper cup phone… Even if memories are deleted, we should try to remember as many happy things as possible. It’s painful, but we must say goodbye with a smile.“Thank you for knocking on my door.”“Thank you for opening the door for me.”But Oliver did not truly keep the promise of forgetting, just as they had not kept their promise of not falling in love— the flower pot will help him keep the secret, and the firefly that Claire released will return to them, because we will love again and again, even if we malfunction, age, rust, or fail, we will still love. We will still love.
Jeon Mi-doThe beautiful melodies and the emotional discussions centered around robots kept the story captivating. I was repeatedly moved by the delicate points and portrayals of Korean creators. The setting of robots gives everything a sense of rationality and deeper meaning, seemingly set in the future while actually reflecting our current lives as “humans.”In the future, perhaps the differences between robots and humans will shrink to a negligible degree. If robots are more daring to love and understand how to love better than we do, what then is the significance of this heart we possess, this beating warmth?Illuminating the dark summer night, the small figures breathing alongside loved ones, this work filled with small slices of life is brimming with magical beautiful moments, containing the rarest and purest emotions—In this era of indifference and excessive sentimentality, regardless of whether we know the final outcome, being able to love and feel bravely and sincerely, to share our vulnerabilities and embrace others’ vulnerabilities, seems to be a rarity.Ancient emotions are always diverse and mysterious, and the time left for us is not much.
“Have we met before?”Claire knocks on Oliver’s door again to borrow a charger, looking thoughtfully at the furnishings and the flower pot on the table.“Maybe.”Oliver pretends to read a magazine again, and the record player starts playing a familiar melody, that fateful melody…The final song is a variation of the “so-called love” they understood earlier, with the clear piano keys evoking many imaginations and hopes. This open-ended conclusion makes one smile through tears.Whether I wait for you to gradually pick up the pieces, or we both pretend not to remember and create new memories together, our story has not reached its end.Because of the feelings we experience together, because of the “heart” that beats again because of each other, who says this is not our beautiful ending.🪴In the blink of an eye, tonight is Mido’s final performance, and I finally finished writing this today. (Every time I start writing, I still feel that bittersweet feeling, truly a sweet pain…)Besides the final stage greeting, I didn’t expect there would also be a farewell message, which further solidified my feeling that Mido would say goodbye to this role…Thank you, Mido, for not truly making the last performance the final one, for still making a special appearance for the tenth anniversary, allowing me the chance to see you in the theater; thank you for accompanying this character’s growth since the workshop, making her such a fleshed-out existence; and most importantly, thank you for being Claire.
“I will always remember those pairs of eyes in the audience that sparkled like fireflies. Thank you for opening the door for me.”Claire, Jeon Mi-doMay each of you have a wonderful life.