The Korea Times

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Suck Up Project An incompetent man, Dong-sik’s (Song Sae-byeok) relationship with his girlfriend is put in jeopardy when his father is chased by a loan shark. He meets the “King of Flattery” (Seong Dong-il), who coaches Dong-sik how to become a successful and capable man. Directed by Jeong Seung-koo. Runs 118 minutes. Rated 15 and over. In Korean. Lockout The President’s daughter (Maggie Grace) is trapped in an outer space maximum security prison. The ultimate freedom of a wrongly convicted ex- government agent (Guy Pearce) lies in carrying out a dangerous mission to rescue the President’s daughter. Directed by Stephen St. Leger and James Mather. Runs 94 minutes. Rated 15 and over. In English with Korean subtitles. Miss Conspirator (Miss GO) Chun Su-ro (Ko Hyeon-jeong) is a cartoonist with a social phobia. She accidentally loses something important that belongs to one of the most powerful gangster groups in Korea. The only way for her to survive is to return what belongs to the gang. Directed by Park Chol-kwan. Runs 115 minutes. Rated 15 and over. In Korean.

Jun 28, 2012By Do Je-hae

Arts & Theater

Clubs

Clubs The Octagon Nonhyeon-dong Located near the New Hilltop Hotel in Nonhyeon-dong, this venue offers a club stage, lounge bar and dining area in a hip and modern setting. Take exit 4 at Hakdong Station on subway line 7. Call (02) 516-8847 for more information. Club Volume Itaewon Located in the Crown Hotel near Noksapyeong Station, Club Volume is the finest venue for themed weekly events and world-class DJs. Club Volume was listed by Time magazine among the “10 things to do in 24 hours in Seoul.” For more information, call 1544-2635. Le Nuit Blanche Cheongdam-dong Formerly Club Answer, Le Nuit Blanche is a high class restaurant, theater and club. Located in front of the Hotel Prima in Cheongdam-dong, Le Nuit Blanche offers Cirque du Soleil-type performances. World-class DJs from all over the world perform at the club. For more information, call (02) 514-4311. W.E. Listen Samcheong-dong This cafe reinterprets traditional Korean desserts. The menu not only offers American-style coffee but also sweet potato, sweet bean latte, a “hotteok” pancake

Jun 28, 2012By Do Je-hae

Arts & Theater

Classical music

Classical Concerts Maksim Mrvica Concert Seoul Arts Center* July 6 Maksim Mrvica, a Croatian pianist nicknamed “The Piano Player,” is also a composer. Mrvica rose to fame immediately after the release of his first album and has since become a leading electric pianist of his generation. Some of his best known compositions are “The Bumblebee” and “Crotian Rhapsody.” Tickets cost 55,000 to 121,000 won. For more information, call (02) 6292- 9370. Great Mountains Music Festival & School Alpensia Concert Hall Through Aug. 5 The Great Mountains Music Festival & School will be held in the midst of nature in the mountainous province of Gangwon. Two renowned artists — cellist Chung Myung-hwa and her sister violinist Chung Kyung-hwa — serve as artistic directors of this renowned chamber music festivals in Korea. This year, the annual festival will explore the relationship between dance and music. Tickets cost 40,000 to 250,000 won. For more information, call (02) 725-3394. Gidon Kremer & Kremerata Baltica Seoul Arts Center* Oct. 16 Gidon Kremer,

Jun 28, 2012By Do Je-hae

Korean Heritage

Neolithic farm field found in Gangwon Province

By Do Je-hae Researchers have found evidence proving that farming took place in Korea 5,000 years ago. The National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage said Tuesday that archaeological traces presumed to be East Asia's first Neolithic remains of an agricultural field have been found in a northern province. The discovery in Goseong, Gangwon Province, reveals that prehistoric people who lived on the Korean Peninsula began to cultivate crops during the Neolithic period. The institute is affiliated with the Cultural Heritage Administration under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sports. It unveiled two layers of the Neolithic field, dating back to 3600-3000 B.C., during a news briefing, Tuesday. Previously, the oldest farming field located in Korea dated back to the Bronze Age (1500-400 B.C.). "There has been a presumption that agricultural fields may have existed on the peninsula during the period based on farming-related stone tools and carbonized grain found in remains from the period, but the recent find was the first discovery of traces supporting the presu

Jun 26, 2012By Do Je-hae

Arts & Theater

Clubs

Clubs The Octagon Nonhyeon-dong Located near the New Hilltop Hotel in Nonhyeon-dong, this venue offers a club stage, lounge bar and dining area in a hip and modern setting. Take exit 4 at Hakdong Station on subway line 7. Call (02) 516-8847 for more information. Club Volume Itaewon Located in the Crown Hotel near Noksapyeong Station, Club Volume is the finest venue for themed weekly events and world-class DJs. Club Volume was listed by Time magazine among the “10 things to do in 24 hours in Seoul.” For more information, call 1544-2635. Le Nuit Blanche Cheongdam-dong Formerly Club Answer, Le Nuit Blanche is a high class restaurant, theater and club. Located in front of the Hotel Prima in Cheongdam-dong, Le Nuit Blanche offers Cirque du Soleil-type performances. World-class DJs from all over the world perform at the club. For more information, call (02) 514-4311. W.E. Listen Samcheong-dong This cafe reinterprets traditional Korean desserts. The menu not only offers American-style coffee but also sweet potato, sweet bean latte, a “hotteok” pancake

Jun 21, 2012By Do Je-hae

Arts & Theater

Classical music

Classical Concerts Maksim Mrvica Concert Seoul Arts Center* July 6 Maksim Mrvica, a Croatian pianist nicknamed “The Piano Player,” is also a composer. Mrvica rose to fame immediately after the release of his first album and has since become a leading electric pianist of his generation. Some of his best known compositions are “The Bumblebee” and “Crotian Rhapsody.” Tickets cost 55,000 to 121,000 won. For more information, call (02) 6292- 9370. Great Mountains Music Festival & School Alpensia Concert Hall July 26 - Aug. 5 The Great Mountains Music Festival & School will be held in the midst of nature in the mountainous province of Gangwon. Two renowned artists — cellist Chung Myung-hwa and her sister violinist Chung Kyung-hwa — serve as artistic directors of this renowned chamber music festivals in Korea. This year, the annual festival will explore the relationship between dance and music. Tickets cost 40,000 to 250,000 won. For more information, call (02) 725-3394. Gidon Kremer & Kremerata Baltica Seoul Arts Center* Oct. 16 Gidon Kreme

Jun 21, 2012By Do Je-hae

People & Events

(40) Chung Kyung-wha ― pioneering concert violinist

By Do Je-hae Few can refute that violinist Chung Kyung-wha was the first classical musician from Korea to achieve true international stardom in the 1970s and 80s. She is the centerpiece of the Chung Trio, consisting of her older sister Myung-wha on the cello and younger brother Myung-whun on the piano. In Korea, they are like the Kennedys of classical music. The violinist is unique in that she is not just an Asian pioneer in Western classical music. Before her sensational 1970 London concert debut, there were few women instrumentalists. Like pianists, star violinists of the day were overwhelmingly male. In the 1970s, larger-than-life violinists like Jascha Heifetz, David Oistrakh, Nathan Milstein and Yehudi Menuhin, among others, were dominating the stage and recordings. Chung had it much harder than younger Korean classical musicians who followed her footsteps. Early music studies Born in 1948, Chung’s earliest musical studies began not on the violin but on the piano. The late 1940s were hard times for most Koreans, who had just been liberated from the 35-y

Jun 20, 2012By Do Je-hae

Shows & Dramas

'All Eyes on Korea' campaign launched in London

By Do Je-hae The London Olympic Games will begin on July 27, but promotions for the 3-month cultural campaign for Korea will begin next week, at the initiative of the U.K. Korean Cultural Center. “We will start a street promotion campaign titled All Eyes on Korea: Shining Bright, Korea Through Colors on June 26, 30 days ahead of the opening ceremony of the games,” WonYong-gi, director of the center, said in a statement Tuesday. “Posters for the campaign will be set up in 30 subway stations in London and we will hand out promotional souvenirs at major venues in London, including Oxford Circus, the Southbank Centre and Trafalgar Square,” Won said. The center has selected 50 Londoners to take part in the promotional events. They will wear T-shirts by Korean designer Lie Sang-bong. The “All Eyes on Korea” campaign will feature renowned Korean artists including soprano Jo Su-mi, maestro conductor Chung Myung-whun, “pansori” singer Lee Ja-ram and Lie, who will perform at the Southbank Centre. Violinist Sarah Chang and pianist Kim Sun-wook will also give performances, while e

Jun 19, 2012By Do Je-hae

Books

Recent books

A Shy Smile Kim Hyeon-gu; dReamN Publishing: 320 pp., 12,800 won The is a collection of blog posts by a sub-intern at a general hospital, detailing noteworthy happenings in his daily life, from humorous to tragic. His portraits are much rawer when the angle is turned to the doctors themselves. His seniors constantly yell at him for being slow. The nap room looks like a pig sty. Surgeons have hair that looks unwashed for days if not weeks. There are angry patients and guardians who threaten lawsuits. Kim writes from a common-man perspective, possibly to increase accessibility, yet it sometimes undermines the seriousness of the content. There is one reference too many to finger enemas, which may be “icky enough” to induce some chuckles from readers but is no laughing matter for the patients. To his credit, he never shies away from graphic details, making this book worth a glance. It is a welcome departure from the likes of “Grey’s Anatomy” and other beautified white gown-themed TV shows where the subject revolves more around love affairs than the well-being of pat

Jun 15, 2012By Do Je-hae

Books

'NK transition opens door for engagement'

By Kim Young-jin Now is the time for regional players to take coordinated steps to engage North Korea, as its new leader Kim Jong-un seeks to emphasize the economy rather than military might, a scholar says in a new book. The assertion from Moon Chung-in, an international relations expert at Yonsei University, comes as Pyongyang steps up propaganda on improving quality of life as part of its promise to become “strong and prosperous” by 2012. “It is in that moment, the transition from security-first to security-plus-prosperity, that the unity of the North Korean political system will come under strain,” Moon says in “The Sunshine Policy: In Defense of Engagement as a Path to Peace in Korea.” “This should be the focal point of international responses to the transition process.” Pyongyang has taken small steps to reform, bolstering cooperation with China and upgrading plans for special economic zones. But observers warn opening the economy could encourage greater information flow, posing challenges to its authoritarian system. Making matters worse, the North’s isolation

Jun 15, 2012By Do Je-hae

Do Je-hae

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Now showing

Clubs

Classical music

Neolithic farm field found in Gangwon Province

Clubs

Classical music

(40) Chung Kyung-wha ― pioneering concert violinist

'All Eyes on Korea' campaign launched in London

Recent books

'NK transition opens door for engagement'

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