Classical music production company Vincero announced Monday that pianist Kim Sun-wook’s much-anticipated recital will be held Sept. 13 at the Seoul Arts Center. Kim’s recital was initially scheduled to take place in March, but was postponed due to the spread of COVID-19. At the recital, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of Beethoven, Kim will present the great maestro’s Andante Favori, WoO 57; Piano Sonata No. 30, Op. 109; Piano Sonata No. 31, Op. 110; and P

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced its plans for the “Open Theater 2020” project, aiming to invigorate the theater scene. Instead of presenting a large number of plays, the project will run a diagnostic test on the current state of the country’s drama scene. “Open Theater 2020” will consist of 14 programs -- including seminars, talks and workshops -- all focused on creating a healthier theater scene. The project worth 2.1 billion won ($1.74 mi

Jeonju International Sori Festival The 2020 Jeonju International Sori Festival aims to encompass both traditional Korean music and world music as a global music festival that centers on Korean vocals and music. The festival will be held at the Sori Arts Center in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Sept. 16-20. The festival touts itself as a top performing arts festival where exquisite music from around the globe are brought together, with its programs ranging across a wide array of performance

Summer staycation at Haevichi Jeju Haevichi Hotel & Resort Jeju offers the Summer Break package deal for guests seeking a summer staycation experience on Jeju Island. The package includes a one-night stay, breakfast for two, use of the hotel’s indoor and outdoor pools, and two glasses of craft brew Haevichi Wheat Beer. Guests booking a two-night stay via the package will be offered apple mango bingsu, while guests who book for a three-night stay will receive a complimentary upgra

Celebrated soprano Sumi Jo has released her new single “Life is a Miracle,” singing for the victims of the COVID-19 pandemic. The new single “Life is a Miracle,” released on YouTube on Friday, mourns the deaths of COVID-19 victims. “I wanted to console the people who are going through difficulties and feeling empty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sharing the sadness and longing for the loved ones lost,” Jo said through a press release Wednesday. The single

Though the COVID-19 pandemic is yet to be contained, summer music festivals in Korea are continuing their run under changed lineups and schedules. The 17th Music in PyeongChang, a biannual classical music festival held across Gangwon Province by the Gangwon Arts & Culture Foundation, will run from July 22 to Aug. 8. Nine main concerts will be held at Alpensia Resort, presenting Beethoven’s symphonies, chamber music and solo piano works, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the mae

The Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in central Seoul will present two shows this month for 1,000 won, in an effort to promote the arts and lower the barriers for the public. Since the center’s “A Whole Rest” program began in 2007, it has offered diverse shows, crisscrossing genres from classical music and musical theater to dance and gugak, traditional Korean music, for 1,000 won (83 cents) per ticket. The musical “Spring Dream” will be staged at the cente

French luxury fashion house Hermes gained the upper hand in a lawsuit against Korean fashion label Playnomore, alleging copyright infringement of its signature handbags Kelly and Birkin. Playnomore is recognized for its use of neon colors and “eyeball bags.” The Supreme Court on Thursday confirmed a ruling saying that Playnomore violated the act of “unfair competition,” copying Hermes’ iconic handbag designs. The Supreme Court returned the case to the Seoul High

Art-filled staycation at Andaz Seoul Gangnam Andaz Seoul Gangnam’s all-day cafe lounge A’+Z has collaborated with Gana Art Center and Perrier, offering a unique staycation experience to its guests. The hotel has transformed its cafe A’+Z into an art gallery this month, displaying art works by three artists -- Lionel Esteve, Yoriko Takabatake and Park Young-nam -- who express their appreciation of nature in different ways. The exhibition continues until the end of July. Mean

Gangneung Coffee Festival Gangneung Coffee Festival is held every year to promote coffee culture and celebrate Gangneung’s growth as the leading coffee hub in Korea. The city in Gangwon Province is known to be a city of coffee, being home to some legendary baristas in Korea. This year’s festival, slated to be held Oct. 8-11 at Gangneung Ice Arena, will invite big name figures from the local coffee scene for talks and seminars. Barista competitions and performances will take place,

Though New York’s Broadway will remain closed this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, musical “Broadway 42nd Street” takes its audiences straight to the 1930s of the iconic musical district. The Korean-language version of musical “Broadway 42nd Street” opened June 20 at the Charlotte Theater in eastern Seoul. With its premiere in New York in 1980, the musical is regarded as one of the earliest big-budget musical productions, often represented by “Cats,&rdq

The associate conductor of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra Wilson Ng has won the third place at the 2020 Mahler Competition. The Mahler Competition is a triennial competition for conductors under 35 organized by the Bamberg Symphony. This year’s competition was held from June 29 to July 5 in Bamberg, Germany. It was the first in-person international music competition to be held amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The event was live streamed via Facebook and YouTube. A total of 334 contenders

During the COVID-19 pandemic, paid subscription models such as Netflix and YouTube Premium may be an answer for the performing arts scene, according to the CEO of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. While it has become the norm for performing art troupes to reach out to audiences at home online in recent months, the Sejong Center’s CEO Kim Sung-kyu believes a sustainable business model must be built soon. As of now, most performances are streamed online free of charge. “Vi

The National Gugak Center has released a second series of virtual reality performances, following the previous release in March. In March, the state-funded music institution released a series of videos made with virtual reality technology, introducing various gugak instruments.  It released 20 more VR videos Wednesday, recorded at venues that show the beauty of traditional Korean architecture. A total of eight court music and court dance videos were filmed in Changdeokgung, a Joseon-era

The 2020 Yeowoorak Festival, a gugak-themed festival organized by the National Theater of Korea, will kick off online a day later than its original schedule. As the government suspended operation of state-run museums and theaters in the Seoul metropolitan area on June 12 until further notice, the National Theater of Korea must remain closed. Although it is shut down, the theater will continue with its annual festival, streaming two of the shows online via its channels on Naver TV and YouTub

Overseas-based artists are continuing to perform onstage in Korea, even if it means going through the two-week self-quarantine periods. Though rules on overseas travel have lately been relaxed -- allowing essential overseas trips -- still, crossing borders at a time like this is not easy. Many performances across the world have been canceled, with artists unable to travel around the way they used to. Here in Korea, some performances with foreign artists are carrying on, as the artists have b

Revitalizing meal at Park Hyatt Seoul Park Hyatt Seoul’s The Lounge presents a set meal inspired by Korea’s seasonal tradition of revitalizing summer “boyangsik” dishes. Comprising five courses, the dinner set features nourishing ingredients, including Korean-grown deodeok root, chicken and abalone. The course meal will be finished off with a unique dessert course, a reinterpretation of traditional snacks from sweet red bean jelly, mugwort mousse to soybean flour crumb

Goyang Street Arts Festival Goyang Street Arts Festival allows festivalgoers a chance to see performances ranging from underwater dance, midair performances to fireworks show all in one place. The festival, organized by the Goyang Cultural Foundation, will be held at Lake Park in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, an hour’s drive west of Seoul, from Sept. 24-27. For more information in Korean, visit www.gylaf.kr. Call the travel hotline at 1330 for help in Korean, English, Japanese or Chinese.

Though the global musical scene has been put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the international tour production of “Cats” will go on stage from Sept. 9 to Nov. 8 at the Charlotte Theater in eastern Seoul. 　 “Cats” is a musical created by iconic composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and producer Cameron Mackintosh, inspired by the 1939 poetry collection “Old Possum‘s Book of Practical Cats” by T. S. Eliot. The musical has won numerous awards, including the

Overseas-based Korean dancers wrapped up the 10th Ballet Festival Korea with gala shows over weekends at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. A total of 10 prominent overseas Korean dancers gathered for the gala shows. Most of them were initially unable to participate in the shows due to the tight schedules of their ballet troupes. After the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, however, the seasons were canceled, allowing them to return to Korea and perform onstage. “I wrote about going