“Did you put the house in both your names?” ... Ghosts at the Korean Folk Village are going after husbands this time

[Financial News] The Korean Folk Village’s “Ghosts Set Kids Straight” experience, which helps children correct their habits, has expanded to adult visitors. Actors dressed as ghosts are improvising role-play scenes, getting male visitors to promise things such as putting a house in joint names with their wives or taking out loans for their fathers- and mothers-in-law.
On the 27th, Eoduksini performer Gu Gyo-hyeon, maiden ghost performer Kang Yun-jeong, and Content Planning Team Deputy Manager Hwang Min-a appeared on CBS Radio’s “Park Jae-hong’s Hanpan Seungbu.” They described the role-play scenes they perform with visitors and how they became popular.
Gu said they perform impromptu role-play tailored to each visitor so that adults, as well as children, can take part in the experience.
They also ask adult male visitors questions about marital finances. Gu said he asks male visitors, “Have you put the house in both your names or not?” adding, “We have to make sure the adults get to enjoy it, too.”
If a visitor hesitates to answer, they ask again, “Are you going to do it or not?” and get him to promise to put the house in both names. Gu said that if the man laughs and agrees, they continue the role-play by asking exactly when he will do it.
Financial support for fathers- and mothers-in-law is another topic they use. Gu said that when he asks, “If your in-laws are struggling, could you max out your borrowing and come up with 100 million won for them?” most visitors say they would do it.
Adult visitors also make requests of Kang, who plays a maiden ghost. Kang said, “These days, lots of adults come to us for advice,” adding that when a wife says her husband doesn’t listen to her, the husband is made to promise to listen to his wife.
The Korean Folk Village’s “Ghosts Set Kids Straight” experience lets parents tell ghost performers about concerns such as their children being picky eaters, throwing tantrums, or using smartphones, which the performers then incorporate into role-play. Playing a ghost, the actor gets the child to promise to correct bad habits.
As related videos have recently spread on social media, the ghost performers have also earned the nickname “Oh Eun-young of the dark.”
The broadcast also featured a case in which a child tried to protect his father during a role-play with a ghost.
Gu said they recently performed a role-play with a five-year-old child, who showed little reaction. So they staged a scene in which the child’s father was being taken away. The child ran over and shouted, “No! Dad, run away!”
The father who took part in the experience sent Gu a message on social media afterward. He thanked Gu for letting him experience the moment when his son stepped in to protect him.
Recalling the experience, Gu said, “I felt deeply rewarded knowing that I had been able to give visitors an unforgettable moment and touch their hearts.”
There are, however, concerns about using ghosts as a form of discipline. It may frighten young children excessively, and critics say that making them change their behavior through fear could have negative emotional effects.
Gu said they adjust the intensity of the role-play if a child is very scared. “When children are extremely frightened, we immediately tone things down and put them at ease by becoming a funny goblin or a comical performer,” he said.
The Korean Folk Village has been holding an event since September and through this November, with actors dressed as traditional ghosts roaming around the grounds and interacting with visitors.


[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter