"Twisting the body in mid-air to land"… Tightrope walker Chang-dong completes new technique after 18-month hiatus

The intense training process of a young man who lives as a university student by day and a tightrope walker on a single rope by night is captured. Chang-dong, a tightrope walker who inherited the National Intangible Cultural Heritage tightrope walking, is challenging himself to implement a new technique after returning to the rope following an 18-month hiatus due to military service.

"Twisting the body in mid-air"... A unique technique completed through injury and pain

During recent practice, Chang-dong showcased a new movement where he twists his body once in mid-air before landing. In the video, Chang-dong shared his feelings at the time, saying, "It was a technique I visualized countless times during my military service," and "It happened so easily that even I was surprised now." This is a variation of 'Salpan,' one of the existing tightrope walking techniques, or a new form of movement; within the video, it is evaluated as "a movement that shows infinite possibilities among the various tightrope tricks" and is followed by mentions that he "wrote new history."

However, the process of completing the new technique was not smooth. During the 18-month hiatus, the calluses on his buttocks, which are essential for tightrope walking, disappeared, causing Chang-dong to face pain and injury during practice. Chang-dong conveyed the situation at the time, saying, "Because the calluses were gone, it became a difficulty," and "The day before yesterday, my buttocks hurt so much they bled." While practicing on a single rope at a height of 3m, he also suffered an injury where his feet were chafed by the rope, causing bruising, but he expressed satisfaction with the success of the technique, saying, "Even though I'm hurt, I feel good." To Chang-dong, these wounds are read as 'scars of glory' toward the new technique.

The path of a clown family of three: different steps for the pansori eldest son and the tightrope walker second son

Chang-dong's family walks the path of traditional arts across generations. His father, Nam Hae-ung, an eorit-gwangdae (clown), led his sons toward the path of performers. The eldest son, Sang-dong, is a pansori singer who graduated from university this year and is a person whose skills were recognized by winning the gold prize at a competition hosted by the National Gugak Center last year. On the other hand, the second son, Chang-dong, is majoring in percussion at university while simultaneously pursuing the path of a tightrope walker.

The artistic directions of the two brothers are different. Chang-dong expressed his attachment to percussion, saying, "Tightrope walking is a lonely fight, but percussion has the beauty of many people and instruments harmonizing together." He continues his identity as a percussion major by preserving the mallets he has used since elementary school. Meanwhile, Sang-dong, the pansori singer, continues his training as a traditional artist by studying sound and participating in his younger brother's tightrope performances even after returning to university.

Nam Hae-ung's passion and the door of opportunity opened by master Kim Soo-hyun

At the center of the clown family of three is the passion of the father, Nam Hae-ung. Nam Hae-ung takes on the role of a manager, preparing a dedicated practice area in the front yard of their house for his son's practice and adjusting the tension of the rope. He stays by his son's side so that he can perform techniques safely and accurately on the rope, and also performs an educational role by researching various tightrope walking cases from overseas and conveying them to his son.

The existence of a mentor was behind the background of Nam Hae-ung walking the path of traditional arts. In his youth, when he recklessly came to Seoul to learn sound, he met the master Kim Soo-hyun, a holder of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage pansori. In the video, master Kim Soo-hyun recalled, "I willingly accepted the recklessness of a twenty-year-old youth who rushed in relying only on passion." Through the opportunity provided by master Kim, Nam Hae-ung was able to build his foundation in batang-sori through master Seong U-hyang, which led to his joining the National Changgeuk Company of Korea, establishing his artistic foundation.

The challenge toward the final homework 'Baedoteseogi'

Chang-dong's training is currently ongoing. Among the numerous techniques of tightrope walking, he cites 'Baedoteseogi (mulgo namuseogi),' which is known as the only technique that has not yet been restored, as his final homework. Studying tightrope walking under master Kim Dae-gyun, Chang-dong continues the lonely process of inheriting the tradition by repeatedly practicing catching his center of gravity.