The Korea Times

CHA defers construction companies' revision plan near UNESCO-designated tomb

Site for Geomdan New Town in Incheon / Korea Times fileBy Park Ji-wonThe Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) rejected Thursday a revised plan offered by construction companies for what it called the “illegal” building of an apartment complex near Jangneung Royal Tomb, a UNESCO-listed site dating back to the 17th century in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, asking the firms to submit a better one.The CHA Heritage Committee said that it would “defer” a final decision on the plan. “The plan cannot guarantee the preservation of the historic and cultural value of the heritage site,” it said in a statement. “So, the administration decided to defer a decision and will form another committee to discuss the issue further.”A deferral is the third-lowest in a four-tier system that includes "approval," "partial approval," "defer" and "not approved.”The move came after the CHA found out in May that the three firms ― Daebang Construction, Daekwang Construction and Kumsung Baekjoe ― had not undertaken the preliminary procedures required to build a st

Oct 28, 2021By Park Ji-won

CHA defers construction companies' revision plan near UNESCO-designated tomb

Music

Pianist Paik Kun-woo fires back at MBC, in-laws over his actress wife

Pianist Paik Kun-woo speaks during a press conference held to refute allegations that he is mistreating his wife, actress Yun Jung-hee, at White Hall in Seoul, Thursday. YonhapPaik takes legal action, denying allegationsBy Park Ji-wonPianist Paik Kun-woo denied allegations that he and his daughter abandoned his wife, actress Yun Jung-hee, who is suffering from Alzheimer's disease, and that his daughter has failed to fulfill her duty as a guardian, claiming they are false accusations.He has taken legal action against his in-laws who made the allegations.“Yun forgets everything within a few minutes … It is not good for an Alzheimer's patient to change the living environment and it's best to live with family … You don't have to worry about (Yun's treatment). She is surrounded by a lot of good people next to her and they are always taking care of her with affection,” he said during a news conference on Thursday. “Please leave us alone so that we can go back to normal.” He went on to say that in addition to Paik's daughter, who visits Yun every day wh

Oct 28, 2021By Park Ji-won

Pianist Paik Kun-woo fires back at MBC, in-laws over his actress wife

Music

INTERVIEW Singer-songwriter Seori talks about Shang-Chi OST, her music

Seori / Courtesy of ATISPAUSBy Park Ji-wonThe list of artists who were featured on the 18-track soundtrack for Marvel Studios's "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," the first Asian hero-led movie in the action film series, came as a surprise to many Koreans as the album, produced by Sean Miyashiro and 88rising, included a lot of Korean musicians, such as DPR Ian, DPR Live, BIBI and Mark Tuan of GOD7.The biggest surprise was that singer-songwriter Seori, 24, who debuted last year, sang one of the main tracks, “Warriors,” for the film with Indonesian rapper Warren Hue. The duo was a good match partly because of Seori's charismatic but haunting and ethereal vocal style She recorded her singing in Korea, being remotely directed by 88rising, which is now in charge of promoting her in the U.S. and overseas.“The collaboration was something beyond my imagination. As a fan who has been loving the Marvel series, it means a lot to me. So I wanted to be a good part of the film with good music. I enjoyed the process and feel happy for being able to get closer to the film

Oct 27, 2021By Park Ji-won

[INTERVIEW] Singer-songwriter Seori talks about Shang-Chi OST, her music

Arts & Theater

Jeju shamanistic ritual to be designated as intangible cultural heritage

Jeju Keungut / Courtesy of Cultural Heritage AdministrationBy Park Ji-wonJeju's biggest shamanistic ritual for wellbeing will be designated as national intangible cultural heritage, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA).The CHA said it decided to designate heritage status for “Jeju Keungut,” (a big shamanic ritual performed on Jeju Island) after a month of review.The ritual has been passed down on Jeju Island for centuries. It is a full set of traditional rituals, or “gut,” covering a variety of traditional art forms, such as traditional music, dance and game as well as other local island culture. It is normally carried out by more than five people, including the simbang, or lead shaman, and continues for about seven to 14 days.Jeju Keungut / Courtesy of Cultural Heritage AdministrationThe CHA said that Jeju Keungut retains the original format of Korean shamanic rituals. It is valuable in that it preserves Jeju islanders' worldviews on the creation of the Earth, life and death in a shamanic narrative folk song, which includes Jeju's unique di

Oct 25, 2021By Park Ji-won

Jeju shamanistic ritual to be designated as intangible cultural heritage

Politics

Coex Artium to reopen with more seats

COEX Artium / Courtesy of InterparkBy Park Ji-wonThe COEX Artium, which was run by SM Entertainment as a concert hall from 2015 to 2020, will reopen in December with more seating available. Interpark Theater, an affiliate of online commerce company Interpark which will run COEX Artium for the next five years, said it will increase the number of seats to 1,004 from 774 and reopen the hall Dec. 10. Interpark Theater runs various theaters in Seoul, including Bluesquare and Fan Square.The hall has also been equipped with a new sound system and mechanisms to allow faster set changes.The first show marking its reopening will be the musical “Fan Letter” that will run from Dec. 10 to March 20 next year. The musical revolves around novelist Kim Hae-jin, aspiring writer Jung Sae-hun and another novelist named Hikaru during the 1930s when Korea was under Japanese occupation.

Oct 25, 2021By Park Ji-won

Arts & Theater

Korean, German artists to perform 'Borderline,' collaborative play on defector, refugee issues

A scene from the play, “Borderline” / Courtesy of Judith Buss By Park Ji-won&ltiframe width="740" height="416" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/32a4bnOXHI0" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen&gt&lt/iframe&gt“Borderline,” a play created jointly by South Korean and German artists focusing on the issues of defectors and refugees in each country, will be performed offline in Seoul.Directed by Lee Kyung-sung of Creative VaQi, Producer Group DOT and Residenztheater, the work explores the experiences of people who are trying to settle in a new location after leaving where they usually live. German theater critic and playwright Jurgen Berger conducted research for the play by traveling between Germany, Thailand and Korea over the past few years, interviewing a wide range of people, then writing about them as well as the meanings of borders, division a

Oct 24, 2021By Park Ji-won

Korean, German artists to perform 'Borderline,' collaborative play on defector, refugee issues

Music

Pianist Evgeny Kissin to hold solo recital in Seoul for just one day

A poster for pianist Evgeny Kissin's piano recital / Courtesy of Lotte Concert HallBy Park Ji-wonPianist Evgeny Kissin will be playing the famous piano works of legendary composers, such as Chopin, Bach, Mozart and Beethoven, for Korean audiences for the first time in three years. During a solo recital scheduled to be held at Lotte Concert Hall on Nov. 22, the renowned musician and composer will be playing Bach's “Toccata and Fugue in D minor;” Mozart's “Adagio in B minor;” Beethoven's ”Sonata No. 31 in A-flat major” and Chopin's “Mazurkas” and “Andante Spianato and Grande Polonaise Billante Op. 22.”This will be the virtuoso's fifth recital in Korea since 2006. In the past, Kissin always went on a national tour in Korea that lasted several days. But this time, due to his tight recital schedule in other parts of the world, he was able to have only a one-day concert here.He is famous for an hour-long encore performance at a previous recital in Korea. Responding to audience members' enthusiastic applause during his 2018 concert

Oct 21, 2021By Park Ji-won

Pianist Evgeny Kissin to hold solo recital in Seoul for just one day

Music

Canadian Bruce Liu wins 2021 Chopin Competition; Lee Hyuk finishes without prize

Bruce Xiaoyu Liu of Canada reacts after being announced as the winner of the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland, Thursday, local time. Reuters-YonhapBy Park Ji-wonCanadian pianist Bruce Xiaoyu Liu won the first prize at the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland, on Thursday, while Korean national Lee Hyuk finished his final round without a prize.The decision was made after 12 pianists from 10 countries competed for three days starting on Monday. The winner will receive 40,000 euros ($46,620) in prize money and a gold medal. Korean pianist Cho Seong-jin won the 17th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in 2015, becoming the first Korean national to win the award. The competition has been held every five years since 1927.Katarzyna Popowa-zydron, the chairwoman of the jury, said the judges asked themselves, "What kind of Chopin do we have in the 21st century?" before choosing the winner.The 18th competition was supposed to be held last year, but was delayed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.The winner

Oct 21, 2021By Park Ji-won

Canadian Bruce Liu wins 2021 Chopin Competition; Lee Hyuk finishes without prize

Shows & Dramas

FULL TEXT Actor Kim Seon-ho belatedly admits to forced abortion rumor, apologizes

Actor Kim Seon-ho / SALT EntertainmentBy Park Ji-wonActor Kim Seon-ho, who shot to stardom in tvN's romance series, "Start-Up," followed by "Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha," indirectly admitted Wednesday that he had forced his ex-girlfriend to have an abortion and apologized.“I and the person were in a relationship exchanging good feelings. Over the course of the relationship, I hurt her due to my mistakes and inconsiderate actions. I wanted to directly apologize to her in person, but I failed to do so and am waiting for (her),” Kim wrote in a statement released via SALT Entertainment, his agency.The statement came about three days after an accusation was raised by a user in an online community on Sunday. Claiming to be the ex-girlfriend of a rising star initialed, "K," the person claimed that she got pregnant while dating the actor last year and was falsely persuaded to have the abortion with the promise that he would marry her afterwards, so that she would acquiesce. The user wrote that he had even told her that he would need to pay off hundreds of millions of won for violating a

Oct 20, 2021By Park Ji-won

[FULL TEXT] Actor Kim Seon-ho belatedly admits to forced abortion rumor, apologizes

Arts & Theater

LG Arts Center to relocate to Tadao Ando-designed complex in Seoul's Magok District

A rendering of the new LG Arts Center in Magok District, Seoul / Courtesy of LG Arts CenterBy Park Ji-wonThe LG Arts Center, one of the leading art theaters currently based in southern Seoul and run by LG Group's Yonam Foundation, will be relocated to a government-led industrial complex in Magok District, western Seoul, in March of next year. It will be open to the public in October of next year. Designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando and advised by Theatre Projects Consultants, a theater building consultant headquartered in the United Kingdom, the new art complex will be built on a 41,631-square-meter site and provide two concert halls, named the “Grand Theater” and “Black Box,” with 1,335 and 365 seats, respectively. The foundation has invested 250 billion won ($212.7 million) in the four-story complex, which has three levels below ground, since construction began in October 2017.“Even though the district has a potential to grow, it doesn't have enough cultural facilities … We hope the facility can become a cultural landmark there,” Shi

Oct 20, 2021By Park Ji-won

Park Ji-won

Read more

CHA defers construction companies' revision plan near UNESCO-designated tomb

Pianist Paik Kun-woo fires back at MBC, in-laws over his actress wife

INTERVIEW Singer-songwriter Seori talks about Shang-Chi OST, her music

Jeju shamanistic ritual to be designated as intangible cultural heritage

Coex Artium to reopen with more seats

Korean, German artists to perform 'Borderline,' collaborative play on defector, refugee issues

Pianist Evgeny Kissin to hold solo recital in Seoul for just one day

Canadian Bruce Liu wins 2021 Chopin Competition; Lee Hyuk finishes without prize

FULL TEXT Actor Kim Seon-ho belatedly admits to forced abortion rumor, apologizes

LG Arts Center to relocate to Tadao Ando-designed complex in Seoul's Magok District

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