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Line 1
지하철 1호선
Official English Title
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SOURCE
musical
SETTING
Korea
BOOK
adaptation
Based on Volker Ludwig and Birger Heymann, Linie 1
Korean Premiere
1994
Korean Premiere Theatre
Hakchon Theater, Seoul
Further Korean run reference:
https://namu.wiki/w/%EC%A7%80%ED%95%98%EC%B2%A0%201%ED%98%B8%EC%84%A0
The Musical search cue — “지하철 1호선 뮤지컬”
Summary
A Korean Chinese woman searching Seoul for her lover encounters workers, migrants, and outcasts along Subway Line 1, revealing the city’s energy and inequality.
Origin & Development
Line 1 is based on the German musical Linie 1 by Volker Ludwig (book & lyrics) and Birger Heymann (music), originally produced by Berlin’s Grips Theater. The Korean version was translated and reimagined by Hakchon Theatre under director–adapter Kim Min-ki, who reshaped the story of 1980s West Berlin into a portrait of 1990s Seoul. Rather than a literal translation, the work became a socially grounded Korean musical about class, migration, and urban survival. 1994 – Hakchon Small Theatre, Seoul – original premiere. 1994–2008 – continuous revivals, surpassing 4,000 total performances.
Known for launching the careers of major Korean actors including Kim Yoon-seok, Sul Kyung-gu, Hwang Jung-min, Jang Hyun-sung, and Cho Seung-woo. Recognized as the first Korean small-theatre musical to integrate a full live band, influencing later Korean rock-musical development.
Partial Synopsis
The musical follows a young woman from the provinces arriving in Seoul in search of a missing boyfriend. Her encounters with subway passengers reveal the city’s shifting social layers, from laborers and sex workers to college students and the homeless. The show blends realism, satire, and ensemble performance, accompanied by a live band throughout.
Linie 1
2001
2001-04-03
to
2001-04-05
Country:
Germany
City:
Berlin
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
Korean
Venue:
Grips Theater
Hakchon Theatre's production was invited to Grips Theater, where the original Linie 1 premiered, and performed with German surtitles. German audiences responded positively to the Korean reinterpretation, noting its distinct social voice and creative independence from the source, and the visit began a lasting artistic relationship between the two theatres.
地鐵一號線
2001
2001-10-09
to
2001-10-17
Country:
China
City:
Multiple Cities
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
Korean
Venue:
Multiple Venues
Following the Berlin appearance, the production toured Beijing and Shanghai with Chinese surtitles as part of an official Korea–China cultural program. Although performed in Korean, its urban tension and humor were widely understood, and it was later cited as an early example of Korean small-theatre musicals reaching mainland China before the commercial Hallyu era.
地下鉄1号線
2001
2001-11-15
to
2001-11-25
Country:
Japan
City:
Multiple Cities
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
Korean
Venue:
Multiple Venues
Opening at Theatre Cocoon in Shibuya's Bunkamura and then playing Osaka (November 20–21) and Fukuoka (November 24–25), the three-city tour was one of the earliest introductions of a Korean musical to Japan through a full touring production rather than a licensed remake, raising early awareness of Korean musical theatre ahead of later commercial waves.
地鐵一號線
2003
2003-03-06
to
2003-03-08
Country:
Hong Kong
City:
Hong Kong
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
Korean
Venue:
APA Lyric Theater
Featured in the official program of the Hong Kong Arts Festival alongside international companies, the production was presented as a representative example of contemporary Korean performing arts, broadening its audience beyond Korean speakers.
Linie 1
2005
2005-10-14
to
2005-10-23
Country:
Germany
City:
Multiple Cities
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
Korean
Venue:
Multiple Venues
Invited to the official cultural program when Korea was Guest of Honor at the 2005 Frankfurt Book Fair, the Korean cast performed at the GRIPS Theater in Berlin and in Frankfurt. Rather than a commercial tour, it was presented as a portrait of contemporary Korean society.
Linie 1
2019
2019-06-18
to
2019-06-19
Country:
Germany
City:
Berlin
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
Korean
Venue:
Grips Theater
Nearly twenty years after its first appearance in Berlin, the production returned with support from Arts Council Korea to give the closing performance of the Grips Theater 50th Anniversary Festival, acknowledging the long exchange between the two theatres.
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