OBSERVER: Koreaboo
Koreaboo, by playwright and actor Michelle Lim Davidson, is a personal and surprisingly humorous exploration of identity, family and belonging.
Drawing on her own experience of being adopted by an Australian family, the production follows Lim Davidson’s journey to uncover the truth of her origins and reconnect with her birth mother in South Korea.
When Hannah (Lim Davidson) arrives unexpectedly in Seoul a week early due to a misunderstanding, eager to reconnect with her birth mother, Umma (Heather Jeong), she is met with a reception far removed from the one she had imagined.
Busy running her 24-hour convenience store, superbly imagined by set designer Mel Page, Umma is initially reluctant to embrace this unexpected reunion.
But as time passes and the two become more familiar with one another and find common interests – a love of K-pop – her guarded exterior gradually softens.
The communication and language barriers between them serve as a constant reminder of their cultural differences, while also providing some of the production’s funniest moments, mostly delivered by Umma.
A poignant expression of Hannah’s cultural crisis comes when she declares, “I’m too Australian to be Korean and too Korean to be Australian.”
Jeong is marvellously quirky and delightfully prickly as Umma. Her delivery, complete with a charming Korean accent, is a particular highlight.
Proud of her English, much of which she has learnt from watching the American comedy drama Sex and the City, she brings a wonderful comic energy to the role, while never losing sight of the character’s underlying vulnerability.
Davidson also gives a convincing and emotionally engaging performance, capturing the vulnerability, frustration and determination of a woman searching not only for her birth mother, but also for a better understanding of herself.
Skilfully directed by Jessica Arthur, Koreaboo is about more than an adopted daughter finding her birth mother. It explores the complicated territory between biological connection and emotional attachment, and the sometimes uncomfortable reality that finding the person you have spent a lifetime searching for does not necessarily provide all the answers.
Performance dates: Until October 10
Venue: Beckett Theatre, Malthouse, 113 Sturt St, Southbank
Bookings: malthousetheatre.com.au/whats-on/season-2026/koreaboo
Review by Beth Klein