Jaha Koo Wins the International Ibsen Award, the “Nobel Prize of Theater,” as First Asian Recipient

[Financial News] Jaha Koo (42), a performance artist, composer and video artist, has won the International Ibsen Award, known as the “Nobel Prize of theater,” becoming both the youngest recipient ever and the first Asian recipient.
According to the official International Ibsen Award website on the 27th, Jaha Koo received the 2026 International Ibsen Award and 2.5 million kroner (approximately 358 million won) at a ceremony held on the night of the 26th local time at Oslo National Theatre in Norway.
The International Ibsen Award was established by the Norwegian government in 2007 to honor the achievements of Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906). Winners were selected annually through 2010, after which the award became biennial. Unlike the British Laurence Olivier Awards and similar honors, which recognize works presented during a single season, it evaluates the overall body of work produced by an artist or theater company.
Jaha Koo has developed an original interdisciplinary performance language by combining music, video, text and robotic objects. He has consistently explored how the history of colonialism and global power structures operate within today’s institutions, perceptions and artistic frameworks.
The works that brought him international attention are The Hamartia Trilogy, comprising Lolling and Rolling (2015), Cuckoo (2017) and The History of Korean Western Theatre (2020). Drawing on his own experiences, he examined East Asian politics, the traces of colonialism and cultural identity, bringing to the stage how the past permeates the lives of individuals living in the present.
In Haribo Kimchi, which premiered in Austria in June 2024, he portrayed the lives of members of the diaspora seeking to put down roots in an unfamiliar society, as well as the loneliness and identity of those unable to fully belong anywhere, using food as a medium. The Hamartia Trilogy and Haribo Kimchi have been performed around the world and continue to tour.
Jaha Koo is currently developing a new work, Born to be K to be POP, with LOD Muziektheater in Ghent, Belgium.
Meanwhile, after majoring in theater at Korea National University of Arts, Jaha Koo completed a master’s program at DAS Theatre at Amsterdam University of the Arts in 2016. Now based in Ghent, Belgium, he works as a collaborating artist with CAMPO, a local performing arts center and production company, English Theatre Utrecht (ETU) in the Netherlands, and Seoul International Performing Arts Festival.

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