Around Town 1

‘L'Orfeo'

SejongCenter for the Performing Arts*

July 23-26

The Seoul Metropolitan Opera will hold a production of "L'Orfeo" at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts from July 23 to 26. Written and arranged by Italian Renaissance composer Claudio Monteverdi and staged for the Gonzaga family court, "L'Orfeo" is commonly credited as the earliest surviving opera that is still regularly performed to this day. The opera is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, wherein Orfeo, still besotted with his bride, Eurydice, long after her accidental death, decides to traverse across the inhospitable plains of the Underworld and challenge the world of Hades to reclaim his love. Orfeo will be portrayed by Han Gyu-won and Kim Sae-il, respectively, while Jung Hye-wook and and Huh Jin-ah will each take on the role of the object of Orfeo's undying affection, Eurydice. Ticket prices range from 30,000 to 80,000 won. For more information, call (02) 399-1111 or visit www.sejongpac.or.kr.

‘Gran Tango'

Seoul Arts Center*

July 7

Song Young-hoon, one of the most sought-after cellists in Korea, will hold a collaborative concert with Cuatrocientos, a Japanese tango band, at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul on July 7. Song is something of a household name in Korea. After making his sensational debut at the precocious age of nine on national television, he was commended by the Seoul mayoral office with the Seoul Mayor's Medal for outstanding young talent. Since his vigorous studies at Juilliard at the pre-college level, Song has flourished both domestically and in the international classical music scene, participating in numerous prestigious music festivals and performing at hallowed venues around the globe. Cuatrocientos, for their part, stands at the helm of the Japanese tango movement of sorts. Consisting of violinist and bandleader Mmomoko, pianist Hayashi Masaki, bassist Nishijima Toru, and bandoneonist Ktamura Satoshi, Cuatrocientos derives their name from the Spanish word, which simply stands for the number 400. The dual act will perform music by Astor Piazzolla, a highly influential Argentinian tango composer and bandoneon player who revolutionized and modernized the traditional tango. Ticket prices range from 30,000 to 80,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2658-3546 or visit stompmusic.com.

Libera Concert

Kyunghee University Grand Peace Palace

July 24

Libera, an all-boys English choir mostly comprised of the parish choir of St. Philip’s in South London, will hold a concert at the Kyunghee University Grand Peace Palace on July 24. / Courtesy of Seoul Arts Management

Libera, an all-boys English choir mostly comprised of the parish choir of St. Philip’s in South London, will be holding a concert at the Kyunghee University Grand Peace Palace on July 24. Headed by British composer Robert Prizeman, who writes new music for the group to perform, Libera generally consists of approximately forty members, most of whom still possess unchanged boy soprano voices, while the older members are assigned the lower parts. Since the 1990s, Libera has released several albums, and have regularly appeared on both national and international television. Furthermore, the group has provided backing vocals for numerous distinguished artists, running the gamut from Bjork and Neil Diamond to Luciano Pavarotti. Ticket prices range from 33,000 to 99,000 won. For more information, call (02) 548-4480 or visit www.seoularts.com.

Mikhail Pletnev and the Russian National Orchestra

July 2

The Russian National Orchestra will hold a concert under the astute baton of Mikhail Pletnev at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul on July 2. The orchestra has risen in both acclaim and popularity with the wider public since its thunderous premiere in 1990. Its accomplished conductor, Mikhail Pletnev, is no stranger to such critical adulation either, for he has led a starry career as a concert pianist prior to his current position, beginning with his win at the Tchaikovsky Competition at the age of 21. The orchestra will perform Glinka's "Ruslan and Lyudmila Overture," Tchaikovsky's "Piano Concerto No. 1 in b flat minor, Op. 23," and Rachmaninoff's "Symphony No. 2 in e minor, Op. 27." Ticket prices range from 50,000 to 220,000 won. For more information, call (02) 541-6234 or visit www.mastmedia.co.kr.

Pharrell Williams

Olympic Stadium*

Aug. 14

Pharrell Williams, the genius behind numerous hit singles from the likes of Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Madonna, will be performing for the very first time in Korea at the Olympic Stadium on Aug. 14. Over his twenty-year career in the music industry, Pharrell has truly earned his title as a musical polymath: he is a singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, and even works as a fashion designer in his spare time. In the earlier part of his career, he often acted as the behind-the-scenes engineer of the aforementioned hits, but in recent years, Pharrell has come into his own with global chart-toppers "Blurred Lines in 2013" and "Happy" the following year, and his momentum has yet to stop. Ticket prices range from 99,000 to 132,000 won. For more information, call (02) 3141-3488 or visit www.allaccess.co.kr.

Imagine Dragons

Aug. 13

Imagine Dragons, a four-member American rock band, will hold their first concert in Korea at the Olympic Stadium on Aug. 13. / Courtesy of 9 Ent

Imagine Dragons, a four-member American rock band, will be holding their first concert in Korea at the Olympic Stadium on August 13. While the band, consisting of lead vocalist Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, bassist Ben McKee, and drummer Daniel Platzman, has been active since 2008, they first gained significant international exposure and attention upon the release of their debut studio album in 2012, "Night Visions," which is exemplary for exhibiting influences from eclectic and seemingly incompatible musical genres. The group will also be performing songs from their second album, "Smoke + Mirrors," as well as hit singles from their previous studio release. Ticket prices range from 66,000 to 88,000 won. For more information, call (02) 6925-1818 or visit www.livenation.kr.

‘Polish Art: An Enduring Spirit'

The National Museum of Korea

Through Aug. 30

In collaboration with the National Museum in Warsaw, the National Museum of Korea will be holding a special exhibition, "Polish Art: An Enduring Spirit," from June 5 to Aug. 30. This exhibition will be the first of its kind on Korean shores, with its primary objective being to introduce the artistic traditions and rich history of a country whose influence in shaping the European aesthetic identity is indisputable, but whose contributions have long since faded into the background. Thus, through the more than 200 pieces sourced from 17 different institutions that will be on display, visitors will have the invaluable opportunity to essentially ‘rediscover' the veiled essence of Polish art. Located near exit 2 of Ichon Station on subway line 4. Admission is free. For more information, call (02) 2077-9483 or visit www.museum.go.kr.

‘Fatal Attraction’

Olympic Park Stadium*

July 4

Korean-American singer and pop sensation Ailee will be holding a solo concert at the Olympic Park Stadium on July 4. Having first piqued the Korean public’s interest back in 2011 when she appeared on a Chuseok special of “Singer and Trainee” alongside her mentor, Wheesung, and electrified the audience with aparticularly stirring rendition of Beyonce’s “Halo,” Ailee has since released three studio albums. In addition to her music-oriented activities, she has also starred in multiple commercial television and variety shows. She will be performing many of her hit songs in her repertoire, including “Heaven,” “I’ll Show You,” and “U&I.”Ticket prices range from 77,000 to 110,000 won. For more information, call (02) 1644-5210 or visit www.ymcent.com.

‘Jesus Christ Superstar’

Charlotte Theater

Through June 28

The Charlotte Theater in southern Seoul will be staging a production of "Jesus Christ Superstar" through June 28. Written by the prolific duo of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, the rock opera was first performed on Broadway in 1971 to a surprisingly lukewarm response, with some religious groups censuring the production teams and writers for their interpretation of Jesus's sacrifice. In spite of its ecclesiastical subject matter and thematic elements, "Jesus Christ Superstar" has grown to become a fan favorite to this day with its tongue-in-cheek treatment of such a loaded story, as well as pop culture references and colloquial language scattered throughout the piece. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the last week of Jesus's life and his penultimate crucifixion, "Jesus Christ Superstar" focuses on the political, ideological, and interpersonal rivalry between Jesus and Judas Iscariot, whose name in the modern context is evocative of cold-blooded betrayal. Michael Lee and Park Eun-tae will star as Jesus, while the role of his wily opponent, Judas, will be assumed by Choi Jae-rim, Yoon Hyeong-ryeol, and Han Ji-sang, respectively. Ticket prices range from 50,000 to 140,000 won. For more information, call (02) 1577-3363 or visit www.clipservice.co.kr.

‘Death Note'

Seongnam Arts Center

June 20-Aug. 9

A production of "Death Note" will be staged at the Seongnam Arts Center from June 20 to Aug. 9. Adapted from the colossally popular Japanese manga series of the same name, "Death Note" revolves around Light Yagami, a bored yet highly intelligent teenager who stumbles upon a supernatural notebook that grants its owner the ability to kill anyone whose name and face he or she knows. Armed with such a formidable weapon, Light proceeds to ‘cleanse the world of all evil' and exterminates every individual whom he deems to be unfit for his ultimate plan for a ‘new world,' free from evil and darkness. The inexplicable series of deaths of criminals soon piques the interest of L, an enigmatic and incredibly skilled international investigator who is lured by Light into a dangerous cat-and-mouse game. Ticket prices range from 90,000 to 140,000 won. For more information, call (02) 1577-3663 or visit www.clipservice.co.kr.

‘bare’

Doosan Art Center

June 17-Aug. 23

The Doosan Art Center will be staging a production of “bare” from June 17 to Aug. 23. / Courtesy of Achime

The Doosan Art Center will be staging a production of “bare” from June 17 to August 23. When “bare” was first performed in Los Angeles in 2000, the iconic rock musical was met with both widespread acclaim and horrified shock over its rather bleak ending. Set in a stringent American Catholic high school in the late 1990s, a time period that did not lend itself favorably to the gay community, as homophobic sentiments ran high and rife, “bare” follows a ragtag group of students as they are wracked with doubts over integral questions of sexuality, identity, and growing up, especially in the aftermath of a poignant tragedy in their midst. Ticket prices range from 66,000 to 88,000 won. For more information, call (02) 556-5910 or visit www.show-play.com.

‘Swan Lake'

June 24-28

The Korean National Ballet led by renowned director Kang Sue-jin will stage Tchaikovsky's classical ballet ‘Swan Lake' at Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul from June 24 to 28. The story, spanning four acts, tells the story of a princess, Odette, who turns into a swan following a devil's curse. Tickets cost 5,000 to 80,000 won. For more information, call (02) 587-6181 or visit www.kballet.org.