Korean princess musical launched on TikTok has its author, a Harvard student, ‘dreaming’ as passionate fans – and Hollywood – follow its story
- Disney has given us Nordic princess Elsa and Chinese warrior princess Mulan, but no Korean princess. That inspired Korean-American Julia Riew to create one
- ‘It’s been heartwarming to see the reaction’ to Shimcheong: A Folktale, the musical which she’s been releasing in snippets on TikTok, the 22-year-old says
Disney has done the frozen Nordic princess, the Chinese warrior princess and many others in between. But a Korean princess? Not so much.
Harvard University student Julia Riew has set out to fix that. The 22-year-old Korean- American wrote Shimcheong: A Folktale – a full-length musical inspired by a Korean folktale with a decidedly Disney movie vibe – as her final-year thesis.
She’s been releasing snippets of it on TikTok since January, and has quickly amassed a passionate following with the short videos that show her transforming into an animated Disney princess as she belts out her songs.
Riew has even sparked interest from Hollywood and theatre producers, while supporters have taken to creating visuals and animations to help bring her story to life.
“It honestly still feels like I’m dreaming,” she says. “It’s been heartwarming to see the reaction, especially among the Korean-American community.”
