Underlounge Seoul
Hongdae or Hongik University Area
This is the local club of a hip Japanese chain that also has a branch in Shanghai. Located in the famous clubbing area, Hongdae, it’s all flashy with loud music and lights. Spacious, with a supersized crystal ball hanging over your head, DJs from near and far make music while you can hang out at the bar or classy private rooms. Located near the main entrance of Hongik Univ. Call (02) 325-5715 or visit www.underlounge.kr.
Club M2
Hongdae
M2 features top DJs from home and abroad. The dance floor and the DJ are in the center of the club, which attracts a trendy crowd along with models and celebrities. Packed on the weekends. Visit www.ohoo.net.
Club Volume
Itaewon
Located in the Crown Hotel near Noksapyeong subway station Club Volume offers the finest venue for specially themed weekly events and talented international DJs for unforgetable nights of dancing and debauchery. Reborn after extensive renovations to maintain its reputation of a quality club with a superior sound system, luxurious setting and stylish people Club Volume was listed by TIME magazine among the 10 things to do in 24 hours in Seoul. Call 1544-2635 for more information.
Le Nuit Blanche
Cheongdam-dong
Formerly Club Answer, Le Nuit Blanche is as a posh restaurant, theater and club. Located in front of Hotel Prima in Cheongdam-dong, Le Nuit Blanche offers Cirque du Soleil-type performances at its theater restaurant. World class DJs from all over the world are invited to perform at the club. Call (02) 514-4311 or visit www.lenuitblanche.com.
Cafe Mou
Sinsa-dong
This cafe has a rich ethnic interior that mixes inspirations that its owner got from travels to such places as Morocco and France. Its menu is limited, but features desserts. It’s located at the edge of Dosan Park. 650-9 Park View Building, Sinsa-dong, Gangnam, near the Cine City Theater in Apgujeongdong. Call (02) 3444-6069.
Berlin Cafe & Lounge
Almost hidden atop a hill at the mouth of Itaewon, this terrace with a view offers deliciously themed dinner plates, strong cocktails, and DJs on the weekends. The kitchen is open late and the wait staff is attentive. The modern decor, floral touches, and artistic ambiance add to the dining experience. Call (02) 749-0903 for reservations.
Once in a Blue Moon
Apgujeong-dong
Once in a Blue Moon is one of the best known jazz clubs in the city. It features live jazz sets from two different bands every night usually starting at 7: 30 p.m. The place exudes an elegant, sophisticated atmosphere that is perfect for a romantic date. It is located on the street between the Hakdong intersection and the Galleria intersection in Apgujeong-dong. Call (02) 549-5490 or visit www.onceinabluemoon.co.kr for more information.
The Spot
If you like punk or alternative music, then you should hit The Spot. It is a live music venue located next to the playground near Hongik University. The Spot is a small basement bar, and it is a mainly standing room-only place. Visit www.clubspot.co.kr or call (02) 322-5956, (02) 3141-6876 for more information.
Platoon Kunsthalle
Platoon Kunsthalle is a cultural space where visitors can enjoy various facilities, including an event hall, library lounge, art studios and a bar and restaurant. Open from Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 12 a.m. DJ nights on Thursday and Friday from 10 p.m. Located near exit 10 of Hakdong Station on subway line 7. Visit www.kunsthalle.com or www.platoon.org.
Noxa Lounge
KyoungLiDan
A restaurant and bar serving home-style Italian cuisine along with basic cocktails and wine as well as non-alcoholic drinks, Noxa offers the best patio seating in the neighborhood with a cosmopolitan flair. Call (02) 790-0776 for more information.
Gachi
Salsa music enthusiasts can dance the night away here. To go to Gachi, get off at Apgujeong Line 3 and go out exit 5. After walking past six streets, look for Matilda Club and Bar on the seventh street, turn left and look for Gachi’s red and white sign. Gachi is open from Mondays to Fridays 6 p.m. to 12 a.m., Saturday and Sunday, 2 p.m. to 12 a.m. Call (02) 540-7087.
St.102
This hip-hop club often has special parties and performances. There are many Korean homies here with do-rags, dreads and baseball caps turned sideways. Visit st102.cyworld.com. 360-18 Seogyo-dong, Hongdae or call (02) 335-7166.
Naos Nova
A wine bar and restaurant with a design so stunning that it was featured in several interior design magazines before its doors even opened to the public. Its location across from Namsan Park gives it a wonderful, cool atmosphere. Visit www.naosnova.com (448-120 Huam-dong Yongsan-gu, Seoul) or call (02) 754-2202.
Kyotofu
With a stark, modern interior and unique menu options with tofu based ingredients, this restaurant and sake lounge offers a hip dining experience. Call (02) 749-1488 for reservations.
Club FF
This live music venue features all kinds of music. Depending on the night, they feature funk, punk, rock or pop. Club FF attracts an eclectic mix of people. Walk down to the alley with Club Tool on the corner and turn right. Visit clubff.cyworld.com.
Korea House performances
Korea House
Open run
Korea House regularly holds a series of traditional performances featuring dance, “pansori” (Korean opera) and more. Tickets cost 50,000 won. The venue offers various hands-on activities such as making kimchi. For more information, visit www.koreahouse.or.kr or call (02) 2266-9101. Located near exit 3 of Chungmuro Station, subway lines 3 and 4.
Kim Duk-soo’s Traditional Yeonhui Performance ‘Pan’
Gwanghwamun Art Hall
“Pan,” which opened in May, 2008, is a Korean traditional performance expressing on stage a Korean clown’s joyful and pleasant emotions in harmony with traditional instruments, drama and circus acts. Since its first performance in 2008, the theater has prepared a new version of the show and opened it to the public in 2009. The second version is now being presented. Located near exit 1 of Gyeongbokgung Station, subway line 3. Tickets cost 30,000 to 50,000 won. For more information, call (02) 722-3416.
Miso
Chongdong Theater
This Korean musical, tells the romantic story a young couple in the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1897) falling in love with each other, describing the transformation of love as chronicling the four seasons and using Korean musical instruments and dance. The musical was created in 2008, and the second version has been running on the stage since 2010. Tickets cost 30,000 to 50,000 won. Located near exit 5 of Seodaemun Station, subway line 5. For more information, call (02) 751-1500.
The Hall of Masters
Museum of Traditional Music, National Gugak Center
The National Gugak Center is holding the exhibition “The Hall of Masters” to present the “gugak” (traditional Korean music) spirit of ancestral cultural assets. More than 30 relics, including traditional Korean instruments and costumes, are on display along with photos of 78 gugak masters, donated by their descendants and pupils. Call (02) 580-3130 for more information.
Click! Into Traditional Music
Sejong Center for the Performing Arts*
Aug. 10
To introduce and explain “gukak,” or Korean traditional music, in easy and entertaining ways, Seoul Metropolitan Youth Traditional Music Orchestra will hold a concert performing “gukak” in harmony with other genres, including popera, dance, jazz and percussion. Along with Korean folk songs, a diverse range of popular songs and tunes, such as “O! Sole Mio” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” will be played with gukak instruments. Tickets cost 10,000 to 20,000 won. For more information, call (02) 399-1181.
Woo Jong-duk: Pina Bausch & I
Alle 434
Through Aug. 31
Photographer Woo Jong-duk holds an exhibition for the first time in Korea. His last exhibition was “Pictures on the Stage” in Germany. In 2003, Woo viewed the performance of Pina Bausch, a world-famous choreographer known for transcending the border between dance and theatrical music for the first time. Since then he has taken almost all of the pictures of her performances as she advanced the art of modern dance. Bausch died two years ago of cancer at the age of 68. Admission is free. Located near exit 1 of Seonbawi Station on subway line 4. For more information, call (02) 3444-4337.
Anthony Browne
Through Aug. 30
The art works excerpted from the children’s books produced by Anthony Browne, a British author and illustrator, are on display. Browne is known for frequently inserting the images of gorillas in his books. For this exhibition, artist Lee Lee-nam helped turning several of his works into digital versions. Tickets cost 9,000 to 11,000 won. For more information, call 1544-6499 or (02) 3143-4360.
Delia Brown ’Felicity and Caprice: The Complete Cycle’
Gallery Hyundai Gangnam Space
Through Aug. 8
American artist Delia Brown has worked on her project titled “Felicity and Caprice,” drawing images from the French film “Les Biches” (Bad Girls) created by Claude Charbrol in 1968 in order to express the correlations between wealth and authority in contemporary society. Brown herself played one of the roles in “Les Biches” and transposed the images excerpted from the film onto canvas. Located near exit 2 of Apgujeong Station on subway line 2. For more information, call (02) 519-0800.
2011 Hi Dino Dinosaurs Expo: World Largest Real Dinosaurs Exhibition
Exhibition Hall 2 of KINTEX in Ilsan
Through Aug. 18
Sponsored by four world-famous Chinese natural history museums the expo exhibits over 130 examples of dinosaur and mammal fossils such as about 10 pieces of huge dinosaurs including the Zhuchengosaurus that exists as the only two fossils in the world. Also included are about 40 pieces of small and medium-sized dinosaurs. Tickets cost 13,000 to 15,000 won. Located near exit 1 of Dae-hwa Station on subway line 3. For more information, call 1577-6190.
Beyond the Blue
Gallery Hyundai
Through Aug. 7
The exhibition displays various art pieces featuring the color blue. Visitors will have the opportunity to understand the unique color interpretation by Koreans. The works accentuate the metaphorical symbol and ideas of the many shades and hues of blue. Admission is free. Located near exit 5 of Gyeongbok Palace Station on subway line 3. For more information call (02) 734-6111.
Korea Philatelic Exhibition 2011
COEX Hall A
Through Aug. 1
The Korean postal service will hold its annual philatelic exhibition in order to introduce its history spanning 127 years and promote the historical value of Korean stamps. This exhibition will provide an interesting opportunity to learn how to collect stamps. Admission is free. Located near exit 5 or 6 of Samseong Station on subway line 2. For more information, call (02) 6000-1076.
Master of Optic Artist Cruz-Diez
Dream Forest Arts Center
Through Sept. 13
The artistic pieces created by Cruz-Diez, a world-famous Venezuelan kinetic and op artist, are displayed under the theme of “color in space and time of light.” The center opens three galleries to the public to view his huge art pieces, which were creatively born after a lengthy search for aesthetic points of color and light. Tickets cost 5,000 to 8,000 won. Located near exit 2 of Miasamgeori Station on subway line 4. For more information, call (02) 2289-5401.
Solo Exhibition by Ci Kim ’Who Can Say What?’
Arario Gallery Seoul
Through Aug. 21
Ci Kim, who had worked as an entrepreneur and gallery owner for over 30 years, transformed himself into an artist 10 years ago. To arouse questions about the boundary of freedom of expression and acceptable talk, Kim referred to the cover of the Time magazine representing Don Imus, who was a well-known American radio DJ for generating controversy over racism, with a post-it saying “Who Can Say What?” and remade it as a huge canvas. Admission is free. Located near exit 1 of Anguk Station on subway line 3. For more information, call (02) 723-6190.
The First Tripitaka Exhibition
Horim Museum
Through Sept. 30
Celebrating the 1,000th anniversary of publication of the First Tripitaka, the museum, known for owning the largest collection of around 100 pieces of the First Tripitaka, displays a series of Tripitaka Koreana in order to demonstrate the excellence of Korean historical artifacts and culture. Audiences will be able to have the opportunity to understand the wisdom of Korea’s past generations. Tickets cost 5,000 to 8,000 won. Located near exit 3 of Apgujeong Station on subway line 3. For more information, call (02) 541-3523.
American Art
National Museum of Contemporary Art (Deoksu Palace)
Through Sept. 25
For the first time in Asia, 87 artworks by 47 artists owned by Whitney Museum of American Art are on display. By looking at American contemporary art, people can understand American culture and society. There are special programs such as a lecture, seminar and conversation with a curator. Tickets cost 12,000 won. Located near exits 1 and 12 at City Hall Station on subway lines 1 and 2. For more information, call (02) 2188-6069, 6070.
Dreams Come True
Hangaram Design Museum, Seoul Arts Center*
The Art of Disney’s classic fairy tales is exhibited at the Seoul Arts Center. The exhibition presents the great legacies of Walt Disney artists, including Mary Blair, Glen Keane and Eyvind Earle, and features over 600 artworks representing some of the most beloved animated films. Tickets cost 10,000 to 14,000 won. For more information, call (02) 795-2011~2.
2011 Musee d’Orsay — Reve et Realite
Hangaram Art Museum, Seoul Arts Center*
This exhibition includes the masterpieces from Van Gogh’s “La Nuit Etoilee, Arles” which is being shown for the first time in Korea and other famous artworks from Paul Cezanne, Paul Gauguin, Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Auguste Renoir and Pierre Bonnard from the Musee d’Orsay collection. Tickets cost 5,000 to 12,000 won. For more information, call (02) 325-1077.
Children’s Performance Festival ‘Blanket Flower’
The National Theater of Korea
The National Theater of Korea will offer special performances for children and parents to enjoy together during summer vacation. “Blanket Flower” is a puppet play about the value of hope and love through one family living on an island in the 1970s. The puppets were made with Korean traditional paper “dakjongi.” Audiences will have the opportunity to make paper puppets after the performance. Tickets cost 20,000 won. Located near exit 2 of Dongguk Univ. Station on subway line 3. For more information, call (02) 2280-4115~6.
Shopping for Shoes
Seoul Arts Center*
Through Aug. 10
This is a play targeting teens. The drama unfolds around the teenage love story led by Siobhan McClusky, a 13 years old girl who falls in love with Shaun Holmes, a boy who is severely absorbed in collecting shoes. To capture his heart, Siobhan is determined to have Shaun discover that there are more valuable things in life than just buying and collecting shoes. Tickets cost 20,000 to 30,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2234-4036.
Baseball
Saturday-Sunday, July 30-31
SK Wyverns vs. Hanwha Eagles
Daejeon Baseball Stadium at 5:00 p.m.
Nexen Heroes vs. KIA Tigers
Gwangju Baseball Stadium at 5:00 p.m.
Doosan Bears vs. Lotte Giants
Sajik Baseball Stadium at 5:00 p.m.
Samsung Lions vs. LG Twins
Jamsil Baseball Stadium at 5:00 p.m.