Though the fourth wave of the pandemic is yet to be contained, Classic Revolution 2021 wants to offer a light of hope to audiences in these trying times. Following the first run last year, the Lotte Concert Hall in eastern Seoul is holding the second edition of the summer music festival from Friday to Aug. 22, highlighting celebrated German composer Brahms and Piazzolla, whose 100th anniversary of birth is celebrated this year. 　 The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra will kick off the 10-day fest

“Ahn Jung-geun, a Dance in the Heaven” will take the stage at the Seoul Arts Center from Friday to Sunday, in celebration of South Korea’s Liberation Day on Aug. 15. The ballet, which premiered in 2015, tells the story of Korean independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun (1879-1910). This year marks the 111st anniversary of his death. Ahn is one of Korea’s most honored independence fighters. He assassinated Ito Hirobumi, Korean’s first Japanese Resident-General during t

The musical “Hades Town” has postponed its opening for a week after 23 members of its cast and crew tested positive for COVID-19. S&Co, the producer of the licensed Broadway show, announced Tuesday that the opening would be postponed from Aug. 24 to Sept. 7. On Thursday Xiumin of EXO, who plays Orpheus in the show, tested positive, which put a halt to rehearsals. Staffers and actors then went into self-quarantine and were tested from Saturday to Monday. A total of 23 peopl

Finding a summer vacation destination amid the prolonged virus crisis and unrelenting heat is not easy. But Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, may provide an answer. Pyeongchang, a three-hour drive east of Seoul, is a highland county. More than 60 percent of its region is situated more than 700 meters above sea level. Though the sun still burns, the wind is cool and inviting. The Winter Olympic city becomes packed with skiers and snowboarders in the colder months, as multiple ski resorts are si

Soprano Sumi Jo’s mother passed away Sunday, after a lengthy hospitalization. Kim Mal-sun, the mother of the celebrated soprano, had been suffering from Alzheimer’s for years, according to Jo‘s agency SMI Entertainment, which announced her passing. She was 85. Jo mentioned in multiple interviews that it was her mother who made her become a celebrated soprano. Kim -- who had once dreamt of becoming a soprano herself -- was recognized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and T

PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province -- With cool breezes signaling the imminent arrival of fall, the 18th Music in PyeongChang closed Saturday, wrapping up its 11-day run. While Seoul had been baking in scorching heat for the past few weeks, the air in PyeongChang, a mountain city located some 700-meters above sea level, was cool and refreshing. This summer edition of the music festival kicked off on July 28 featuring a total of 15 performances. On Friday, the Alpensia Concert Hall was filled wit

Cellist Kim Hyo-jeong will hold a solo recital on Aug. 13 at Ilshin Hall in Hannam-dong, central Seoul. At the 80-minute recital, Kim will perform Beethoven’s 7 variations on “Bei Mannern, welche Liebe fuhlen,” Bruch’s Kol Nidrei, Op. 47, Ligeti’s Cello Sonata and Mendelssohn’s Cello Sonata in D major, Op. 58. “The program consists of works that best express me. Except for Ligeti, the rest of the composers, Beethoven, Bruch and Mendelssohn, were all

The National Theater of Korea is to open the second season of its Let’s Gugak program through its official YouTube channel, introducing the traditional performing arts of Korea to foreign audiences. The state-run theater has been running the Korean Traditional Performing Arts Academy, educating foreigners in Korea who are interested in traditional Korean culture. But to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person classes have been canceled. Instead, it has been running an onl

Music from the beloved PC strategy game StarCraft will be brought to life through an orchestral performance later this year. According to the game music platform Flasic, “StarCraft Live Concert: Encore” will be held at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, Sept. 29-30. The concert will feature original soundtracks from the popular PC game launched by Blizzard Entertainment, including the iconic 12th Area (Terran Theme) and more. To provide a mo

Star stage actors Michael Lee and Ramin Karimloo are to go onstage together in South Korea as part of a musical theater concert. The “Michael & Ramin Concert” is slated to take place at the Goyang Aram Nuri Arts Center, west of Seoul, Aug. 27-29. Produced by Lee, it marks the veteran stage actor’s debut as a producer. “I think there is a natural progression for actors and performers to evolve into directors and producers. For many years, I have been in this indus

The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra is to highlight the work of the iconic composer Yun I-sang in August under the baton of Music Director Osmo Vanska. The SPO will go onstage with violinist Park Sue-ye at the Lotte Concert Hall in eastern Seoul, Aug. 26-27, for performances titled “Vanska Celebrates Isang Yun.” The program features Yun’s “Silla” Legend for Orchestra and Violin Concerto No. 3, as well as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92. Finnish

Following his debut as a conductor in January, concert pianist Kim Sun-wook took the baton once again Thursday evening. The program for Thursday’s concert with the KBS Symphony Orchestra at the Seoul Arts Center included Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 27 in B flat major and Schubert’s Symphony No. 9 in C major, D. 944 “The Great.” The Seoul Arts Center’s concert hall, which has some 2,500 seats, was only half full because of the government’s social dist

The Korea National Opera will present Verdi’s celebrated opera “Nabucco” at the Haeoreum Grand Theater at the National Theater of Korea from Aug. 12-15. It will be the first time for the troupe to present the full-act opera in 16 years, since the last production in 2005. The 1842 opera portrays the Babylonian invasion of Judah and the forced detention of Jews as they are exiled from their homeland by the Babylonian King Nabucco. The best-known number from the opera is the

Legendary Korean pop music singers from the late 20th century will go onstage for a series of concerts, hoping to encourage the diversity of the local music scene. With an aim of supporting the older adult contemporary music genre in Korea, music contents company Sound Friends is to run “Sound Project,” a series of concerts featuring big-name singers from the 1960s to 1990s such as Kim Chang-ki, An Chi-hwan, Han Young-ae, Kim Hyun-chul and more. Kim Chang-ki and An Chi-hwan were

The nine troupes under the wings of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts are to gather together for the musical play “For Forgotten Heroes” from Sept. 17 to 19. According to the theater, the musical set in the Joseon era tells the story of three friends -- historical figure Hong Gyeong-nae, who instigated a rebellion in 1811, legendary con artist Kim Seon-dal and fictional character Cho Jin-su. In the musical, the three characters are friends who studied under one teacher.

Some 291.8 billion won ($253.3 million) has been set aside for the second round of COVID-19 supplementary budget this year for the culture, sports and tourism sectors. Of the total extra budget, 141.8 billion won will be allocated for job creation in the culture industry and for a coupon program to encourage domestic demand for culture, sports and tourism, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Sunday in announcing the new supplementary budget. The 150 billion won secured through t

The seemingly effortless improvisations and ad-libs during the musical “Beetlejuice” belie the meticulous planning down to the minor details and countless practices that went into the show, stage actor Jung Sung-hwa said. Inspired by the iconic 1988 Tim Burton film of the same title, the musical began its Seoul run at the Sejong Center on July 6. Jung plays the lead role Beetlejuice in the show, the lonely ghost who has been living in the Netherworld for 9.8 billion years by himsel

Korean businesses‘ support for the local arts scene decreased in 2020 as pandemic shutdowns dealt a devastating blow to the country, a report released Wednesday by the Korea Mecenat Association showed. Corporate funding for the art industry dropped 14.6 percent on-year to 177.8 billion won ($154.5 million) in 2020, when 390 companies helped finance 953 art projects, the report showed. In 2019, 547 companies spent 208.1 billion won on 1,431 projects. “It seems that corporations&rs

This year’s Korea Young Architect Awards went to architects Choi Yeon-yung and Lee See-woong of Apparat-C Architects, Cho Yoon-hee of Gubo Architects and Kang Woo-hyun and Kang Young-jin of Archihood WxY. A total of 49 teams were considered for the annual prize, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said in announcing the winners on Tuesday. The award program was organized jointly by the Korea Architects Institute, Korean Institute of Architects and the Korean Institute of Female

Though most festivals have been canceled or have gone online amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Seoul Fringe Festival will be held as an in-person event across the Sangam-dong area in western Seoul from Aug. 4 to 29. The 24th Seoul Fringe Festival will feature some 300 performances by 72 artist acts of diverse genres from drama, performance, dance, music, visual art, photography to independent films, according to Seoul Fringe Network, the festival organizers, Monday. Allowing the a