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The Last Man
더 라스트맨
Official English Title
SOURCE
original
SETTING
Korea
BOOK
original
One survivor in a zombie apocalypse
Korean Premiere
2021
Korean Premiere Theatre
Art One Theater 1, Seoul
Further Korean run reference:
https://namu.wiki/w/%EB%8D%94%20%EB%9D%BC%EC%8A%A4%ED%8A%B8%EB%A7%A8
The Musical search cue — “더 라스트맨”
Summary
A Korean solo musical set in a zombie apocalypse, following an unnamed survivor who barricades himself in bunker B-103 for a year.
Origin & Development
The Last Man began as an original Korean web musical, developed through the Seoul Performing Arts Company and Naver “Youth Artist Web Musical Creation Contest,” where it received the grand prize and was first released online as a short-form series. It was later adapted for the stage by NEO Inc. and The Wave as a one-person musical, an unusual format in the commercial musical market.
After a reading performance in 2021, the piece was reworked for a full black-box staging, emphasizing live band sound, immersive sound design, and the psychological arc of a single character. 2021 – Reading performance, Seokyeong University Performing Arts Center SKON Hall 2. 2021 – Original web musical version awarded the grand prize in the Naver × Seoul Performing Arts Company Youth Web Musical Creation Contest. 2021–2022 – Premiere run, Art One Theater 1, Daehak-ro. 2022 – Welcome Daehak-ro festival engagement, Seokyeong University Performing Arts Center SKON Hall 2. 2023 – “You Are Not Alone” concert version, Link Art Center Bugs Hall. 2024 – Second full run, Seokyeong University Performing Arts Center SKON Hall 1. 2026 – Third run, Link The Space Hall 1.
Full Synopsis
A survivor seals themselves inside B-103, a basement bunker in Sillim-dong, Seoul, after an apparent zombie outbreak. Believing they may be humanity’s last survivor, they repeatedly search for radio signals and record video messages for anyone who might someday find them. The zombies never appear directly; their presence is suggested only through sounds, lighting, and the survivor’s fearful reactions.
The bunker contains enough food and water for one year, along with an air purifier, plants, and carefully calculated survival supplies. As the days pass without human contact, however, the survivor’s disciplined routine begins to collapse. They celebrate their birthday alone, talk to objects as though they were companions, and confront fragments of a painful past they have tried to suppress.
When heavy rain floods the bunker, their phone and equipment fail. Food spoils, water runs out, and mold and insects spread through the room. A companion imagined from one of their belongings urges them to leave and return home, but the survivor cannot overcome their fear of the outside world. Even after receiving a Morse-code signal from another possible survivor, they remain unable to open the door.
A year after entering the bunker, the survivor hears someone outside identifying themselves as a census worker. The ordinary voice conflicts with everything they believe about the apocalypse. They briefly prepare to leave but retreat again, convinced that it must be a trap.
As sounds of everyday life continue beyond the reinforced door, uncertainty grows over whether the catastrophe exists outside the bunker or within the survivor’s own perception. They finally put on formal clothes and take up their bag but remain motionless, staring toward a world they still cannot bring themselves to enter.
The Last Man
2023
2023-11-10
to
2023-11-10
Country:
United States
City:
New York
Production Type:
Reading / Showcase
Language:
English
Venue:
The Tank
An in-person staged reading that foregrounded the text and conceptual framework rather than full production elements, introducing the work to U.S. audiences as a Korean original with global thematic relevance. Content warnings, including for suicide, reflected the musical's engagement with mental health and isolation.
最後一人
2024
2024-11-13
to
2024-11-14
Country:
Taiwan
City:
Taipei
Production Type:
Reading / Showcase
Language:
Korean
Venue:
Taipei Performing Arts Center
A 20–25 minute highlight showcase at the K-Musical Roadshow in Taipei, performed in Korean with Chinese surtitles alongside four other Korean originals and offering a glimpse of its one-person zombie-apocalypse narrative and bunker staging. Industry forums and post-show talks framed it as a genre piece combining K-style horror imagery with an intimate character study, and the showcase helped open licensing discussions with Taiwanese presenters.
The Last Man
2024
2024-11-18
to
2024-11-18
Country:
United States
City:
New York
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
English
Venue:
Boulevard Carroll Studios
A newly adapted 70-minute English-language version presented for an industry audience, directed by Spencer Liff and starring Anthony Norman as the Survivor. It moved the story to New York City during a zombie apocalypse and recast the protagonist as a socially awkward, tech-obsessed streamer broadcasting his survival, with new arrangements and sound design.
存在者
2025
2025-08-08
to
2025-08-24
Country:
China
City:
Shanghai
Production Type:
Licensed
Language:
Chinese
Venue:
Shanghai Grand Theatre
Produced under license by Miaoshike (MSK, 缪时客), the Mandarin adaptation opened in the Shanghai Grand Theatre's middle theatre. It reframed the story as an existential survival drama, with the protagonist called simply 'the Existent' and accompanied by a single custom-designed puppet, and used eight small screens to broadcast real-time footage from the performer's phone, sharing the bunker's confined perspective with in-theatre and online audiences. Positioned as the producer's tenth-anniversary project, the run announced plans for future mid- and small-theatre versions.
The Last Man
2026
2026-05-08
to
2026-06-06
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Production Type:
Full Production
Language:
English
Venue:
Southwark Playhouse Elephant
Directed by Daljung Kim with dramaturgy by Jethro Compton, this reimagined version presents the work as a one-person rock musical blending concert performance, psychological drama, and social commentary. A lone survivor sealed in bunker B-103 after a virus has wiped out humanity must decide whether survival alone is enough or whether to risk opening the door. It was the musical's first run in the United Kingdom.
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