Now that the shojo manga-inspired Japanese drama "Nodame Cantabile" is being remade into a k-drama, its name will also get a makeover.
The drama's production company has changed the name to "Tomorrow Cantabile."
That had to happen because the name of the main character in Japan was Nodame, but she will now be called Seo Nae Il, which means tomorrow in Korean. The manga author Tomoko Ninomiya named his character after an actual musician named Megumi Noda but now that the drama is set in Korea, that name had to be changed.
Cantabile is a song-like style of playing instrumental music. On the piano, that melody may be further defined by the instrument that accompanies it. And that's what the two main characters of the manga are. They are very different and yet together they create beautiful music that makes them both better musicians.
The k-drama will star Joo Won, last seen on the small screen in "Good Doctor" and Shim Eun Kyung, who got rave reviews for her role in the film "Miss Granny.
Joo Won plays Cha Yoo Jin, an arrogant perfectionist of a musician who has a secret phobia concerning flying. The actor is hard at work learning how to conduct an orchestra as well as play the piano and the violin. His agency, Sim Entertainment, says Joo Won is eager to deliver a perfect performance, which is something the musical genius Cha Yoo Jin would also want to do.
Shim Eun Kyung plays Nae Il, a messy eccentric music student. When she meets Cha Yoo Jin, she quickly falls in love but it takes him a while longer to recognize her worth. That love creates a bright new world for her, hence the use of the word "tomorrow."
Although the characters are very different, they help each other face risks and overcome fears.
Go Kyung Po plays a violinist, Baek Yoon Shik will play a conductor and Tiny G's Do-Hee is a contrabassist. Kim Yumi plays Joo Won's first love and Park Bo Gun plays Cha Yoo Jin's musical rival.
The drama follows the lives of students as they try to become successful classical musicians, but it will probably not cover as much time as the manga, which followed the characters' lives through college and beyond graduation. The manga was so popular that it was twice adapted for television in Japan, once as an anime version and once as a live action production.
"Tomorrow Cantabile" begins filming this month and is set to premiere as a Monday-Tuesday night drama in October.
