The International Ibsen Award, created by the Norwegian government in 2007 and named after the playwright Henrik Ibsen, honors individuals or organizations that have opened new horizons in theater. A winner is chosen every two years, and the prize is often called the Nobel Prize of theater. Performing artist Jaha Koo was named the winner in March as the first Asian and the youngest recipient in the award's history, and received the prize of 2.5 million Norwegian kroner (about 358 million won, or roughly $250,000) at the National Theatre in Oslo last month.
Gunnhild Kilde, head of the award's secretariat, met reporters at the National Theater of Korea in Seoul on the 14th and said Koo is an artist who connects history with the present and offers a new way of looking at the world. "He was highly regarded for examining society's problems with compassion and warmth rather than raising his voice in criticism," she said. "Koo's theater is deeply political, but it is neither angry nor aggressive. It has humor, and it speaks of hope." Kilde was visiting Korea for the first time to attend the 2026 Performing Arts Market in Seoul (PAMS).
Koo is a theater director, composer and video artist. He graduated from the School of Drama at the Korea National University of Arts and studied at the Amsterdam University of the Arts in the Netherlands. Based in Ghent, Belgium, he creates original performance formats that combine music, video and robotics. His signature work, the "Hamartia Trilogy," traces the lingering influence of colonialism and imperialism on Korean society. "Lolling and Rolling" (2015) looked at a Korean society obsessed with English pronunciation, while "Cuckoo" (2017) used talking electric rice cookers to address how the country changed after the 1997 financial crisis. "The History of Korean Western Theatre" (2020) revisits the history of traditional Korean theater being pushed aside as Western theater took hold.
Kilde stressed that the award does not go to someone who inherits Ibsen's body of work. "It goes to artists who embody today the spirit of truth and freedom that he pursued," she said. "Koo, who criticizes established authority and colonialism, is a winner who fits that spirit exactly."
Koo's experimental approach to staging also drew high marks. "As a video artist and composer, Koo combines multiple genres to create his own performance language," Kilde said. "He shows a new kind of theater that can connect with younger generations in particular."
This year's jury focused on the role theater can play in moving beyond confrontation. "In an era of deepening polarization and conflict, the jurors looked for art that connects people through empathy and kindness rather than through bigger, louder voices," Kilde said. "Koo's work creates a space where people with different histories and identities can think and talk together."
Kilde said international interest in Korean performing arts is also growing. "Interest in Korean culture has been building as K-pop and K-dramas gained global popularity, followed by Han Kang's Nobel Prize in Literature," she said. "Now the world's attention is turning to theater as well." Kilde, who also handles international exchange for the National Theatre of Norway, added that her theater is keenly interested in learning more about Korean performing arts and discovering new works. "On this visit, I want to see a range of Korean productions for myself," she said.