Rebirth: King to Superstar

It didn't take him long to reach his destination. He looked out and saw a huge dome outside. The driver turned back and said, "This is the Roses Drama House." Joon-won nodded and paid the guy before getting out. He looked at the huge dome and looked around. It was his first time in the inner part of the city and he could see every single car was a luxury car worth hundreds of thousands. Every person wore extremely fancy clothing, and he looked down at his own simple shirt and jeans. 

He shrugged it off and looked at the Roses drama house once again. The ticket counter was closed and the entrance was pretty deserted. He took out his phone and called the boss of the place once again.

"Yes, did you arrive?"

"I'm right outside of the dome. How do I get in?"

"Wait for a minute, I'll send someone to bring you in." And cut the call. 

Joon-won waited for a few minutes before one of the doors opened and a young man around his age walked out. He came towards him and asked, "Are you Joon-won?"

Joon-won nodded and the man turned around before walking back in while asking him to follow. Joon-won followed the guy as both entered the building. He looked around as they both walked into the long corridors which were obviously in a circle shape. They went through various doors leading to the seats and so he asked, "How many seats does this place hold?" 

The guy in front of him looked back and replied, "Around 3000 people."

Joon-won nodded and was amazed at how big this place was. He would easily be lost if left alone. They finally reached the end of the circular corridor and the guy opened two big doors into another corridor, but this one was straight. 

There were many people in this corridor, roaming around different rooms while holding papers, costumes, props, and many other stuff. He knew seeing this that they were preparing for the performance coming Sunday. It was Thursday and the drama house needed to get things done quickly if they wanted a full rehearsal with all props and costumes on. 

He tried to peek into a few rooms and saw people either practicing or making stuff. Everything was organized and quick. This formed a good impression of the place. After walking for another few minutes they went through another pair of doors and this time everything was silent. There were only a handful of rooms this time with no people in the corridor. 

The guy stopped before the door which had 'Manager' on it and knocked. Joon-won heard the same voice he heard through the phone from the other side.

"Who is it?" 

"Boss, it's me. I brought the guy you asked me to pick up." 

"Alright, then you can leave and continue with your work. Joon-won, come in." 

The guy gave a last nod towards Joon-won and walked away. Joon-won twisted the doorknob and walked in. He walked into a comfy-looking room as he noticed a big couch on the side, a few stands filled with various awards and pictures of people. He then looked at the woman behind a desk filled with papers. The woman looked like she was in her early thirties and was diligently looking through the papers. 

She looked up and noticed him. Taking out her reading glasses, she beckoned him to sit in front of her. Joon-won followed and sat across from her. He looked at the pretty woman who carried herself extremely well. 

"Hmm, you look very plain than I thought." She blurted out a comment. Joon-won raised his eyebrow at her choice of first words. Normal people would say hi and introduce themselves, but she told him he looked plain. His face went deadpan as he responded, "I'm sorry that I committed such a heinous crime by looking plain." 

The woman noticed his sarcastic comments but ignored them and introduced herself. "Well, my name is San Min. I'm the owner of Roses Drama house."

"Kim Joon-won, a normal university student." 

San Min nodded and said, "Nice, I like straightforward people. Well, Do Hwan told me everything about you which you probably figured out yesterday, and told me to help you. He actually showed me a video they recorded of your audition and I can see why you didn't get selected." 

Joon-won raised an eyebrow after hearing her. He didn't know there was a recorded version of his audition. He wanted that recording. He decided to ask Hea-Jung for it after this talk was done. 

"The problems you are facing are relatively common among theatre actors. After all, not everyone can instantly shift from one medium to another even though the work is the same in both fields."

"How can you help me solve my problems?" Joon-won asked before she could continue.

San Min laughed a little when she heard him and replied, "Don't be in a hurry. It's not a one-day process. It might take the entire 2 months you have in your hands to get through this hurdle. So don't be in a hurry, I helped a few stars with this and I know my stuff." Making Joon-won nod. The person in front of him was an expert and known for running one of the biggest Drama houses, why would she try to trick a university kid who has nothing. 

"Alright, I'll run you down on how this drama house works. We perform almost every Sunday unless something comes up. We have around 30 actors working for us and also students like you who come to gain some knowledge."

"Every Tuesday or Wednesday we will perform an audition for the roles in the Sunday performance. No role is fixed for one person and anyone can try out. If they pass the director's, which is my requirement, they get the role. That's how it works here."

"You missed this week's audition and can't perform so just observe our practice sessions and get to know the people here. Ask them doubts if you have any and they will do their best to answer them."

"Now this isn't a school where we will spill out the answer for your problem. It's your job to find out the answer on your own. If you don't then there is no meaning to it, you won't progress and mature better if you can't do even this." 

Joon-won nodded as he took in the information she gave in. He thought things would be simple, he comes here, she tells the answer to his problem, he practices in the dramas for a while and goes to Do Hwan for an audition. But clearly, the other party didn't have the same thoughts in mind. 

But this wasn't that bad for him either, as what she said was right. It was better for him to learn on his own and make the changes himself. He could ask the other people in the place to correct his mistakes if he did any. But the first thing he needed to do was figure out what his problems were by either getting his audition recording or asking other people what the common problems actors make when they change from theatre to movie.

So he nodded and replied, "Got it." 

San Min smiled when she heard him and said, "That's wonderful. Now let's continue. The next thing is about your remuneration. We generally give the new actors or part-timers who want to learn and act the same amount, that is 18k if they are acting in a drama. But if they don't

  act in the drama that weekend then it's only 8k."

"Your joining date is today and there are only 3 days left. So I'll transfer you 4k if on Sunday if you work and learn these three days. Does that sound good?" 

Joon-won nodded and felt good about the pay. In his calculations, he only imagined 15k a week but here they gave 18k which was more than he originally planned out. But he wasn't going to complain about more money. He needed more to remain less stressed. 

"Fantastic, now even though this is very late and I know a lot about your activities. Tell me about yourself and your acting." She placed both her hands on the table and asked. 

He relaxed a little when she heard her question and replied, "Nothing much out of the ordinary except my acting. I come from a non-acting or any kinds of entertainment background and so acting is my passion and I'm going to pursue it as long as I can."

"I think highly of myself and my acting skills so you shouldn't be surprised if you see me as arrogant." He explained briefly about his mentality. 

San Min smiled when she heard his confidence and how he carried himself. She laughed a little and said, "That is great. Every actor needs to have pride and by the looks of it, you have way more than enough. Let's hope you won't have another setback than this one." And stretched her hand out for a handshake.