Moon Geun Young is back on stage—and showing a whole new side of herself.
The actress returned to theater for the first time in nine years with Orphans, appearing at a press call on March 19th in Seoul. The production marks a major milestone following her recovery from a rare illness.
Orphans, written by Lyle Kessler, follows a gangster named Harold and two orphaned brothers, Treat and Phillip, whose uneasy cohabitation slowly turns into something resembling a family.
Moon Geun Young takes on the role of Treat, a complex character who hides vulnerability beneath aggression as he tries to protect his younger brother. For the role, she underwent a striking transformation—debuting short, bleached hair, a deeper vocal tone, and tackling intense action scenes and profanity-heavy dialogue.
Reflecting on her return, she said, “I felt really drawn to the comfort and message of the story.” She added that the gender-free casting of Treat was also something she thought deeply about.
“I read the script almost every night,” she shared. “After going through it so many times, I started to feel like I really wanted to take on the challenge—like I had to make it work somehow.”
To prepare, she focused on both physical and technical details. “I practiced things like handling a knife and worked on making sure even the brief action scenes didn’t look weak,” she said.
As for the strong language in the play, she admitted it didn’t come naturally. “I’m not good at swearing, so at first it didn’t sound real,” she said with a laugh. “I got help from people around me and practiced a lot.”
Moon Geun Young previously underwent emergency surgery in 2017 for acute compartment syndrome, which forced her to step away from a production at the time. Now fully recovered, her return with Orphans highlights both her resilience and range as an actress.
Orphans will run through May 31st at TOM Theater in Seoul.
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In the meantime, watch Moon Geun Young in Glass Garden on Amasian TV for free.
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