Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Classical Concerts, Big Tickets, Dance, Pop and Jazz

Classical Concerts White Christmas with Kim Nam-yun &150 Violinists Seoul Arts Center Dec. 23 Violinist Kim Nam-yun and her 150 students deliver Christmas carols, pop songs and theatrical scores including Ennio Morricone's ``Gabriel's Oboes.'' Spend a romantic evening with their violin tunes. Tickets cost from 20,000 won to 80,000 won. For more information, call (02) 580-1300. Located near exits 4 and 5 of Nambu Bus Terminal on subway line 3. Beethoven Virus Live Sejong Center for the Performing Arts Jan. 11 Conductor Seo Hee-tae is performing ``Beethoven Virus in Live,'' based on the hit TV drama ``Beethoven Virus.'' World-renowned pianist Seo Hye-kyung and mezzo-soprano Lee A-kyung join as special guests. Tickets range from 33,000 won to 77,000 won. For more information, call 02-548-8690. Located near exit 3 of City Hall Station on subway line 1 and 2, or exit 1 and 8 of Gwanghwamun Station on subway line 5. Opera `Le Nozze di Figaro' Art Theater, Korea National University of Arts Dec. 25- 30 The National Opera of Korea has prepared Mozart's ``L

Dec 11, 2008

Korean-American Co-Production Dreamgirls to Premiere in Feb.

By Chung Ah-young Staff Reporter Broadway musical ``Dreamgirls,'' better known as the film adaptation starring pop diva Beyonce Knowles as Deena and Jennifer Hudson as Effie, will have its debut in Korea for the first time. The musical will be a co-production of OD Musical Company head Shin Chun-soo and American producer John F. Breglio. The Korean version will premiere in February next year with Korean stars, and will later tour other countries with local casts. The new production will be in Boston next fall and on Broadway in 2011, according to OD Musical. Shin and Breglio are teaming up with the international production of ``Dreamgirls,'' the original of which was first staged on Broadway in 1981, along with other celebrated Broadway creative staff. For the production, the world-renowned creative team will upgrade the original to include new musical numbers by composer Henry Krieger and lyricst Tom Eyen including ``Listen,'' which was used in the film adaptation ― its script will be revised too. With much anticipation, the Korean cast, who will play the main rol

Dec 10, 2008

Artist Depicts Antique Dolls in Paintings

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter As a child, artist Francoise Seungheey Kim grew up playing with beautiful dolls. Her fascination continued through her adult years, until she decided to make them the subject of her art. ``My exhibit is perfect for the Christmas season. The theme is `doll's outing'. I've been creating art focusing on dolls and dollhouses for the last six years. But I've been collecting dolls for a long time,'' she told The Korea Times, Monday, just before the exhibit's opening at Gallery Jant, in Bundang, south of Seoul. The exhibit runs through Dec. 30. In her paintings, antique European dolls are shown wearing ruffled dresses and prim coats, reading books and sitting down for a picnic. The doll paintings seem very old-fashioned, especially in a time when most girls do not play with such antique dolls. Some of the dolls are from Kim's own collection, but most of them are conjured up from her imagination. Even Kim is disappointed with the declining popularity of dolls among young girls. ``These days children have to study more, and don't have time t

Dec 10, 2008

Bulguksa Temples Pagoda to Undergo Restoration

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter The top parts of the Dabo Pagoda in Bulguksa Temple, Gyeongju, will be taken down for a nearly year-long restoration on Wednesday. The National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage will oversee the dismantling of the first two levels of the three-story Dabo Pagoda, which is designated as National Treasure No. 20. The pagoda's upper levels have been showing cracks and decay due to environmental factors and pollution. In order to prevent further damage, the pagoda's parts are to be restored. The restoration work is expected to be finished Oct. 30, 2009. In the book ``A Field Guide to History: Gyeongju,'' the Dabo Pagoda is described as a ``square tile-roofed structure with a powerful chunyeo (the raised section at the end of an eave) that extends out like spread wings, over a heavy square-shaped base with stairs placed on all four sides.'' The Dabo pagoda stands at 10.4 meters tall, and is considered a beautiful but complicated structure. It has a square base or gidanbu, while the body or tapsinbu is an octagon and the upper lev

Dec 9, 2008

When Korean Traditional Arts Meet European Literature

By Chung Ah-young Staff Reporter There seems nothing in common between Korean traditional music and European literature, but through the arts, the two cultures might have something to share. Jeong Ga Ak Hoe, a Korean traditional music ensemble, will hold a special performance in which Korean traditional music, dance and paintings are in harmony with European literature. A total of 12 European books from nine authors such as Irishman William Butler Yeats, Frenchman Paul Eluard and Norwegian Olav Hauge will be read in their original language along with subtitles. For the three-day performance titled ``Jeong Ga Ak Hoe Meets European Literature,'' the European masterpieces will be read first followed by Korean traditional arts. After the literary works are read, the ensemble will perform traditional music such as ``Taepyeongga'' and dance motivated from the paintings by Korean painter Jang Seung-eop related to the themes of the literature based on the recitation of Korean poems by Hwang Jin-i and Im Je on stage. Under the themes of human solitude and freedom from the e

Dec 8, 2008

Gugak Awards to Present Best of Traditional Music

By Han Sang-hee Staff Reporter Enjoy Korean traditional music, or `gugak,' at the KBS Gugak Awards Dec. 11 at KBS Hall. Artists who have strived to bring the traditional art form closer to the public will be awarded for their efforts. Gugak, which literally means ``the music of Korea,'' refers to music that has its roots in Korea. From instrumental to vocal music, gugak is considered one of the easiest ways to learn Korean culture. Starting in 1982, the KBS Gugak Awards is one of the biggest traditional culture events here and this year, visitors will have the chance to enjoy the best of the best of gugak with the awardees' and other congratulatory performances. There are a total of nine awards, including Best Vocalist, Best Folk Song and Best Pansori. The Best Vocalist Award will be given to Lee Yoo-kyeong, a young, yet talented traditional singer, while the Folk Song Award will be awarded to Park Jun-young. Park has mastered the ``Seodo Melodies,'' Important Intangible Cultural Property No.30. Chung Ye-jin will receive the Best Pansori Award for her power

Dec 7, 2008

Sa-choom Goes Global

By Han Sang-hee Staff Reporter Dance is known to be a universal form of art and there is one man who understood this and came up with an innovative performance that mesmerized fans at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Choi Kwang-il, the producer of ``Sa-choom,'' a non-verbal dance musical, said he was grateful for the support, and that he had no idea the show would come this far. ``Dec. 14 marks the 1,000th performance. I am very grateful for everyone who helped and believed in us along the way, and who knows? We may be able to reach the 5,000th performance,'' Choi told The Korea Times during an interview last Monday at the Sa-choom Theater. Choi, a successful concert producer in the late 1990s, thought about making ``Sa-choom'' after watching other famous dance performance like ``Spirit of the Dance.'' ``I thought, `would that kind of show work here in Korea too?' I worked on `Sa-choom' aiming for the long run. I wanted to portray our own style in it,'' he said. Although Korea is considered one of the best b-boy nations in the world, there were not many people wh

Dec 7, 2008

Arts Council Chief Dismissed

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism dismissed Kim Jeong-heon as chairman of Arts Council Korea after he violated rules concerning the council's promotional funds. The ministry conducted a special audit of the council's promotional funds from Nov. 26 to Dec. 1. Findings showed that the council approved entrusting 70 billion won to five C-grade financial institutions, which is prohibited by law. The investment resulted in a 10.1 billion won loss for the arts council. During Kim's tenure, he approved two cases of such investment, incurring about 5.4 billion won in losses. Kim, who was appointed chairman of the council last year by then-president Roh Moo-hyun, had refused to step down from his post when the new administration took office earlier this year. There has been pressure on Kim and other heads of various arts and cultural organizations, who were considered President Roh's political appointees, to resign. Even Culture Minister Yu In-chon had called for their resignations. Kim was a co-leader of Cultural Action and a lef

Dec 5, 2008

European Masterpieces From Pushkin Museum

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Masterpieces by famous European painters from the 17th and 18th century are now on display at the Hangaram Art Museum, Seoul Arts Center complex. Seventy-six art works, including works by Rembrandt, Rubens and Van Dyck, are from the permanent collection of the State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow, Russia. ``Great Masters of European Art: Meet Rembrandt'' runs through Feb. 26 on the third floor of the Hangaram Art Museum. The State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts has the largest collection of European art in Moscow. It includes paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries, with representative works from artists from the Netherlands, Italy, France and Spain. Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, a Dutch artist considered one of the great Baroque masters, was famous for his portraits and illustrations of scenes from the Bible. Shown in the exhibit is the painting ``Portrait of an Elderly Woman,'' and religious-themed etchings such as ``The Descent from the Cross,'' showing the lifeless body of Christ being brought down from the Cross, and ``Th

Dec 5, 2008

Classical Concerts, Big Tickets and Pop and Jazz

Classical Concerts Classics in Cinema Hoam Art Hall Dec. 12 CIELOS Ensemble, a chamber orchestra organized last August, provides a chance to meet classical movie tracks. A music critic Jang Il-beom, who hosts his own classical music program on KBS1 radio, joins as a commentator. Tickets cost 30,000 won. For more information, visit www.credia.co.kr or call (02) 751-9606~10. Located near exits 9 and 10 of City Hall Station on subway line 2. Les Petits Chanteurs a la Croix de Bois Concert Sejong Center for Performing Arts Dec. 12 Les Petits Chanteurs a la Croix de Bois, the boys' choir from France, visits Korea. Consisting of only 24 boys selected from a strict audition, this choir is evaluated as world's top choir with the Vienna and the Toelzer. Tickets cost from 20,000 won to 100,000 won. For more information, visit ticket.interpark.com or call (02) 548-4480. Located near exit 3 of City Hall Station on subway line 1 and 2, or exit 1 and 8 of Gwanghwa-mun Station on subway line 5. Boon the Bassoon First Concert Seoul Arts Center Dec 16 Boon the B

Dec 4, 2008

Arts & Theater

Arts & Theater

Classical Concerts, Big Tickets, Dance, Pop and Jazz

Korean-American Co-Production Dreamgirls to Premiere in Feb.

Artist Depicts Antique Dolls in Paintings

Bulguksa Temples Pagoda to Undergo Restoration

When Korean Traditional Arts Meet European Literature

Gugak Awards to Present Best of Traditional Music

Sa-choom Goes Global

Arts Council Chief Dismissed

European Masterpieces From Pushkin Museum

Classical Concerts, Big Tickets and Pop and Jazz

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