Choi Seung-hee(1911-1969), singing "A garden in Italy'(1936).Choi was born into a yangban-class family in Seoul, Korea during the Japanese occupation, and was also known by the Japanese pronunciation of her name, Sai Shoki.After graduating from Sookmyung High School at the age of fifteen, she went against her father's wishes to study under modern dancer Baku Ishii in Japan, where she distinguished herself as one of the most talented dancers. She developed her own modern dances inspired by Korean folk dances, which had been considered as lowly works.After the start of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937, she was sent on tour of the front lines by the Imperial Japanese Army for propaganda purposes and to raise troop morale. After the end of World War II, she went to North Korea with her husband, who was an active supporter of the Workers' Party of Korea. She established a dance school and was given an official position within the North Korean administration. In 1951, she was asked to visit Beijing to perform for Chinese premier Zhou Enlai. However, in 1967, she was purged by the party, and disappeared from public view. However, on February 9, 2003, an official announcement was made that she had died in 1969. The circumstances surrounding her death remain a mystery.