For many theater lovers, there is no greater holiday tradition than to spend an evening listening to the sounds of Tchaikovsky and watching battling toy soldiers.　“The Nutcracker” season is upon us and kicking off the Christmas festivities is the Universal Ballet which is staging the all-time holiday classic ballet Dec. 16-31. The company is also celebrating the 30-year anniversary of its first performance of the more than a century-old repertoire in 1986. 　Joining the Universal’s annual perform

The Herald Philharmonic Orchestra will take to the stage alongside ballad singer Shin Jae, soprano Shin Della, pansori singer Ahn So-eun and tenor Ryu Jung-pil in the upcoming “Nalrari Concert” series in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province.　The orchestra’s upcoming New Year’s concert is being held Friday in the Sejong Gugak Center at 7:30 p.m.Ballad singer Shin Jae (Star & Tree Entertainment)　The “Nalrari Concert” series is aimed at providing rural audiences with an affordable opportunity to enjoy classica

Lost for more than a century, Igor Stravinsky’s “Funeral Song” is being revived and getting set for its Asian premiere in Seoul next month. 　The Seoul Philharmonic orchestra will perform Stravinsky‘s long-lost “Funeral Song” during its two-day concert series on Jan. 20 and 21 at the Lotte Concert Hall, marking only the third time the repertoire has ever been performed. 　The recently rediscovered 12-minute piece was composed by Stravinsky in 1908. It was first performed on Jan. 17, 1909, during a

With Christmas and New Year’s just around the corner, festive cheer is in the air. 　Despite the weather quickly taking a turn toward bone-chilling temperatures, there is a long list of live concerts and performances where people can celebrate the holiday season out of the winter cold. 　For those looking to escape the winter blues, there’s nothing like a bit of cultural indulgence to add a little musical enchantment to an evening.  　Steve Barakatt’s “Christmas Dream”　Canadian pianist and composer

PARIS (AP) -- Days after the Islamic State group seized back control of the ancient Syrian town of Palmyra, a prescient exhibit was inaugurated in Paris on Tuesday that aims to educate the public on the wounded wonder that Syrians affectionately call the ``Bride of the Desert.‘’ 　Its organizers said the display opening Wednesday is designed to be an ``emotional‘’ experience that takes visitors to Palmyra and other endangered world heritage sites in the Middle East. It‘s also meant to show how mu

NEW YORK (AFP) - Reclusive pop icon Prince was in talks to make a reality television series based at his Paisley Park estate before his death, Netflix said Monday.　Until Prince’s death in April from an accidental overdose of painkillers, his Paisley Park estate in Minnesota had a mythic status for fans, with The Purple One occasionally opening the gates for parties.　Maya Washington, a photographer who befriended Prince in the last years of his life, revealed the reality television project in the

NEW YORK (AFP) - Rap superstar Kanye West on Tuesday delivered a surprise even in this most unusual of political years -- he met President-elect Donald Trump, marking the artist’s first appearance since a reported mental breakdown.　West, a rare artist and even rarer African American celebrity to voice support for Trump, said he went to discuss issues of concern to minorities with the populist leader.　Trailed by an entourage including his own cameraman, West silently walked into Trump Tower and r

Promotional image for the musical “Death Note,” starring Kim Jun-su (C-JeS Entertainment)Kim Jun-su, often referred to here as the “ticket power king,” has not lost his touch: Tickets for a showcase of the upcoming musical “Death Note” sold out in less than a minute.  　On Monday, tickets for the musical preopening day showcase went up for sale on Interpark at 3 p.m. and all 1,000 seats were booked in under a minute.  　The K-pop star recently wrapped up the musical “Dorian Gray,” which is a Korea

K-pop star Rain (Rain Company)　Singer-actor Rain is gearing for a January return with his first album in nearly three years, according to his agency Rain Company. 　The upcoming album will be Rain’s first music release since his “Rain Effect” album in January 2014, which marked his return since completing his mandatory military service.  　The singer was initially slated to return to the stage in the latter half of this year, but his agency said that the album was not ready yet and decided to push

The Corea Image Communication Institute will honor South Korean golfer Pak Se-ri, AlphaGo artificial intelligence and KwangJuYo Chairman Cho Tae-Kwon at its upcoming 13th annual awards ceremony CICI Korea Image Awards 2017. 　The Korea Image Awards are given by CICI, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting a positive image of Korea. It recognizes people and entities that best represent the country and its culture. South Korean golfer Pak Se-ri (CICI)　Former professional golfer Pak, who an

Around 40 people were missing off the Yemeni island of Socotra on Wednesday after a cargo vessel carrying islanders home from the mainland sank in the Indian Ocean, authorities said.   Nineteen people were rescued from the water after a major search operation was launched in the early hours, Yemeni Fisheries Minister Fahd Kavieen told reporters.   The first two survivors were rescued by a passing Austrian vessel and an Australian ship, the government's sabanew.com website reported.   Kavieen did

The leaders of South Korea, China and Japan are unlikely to hold their annual meeting this month, a diplomatic source said Wednesday, amid a possible impeachment against President Park Geun-hye over a corruption scandal.   Japan has proposed that the leaders of the three neighbors meet in Japan on Dec. 19-20. South Korea told Japan last month that it will attend the trilateral summit, though China remains silent on whether its leader will participate in the talks.   The three countries need to w

Thai authorities are investigating BBC over a Thai-language profile of the nation's new king, officials said Thursday, after the article outraged ultra-royalists in a country where criticism of the monarchy is outlawed.   Thailand's harsh royal defamation law has been used to jail scores of critics and spurned a culture of self-censorship across the media, academia and the arts.   Any member of the public can allege royal defamation and the police are duty bound to investigate.   BBC is now unde

South Korea's sports ministry on Wednesday said it has asked local law enforcement to investigate former and current employees of the national football governing body for apparently misusing the organization's budget.   The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said that its sports corruption center found that 23 former and active workers at the Korea Football Association (KFA) exploited their group's money for private use. Following its probe, the ministry asked the Korean Olympic Committee (

President-elect Donald Trump will kick off his presidency by resetting bilateral relations with regional leaders, including North Korea's Kim Jong-un, which will facilitate a "departure" from the past diplomatic landscape, a Korean-American lecturer at Harvard Kennedy School said Wednesday.   "Foreign policy, international affairs, these are elements that are very new to this new leader and his team. From this perspective, we are gonna see initially the development of relationships among and bet

As Korea readies itself to host the country’s first ever Winter Games in Gangwon Province’s PyeongChang in 2018, the organizing committee is placing heavy emphasis on highlighting year-round tourism in the rural province. 　Famous locally for its cold and snowy winters in Korea, PyeongChang is one of the peninsula’s most popular winter vacation destinations with its plethora of ski slopes and resorts. However, on a global level, the International Olympic Committee says one of the biggest challeng

Seventeen (Official Facebook)K-pop boy band Seventeen is gearing up for its return to the spotlight.　The group released a teaser image, featuring lead vocalist S.Coups holding a glass bottle containing a model ship at the beach, on its official social media channels on Monday morning.  　The 13-member act, which is divided into hip-hop, vocal and choreography units, is currently getting ready to unveil a new album next month, according to the boy band’s management agency Pledis Entertainment. 　Af

Block B’s Zico (Seven Seasons)K-pop boy band Block B’s Zico revealed one of the two artists collaborating with him on his upcoming single which comes out next week. 　The singer, producer and rapper released an image, featuring his and hip-hop artist Crush’s names, via his official social media channels on Monday morning.　“Zico has prepared a special year-end gift for his fans,” said the rapper’s management agency Seven Seasons on Monday. The company also revealed that Zico would reveal another a

A single drop of milk. A newborn baby. The ravages of war and terrorism. The defiance of those who protest and the fear of those entrapped.      All are included in a multimedia project featuring Time magazine's most influential images of all time, released Thursday through a new book, videos and a website.      Many of the photos or frames from films are familiar, engrained in the collective conscious, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning ``Falling Man,'' taken on 9/11 by Richard Drew of The As

Around 100 people are missing feared drowned in the Mediterranean after a migrant dinghy capsized off Libya, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said Thursday, citing testimony from 27 survivors."The 27 men now on board the Argos were on board a boat carrying 130 people. They are the only survivors. This tragedy is just unbearable," MSF said in a tweet. Along with the 27 survivors the Bourbon Argos ship also recovered seven bodies. (AFP)