Mnet‘s ‘Stage Fighter’ has raised expectations for an unprecedented stage by confirming the main roles by class.

In the 5th episode of ‘Stage Fighter’ (abbreviated as Steph) that aired on the 22nd, a large-scale mega stage mission began where all 64 dancers created one stage after the first class transfer ceremony.

The mega stage mission that took place that day was ‘Stage’’s first genre-transcending mission that combined the three genres of Korean dance, modern dance, and ballet, and a casting audition was held for the mega stage work ‘Wehonmu: A Dance to Comfort Death’, in which Choi Soo-jin participated in the choreography.

Among the casting auditions that selected roles by class, the dancers who appeared first were from the ‘Under’ class. The dancers in the lower ranks couldn‘t hide their excitement at the news that the corps casting auditions would be conducted by genre, calling it a “battle of Korean dance, modern dance, and ballet.” They were given the mission of organizing a movement line according to the concept of “comforting and embracing,” and the dancers in the lower ranks began practicing in earnest, putting the pride of their genres on the line.

The main character who emerged as the main corps amidst the tense war of nerves was modern dance. Unlike Korean dance, which suffered from internal strife, and ballet, which was not in sync, modern dance, led by Ko Dong-hoon as the corps leader, received applause for its novel duet choreography and splendid movement changes, and they even enjoyed the benefit of being able to choose the work’s sound source first in the next mission.

The mega supporting role casting auditions, which correspond to the second rank, were conducted in a way that two dancers from different genres formed a team and worked together. As it was a mission that required copying other genres in a given section, an even fiercer strategic battle unfolded, and the dancers all said, “This is a real mud fight” due to the extremely difficult mission.


Amidst the flood of big matches crossing over between Korean dance, modern dance, and ballet, the performance of the modern dancers who perfectly absorbed other genres stood out. ▲Modern dance Yang Seong-yoon, Jeong Hye-seong, Kim Yeong-ung, Kim Hye-hyun ▲Ballet Kang Kyung-ho, a total of five dancers were named as main supporting roles, and the rematch for the last remaining spot created a tense atmosphere. The main characters were Korean dance Kimoo-gan and Park Jun-woo. In the midst of a true family feud, the last spot went to Park Jun-woo who showed off his own differentiated technique.

The journey to select the main protagonist that followed could be said to be the greatest highlight. The first designated choreography audition was a casting audition for the main lead role, and the audition was conducted by selecting three sub-leads who would make them shine, and the key was to show off the skills of the main lead without being buried among the sub-leads. In this process, Kim Hyun-ho, Ryu Tae-young, and Jeong Seong-wook were selected as sub-leads with a stage that left something to be desired, and the second creative choreography evaluation followed, where they had to express a person who faces death with their own character, which added to the immersion. The final three who won the main lead roles in a fierce competition were Korean dance Kim Hyo-jun, ballet Kim Yu-chan, and Korean dance Choi Ho-jong.

Following Kim Hyo-jun‘s perfect expression of a person who faces death, Kim Yu-chan heated up the scene by adding creativity to his own technique. The best of them all was Choi Ho-jong. Choi Ho-jong showed off his gambling interpretation and monstrous skills, leading to a standing ovation and rave reviews from the coaches.

Hong Se-young, Donga.com reporter projecthong@donga.com