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Hong Ji-hee

Hong Ji-hee (Korean: 홍지희; Born in Seoul July 27, 1988) is a South Korean actress. Hong made her debut as a musical actress in the 5th season of the open run musical Finding Kim Jong-wook in 2011, after graduating from the Department of Theater and Film at of Kyunghee University. However, she had previously made her debut as an actress with minor roles in the films Into the White Night (2009) as Cha Young-eun and film City of Damnation (2009) as a reporter. She's known for her role Yoo Cho-hee, in tvN drama series Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha and Jang Hye-jin of Big Mouth.

Career

Debut and Musical Career (2009-2014)

In 2009, Hong made her feature film debut in Park Shin-woo's film Into the White Night (2009), appearing in a small role opposite Son Ye-jin as Cha Young-eun. Her second film role was as a reporter at the bombing site in the 2009 film City of Damnation.

After completing her studies from Department of Theater and Film of Kyunghee University, Hong made her debut as a musical actress in 2011. Her first role was that of a woman searching for her first love in the popular open-run musical "Finding Kim Jong-wook." Hong starred alongside Kim Jae-beom, Sang Sang-yoon, Rajun, Kim Ji-hyeon, Baek Eun-hye, Lim Ki-hong, Kim Min-gun, and Lee Ju-hoon for the 5th season of the musical. The director for the 5th season, Kim Dong-yeon, introduced the entire cast to the public through a brand day event held on the afternoon of June 7, 2011, at the Seoul Theater Center in Myeongnyun-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul.

In November 2011, Hong was invited by director Kim Dong-yeon to try out for a role in his new musical, Coffee Prince 1st Store, which was based on a popular tv drama with the same name. However, the musical's storyline focused more closely on the original source material, a novel by Lee Seon-mi, and centered around the romance between Choi Han-gyeol and Go Eun-chan. Hong and Yu Joo-hye both successfully auditioned for the lead role of Go Eun-chan, and they performed opposite Kim Jae-beom and Kim Tae-han, who alternated in the role of Choi Han-gyeol. The musical, produced by the Kim So-ro Project, was staged at Filling Hall 1 in Daehangno Cultural Space from February 24 to April 29, 2012.

Also in 2012, Hong join the musical Three Thousands — The Flower of Destruction, a historical musical that re-imagined the fall of Baekje and its last king, King Uija and his 3000 court ladies. This work portrayed King Uija as a solitary and strong person who ruled Baekje, a prosperous nation. Hong took on the role of Yeon-hwa, a blind court lady. Written and directed by Seo Yoon-mi, the musical was performed from October 26, 2012, to January 20, 2013, at the Daehangno Cultural Space Filling Hall 1.

In 2013, Hong auditioned for the 13th performance of the musical Laundry, which was moving to the Art One Theater with a new cast. Hong was successful in her audition for the title role of Son Na-young, along with actresses Kwak Sun-young and Park Eun-mi. Kim Kyung-soo and Kim Bo-gang were double-cast as the new Solongos, Mongolian immigrants. The musical had a preview performance on March 13–14, and was performed at the Art One Theater 2 in Daehangno until September 29, 2013.

In 2014, Hong reprised her role in White Day performance of musical Finding Kim Jong-wook.

In the following year, Hong joined the musical Abbocatto. It tells the story of singer-songwriter Yoo Jae-min and his lover, aspiring writer Jeong Da-jeong, and explores the question of whether the memories of their love would be bittersweet like wine. Written by Lee Ho-jeon and composed by Lee Jin-wook, this musical was chosen for the 2014 Creative Musical Development Support Project after a 100 to 1 competition. It was first introduced in 2011 through a reading performance by CJ Creative Mind. followed by the SMF Yegreen Encore Showcases in 2012. Hong starred as Jeong Da-jeong both in the demonstration performance in February, and reprised her role in the re-staged production at the Daemyung Cultural Factory (DCF) Hall 2 in Daehak-ro from March to April, 2015. Also in 2015, Hong reprised the role of Son Na-young in the 10th anniversary performance of Musical Laundry

Theater debut (2015-2017)

Having spent four years as a musical actress, Hong was eager to challenge herself by taking on a play. In 2015, she made her theater debut in the play "Hot Summer," which was produced by the Ganda Theater Company. Hong shared the dual lead role of Chae-kyung and Sa-rang with two other musical actresses, Song Sang-eun and Shin Ui-jeong, who were part of the original cast from the premiere in 2014, which marked the 10th anniversary of the Ganda Theater Company. The play was written and directed by Min Jun-ho, and it was performed at the Daehangno Freedom Theater from August 11 to November 1, 2015.

Hong teamed up with director Min Jun-ho once more in 2016 for an encore performance of John Cariani's play Almost, Maine. The play returned after a hiatus of three years and ran from January 8 to April 10, 2016, at Sangmyung Art Hall 1 located in Daehangno. In the play, Hong played three different roles - Glory, Waitress, and Gayle, and was the youngest actress in the cast.

In the same year, Hong took on the role of Mariko in the play "Round Trip Letter," which was based on the 2010 novel "Ōfuku Shokan" (往復書簡) by Japanese author Minato Kanae. Directed by Kim Myung-hwan, the play tells the story of longtime lovers Junichi and Mariko, who met as classmates in middle school. Junichi leaves for volunteer work on a remote island in the South Pacific with limited electricity, and the couple communicates through letters. Through their correspondence, they confront the truth of an incident that occurred fifteen years ago. Hong and actress Lee Ji-hae were double-cast in the role of Mariko, and they acted opposite Park Si-beom, Kang Jung-woo, and Son Yoo-dong, who were triple-cast as Junichi. The play also featured Son Seong-min, Byun Hyo-joon, Choi Seok-jin, and Park Hee-jeong in various supporting roles that help reveal the truth hidden between the two lovers.

In 2016 Hong joined cast of musical Mirror Princess Pyeonggang Story. Written by Choi Eun-i and Min Jun-ho of Ganda Theater Company, the story was based on folktale Princess Pyeonggang and On Dal.

In the latter months of 2017, Hong collaborated once again with director and writer Min Jun-ho for his self-directed and self-written play, "The 100th Debate of the New Humanity." The play took inspiration from a TV show that centered on debates surrounding a range of topics. Hong and Yoo-yeon were both double-cast in the role of Hyun Chung-hee, a parasitologist who specialized in the study of poisons, parasites, and viruses. Hong's performance in the play was remarkable, and she embodied the persona of a professional debater with great skill and authenticity.

Return to big screen, television debut and recent works/(2018-recent)

After almost a decade since her debut on the big screen, Hong returned in 2018 with the independent film Daughters Table. Directed by Son Hee-song, the film tells the story of the three daughters of Ms. Jo, Su-yeon, Ji-yeon, and So-yeon, who lead busy lives, and who return to their hometown upon hearing the news that their mother is dying.

In 2018, Hong took on the challenge of playing multiple roles in the play Miracles of the Namiya General Store, which was based on a novel by the Japanese mystery writer Keigo Higashino. In the play, Hong played the characters Akiko, Emiko, and Midori. The play itself was adapted from a previous play written and directed by Yutaka Narui. The play was first selected as one of the works for the "Performance, Meet - Accompany" project in 2016, which was a content development support initiative for the second anniversary of the opening of the Daemyung Cultural Factory. After a pre-reading performance, the play underwent additional development and was eventually completed as a main performance.

In 2018 Hong reunited with director Kim Dong-yeon in musical Vampire Arthur. Hong took on the stage as a hopeful and pure girl Emma who makes Arthur, a vampire, dream of a new world. Followed by Sideureus (2020) as Maria and Maybe Happy Ending (2021) as Claire.

Hong's first television role was in the 2019 KBS drama series Unasked Family. She played Trần Thị Trang, a Vietnamese who falls in love with the eldest son of a famous Korean restaurant. Her skillful portrayal of a Vietnamese person who has learned Korean impressed viewers. In the same year, Hong joined the tvN drama series Arthdal Chronicles as Hae Ga-on.

In 2021, Hong's portrayal as Yoo Cho-hee, a teacher at Cheongjin Elementary School, in tvN drama series Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, was received well by viewers.

She starred as Hannah in the 2021 musical Four minutes, based on the 2006 German film 'Four minutes' directed by Chris Krauss. Hong conveyed her desperate feelings as Hannah, Kruger's same-sex lover.

In 2022, Hong participated in drama Big Mouth as Jang Hye-jin.

In 2022, Hong participated in the premiere of the creative musical Let Me Fly, playing the role of Park Jeong-bun. Jeong-bun is a 19-year-old girl from the countryside who dreams of going to the moon. The creative musical was directed by Lee Dae-woong, produced by Hong Yun-kyung and Lee Young-chan, with lyrics and script written by Jo Min-hyung and music composed and arranged by Min Chan-hong.