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Park Ji-won

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

Park Ji-won is a writer for The Korea Times who has been covering a wide range of topics from Korea’s culture to its politics. An avid journalism enthusiast to the core, Ji-won brings a thoughtful and unique perspective to every topic she covers. On weekends, you'll often find her contemplating life’s purpose on a yoga mat — with a cup of quality tea in hand. A native Korean speaker by birth and fluent in English through her work, she went to college in Japan and is learning Chinese and French — hoping to add Polish, Russian and Thai to the mix.

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Arts & Theater

INTERVIEW Violinist Clara-Jumi Kang plays Bach to express freedom in suffering

Violinist Clara-Jumi Kang / Courtesy of Vincero Poster for violinist Clara-Jumi Kang's ”Bach Complete Sonatas & Partitas” / Courtesy of Vincero By Park Ji-wonPlaying “The Complete Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin” has been one of the most challenging works for violinists as it is technically difficult to execute and of long duration at approximately 2 hours. But award-winning violinist Clara-Jumi Kang is set to take on the challenging task. She will be performing Bach's notable work throughout the country as part of her lifelong project from May 25 at the Daejeon Arts Center and from June 1 at the Gyeonggi Arts Center.Noting that playing Bach's “Complete Sonatas and Partitas” is something she wanted to do since she was in her early 20s, Kang said, “It is a project that I want to keep doing, because I can play the repertoire anywhere with the vio

May 23, 2021By Park Ji-won
[INTERVIEW] Violinist Clara-Jumi Kang plays Bach to express freedom in suffering
Arts & Theater

Renovated National Theater of Korea optimized for Korean traditional sound

The Haeoreum Grand Theater of the National Theater of Korea (NTOK) / Courtesy of NTOK By Park Ji-wonThe Haeoreum Grand Theater of the National Theater of Korea (NTOK) is set to open after a four-year renovation with facilities more conducive to Korean traditional music.The first large repair of the theater since 1973 focused on boosting sound quality and stage construction, by spending 65.8 billion won ($58 million). “We made the theater optimized to listen to natural sound without any speakers for traditional music performances and shows,” NTOK CEO Kim Cheol-ho reportedly said. “We hope we would be able to offer more modernized and high-quality performances with the new theater.”An NTOK official said, “We tried to eliminate blind spots and gave up the stereo system so that sounds can reach out to every seat.”To improve the sound, it installed 48 acoustic banners that can control the time of reverberation or fade out sound. The sound lasted 1.35 seconds in the past,

May 20, 2021By Park Ji-won
Renovated National Theater of Korea optimized for Korean traditional sound
Books

INTERVIEW Comic artist Won Soo-yeon talks about reprint of 'Full House' manhwa

Comic artist Won Soo-yeon poses during an interview in Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of Rockin' KoreaBy Park Ji-wonWebtoons are now the most popular way to read comic books in Korea. But back in the 1990s and the early 2000s, there were only printed comics, called “manhwa” in Korean, targeting female teens and women in their 20s, largely focused on romance. That genre of comics was called “sunjeong manhwa.” “Sunjeong” means “pure love” in Korean. Other comics about war, sports and action targeted male teenagers and men in their 20s. There were many weekly magazines and artists publishing romance comics at that time, and the genre became so popular that those days are referred to as the “golden age of sunjeong manhwa.”During those days, comics started being turned into movies and TV dramas. The comic series, “We Saw the Bird Lost in the Middle of the Road” (1986, rough translation), written and illustrated by Hwang Mi-na, was first adapted into a TV drama series in 1999. But it was the comic series, “Full House&

May 18, 2021By Park Ji-won
[INTERVIEW] Comic artist Won Soo-yeon talks about reprint of 'Full House' manhwa
Arts & Theater

Pansori performance 'Sugung-ga' ('Gwitto' in Korean) offers wisdom amid pandemic

Casts of the changgeuk, “Sugung-ga,” by the National Changgeuk Company of Korea (NCCK). From left are Tonyeo (Min Eun-kyung), Jara (Yu Tae-pyung-yang) and Toja (Kim Jun-soo) / Courtesy of the NCCKBy Park Ji-wonPoster for the changgeuk “Sugung-ga” / Courtesy of NCCKSince last year, “Sugungga,” one of the five existing repertoires of “pansori,” or the Korean genre of musical storytelling, became popular among a wider audience after being partially adopted by an alternative pop band called Leenalchi. The band rose to stardom after successfully leading the country's tourism campaign, “Feel the Rhythm of Korea,” with its addictive music and electronic beats. One of its YouTube videos had received 46.6 million views as of Sunday. “Sugung-ga” (working title), or “Gwitto” in Korean, the changgeuk of the National Changgeuk Company of Korea (NCCK), directed and written by Koh Sung-woong, with the pansori and music composed by Yoo Soo-jung (artistic director) and Han Seung-seok, recreates the traditional story b

May 17, 2021By Park Ji-won
Pansori performance 'Sugung-ga' ('Gwitto' in Korean) offers wisdom amid pandemic
Entertainment

New leader of KBS Orchestra: Korean audiences are passionate, warm-hearted

Pietari Inkinen, KBS Symphony Orchestra's new music director / Courtesy of Kaupo KikkasBy Park Ji-wonKBS Symphony Orchestra's new music director, Pietari Inkinen, portrays Koreans as “one of the world's most passionate” audiences.“Korea has one of the most passionate and warm-hearted audiences around the world. I always felt very welcome in Korea,” he said during a news conference held online on Wednesday. “The commitment from the audiences is unique. I wish further to cement KBS Symphony Orchestra's reputation in Korea as the leading symphony orchestra, and to bring wonderful music not only to Seoul but to the entire country.”The 41-year old Finnish maestro and violinist participated in the press conference via Zoom because he is currently in Zermatt, Switzerland. Inkinen will take the helm in January next year. He will lead the KBS Orchestra until the end of 2024.He replaces Israeli musician Yoel Levi, who left the position in 2019.Inkinen is also serving as the chief conductor of the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and the Japan Philharmonic Orchest

May 14, 2021By Park Ji-won
New leader of KBS Orchestra: Korean audiences are passionate, warm-hearted
Society

Korean tidal flats receive preliminary 'defer' status as UNESCO World Heritage

Tidal flats in Boseong County, South Jeolla Province, in this undated photo. Courtesy of the Cultural Heritage AdministrationBy Park Ji-wonThe country's tidal flats received a “deferral” in a preliminary evaluation process to determine potential sites that could be registered on UNESCO World Heritage Sites list, Korea's Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) announced in a press release Tuesday, pledging that it will push for their listing in the future.The administration said the recommendation came from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), an advisory group for UNESCO. A deferral is the third-lowest in a four-tier system that includes “inscribe,” “refer,” “defer” and “not to inscribe.” If selected, it means the site's nomination will require a more in-depth assessment or substantial revisions for later consideration.An official of the CHA said the application may have failed to meet some criteria, such as “representing major stages of the earth's history” and “significant ongoing eco

May 12, 2021By Park Ji-won
Korean tidal flats receive preliminary 'defer' status as UNESCO World Heritage
Arts & Theater

Production companies clash over 'Les Miserables' concert copyright

A statement from Les Miserables Korea / Screen capture from the website of Les Miserables KoreaBy Park Ji-wonPoster for “The French Musical Cast Concert Les Miserables” / Courtesy of K&P EntertainmentKorean production companies are clashing over copyright issues surrounding the concert, “Les Miserables,” four days before it is scheduled to be held in Seoul and Busan from May 15 to 23.Les Miserable Korea (KCMI), the Korean unit of Cameron Mackintosh (CML), the U.K. production company of the musical “Les Miserables,” released a statement, Monday, claiming that the concert could be in violation of their copyright.“Lyricist Alain Boublil, composer Claude-Michel Schonberg and the production company of the musical 'Les Miserables' were quoted as saying that 'Les Miserables: the French original cast concert' didn't receive prior approval from the British company, so the concert should be canceled as it severely violates the owners' copyrights,” KCMI said in a statement on its website.“The forthcoming concert is a world first and ther

May 11, 2021By Park Ji-won
Production companies clash over 'Les Miserables' concert copyright
Arts & Theater

Lee Ae-ju, master of religious folk dance Seungmu, dies at 73

Lee Ae-ju, a master of religious folk dance Seungmu and chairperson of the Gyeonggi Arts Center, performs at Seoul Plaza on June 9, 2007, during an event to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Lee Han-yeol, a student activist who died after being hit by a tear gas canister fired by riot police in July 1987. Lee Ae-ju, a master of religious folk dance Seungmu and who is famous for performing at pro-democracy protests, died of cancer, Monday. She was 73. Yonhap By Park Ji-wonLee Ae-ju, a cultural icon of the pro-democracy movement in the 1970s and 1980s and master of religious folk dance Seungmu, died of cancer, Monday. She was 73.Lee, chairperson of Gyeonggi Arts Center, was diagnosed with the disease last October and was hospitalized at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital.Born in Oct. 17, 1947, she dedicated her life to preserving and developing Korean traditional dance. She started to learn Seungmu (a combination of the Korean words for “monk” and “dan

May 11, 2021By Park Ji-won
Lee Ae-ju, master of religious folk dance Seungmu, dies at 73
Arts & Theater

Choi Young-chang named chairman of Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation

By Park Ji-wonChoi Young-chang, the newly-appointed chairman of the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation / Courtesy of Cultural Heritage AdministrationThe Cultural Heritage Administration has named Choi Young-chang as new chairman of the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation, according to the organization Monday. Choi, a former reporter for daily Munhwa Ilbo newspaper (1992-2013), research chief at the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation (2013-2015) and director of the Jinju National Museum (2015-2020), will lead the public institution at the Cultural Heritage Administration for three years until May 9, 2024. He majored in history at Korea University and later received a doctoral degree from the same universityThe organization was established in 1980 to carry out government-led projects to promote the country's tangible and intangible heritages and allow residents more chances to enjoy traditional culture. It has been hosting cultural events utilizing intangible heritages and conducting research on excavations, as well as international exchanges such as official development assis

May 11, 2021By Park Ji-won
Choi Young-chang named chairman of Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation
Arts & Theater

Pandemic-hit ballet companies lay off dancers, relocate to cut costs

A scene from “Onegin” performed by Universal Ballet / Courtesy of Universal BalletBy Park Ji-wonKorea's ballet companies have begun to reshuffle their personnel and relocate to cut costs as the lingering pandemic has threatened their survival.The Universal Ballet, the first private ballet company in Korea, laid off 25 of its 75 members this year. Ballerina Choi Ji-won, one of its soloists, left the art troupe in April to join a three-year-old ballet company in China run by Harbin Grand Theatre. She will start performing there as a principal dancer in July.The Seoul Ballet Theater, another private ballet company founded in 1995 aiming to come up with original choreographies, also downsized its from 35 to eight and relocated its office which had been at the Gwacheon Foundation for Arts and Culture center to save costs.The Wise Ballet Theater, founded in 2005, left Mapo Art Center as it failed to be chosen in the selection of organizations allowed to use the center for free. Seo Ballet Company has undergone a similar fate as it is no longer allowed to use Suwon SK Artrium fo

May 10, 2021By Park Ji-won
Pandemic-hit ballet companies lay off dancers, relocate to cut costs
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