“The Devil,” an original Korean musical, has made its way onto the Chinese musical scene as a licensed production. According to co-producers of the musical, Page1 and R&D Works, “The Devil” -- known by the title “Rock Faust” in China -- is set for a 10-city tour across China starting July 23. The musical will be staged in Beijing, Ningbo and Suzhou, among others. The musical had its Chinese premiere at the Shanghai Grand Theatre from May 24-31, with s

Performance July 13, 2021

Two celebrated concert pianists are to take to the stage with a project orchestra consisting of young musicians, one with the baton in hand and the other playing the piano.  Pianist Kim Sun-wook will lead the Solasian Youth Orchestra for the upcoming performances in Daegu on Aug. 12 and in Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, on Aug. 13. The program includes Glinkas’ overture for the opera “Ruslan and Lyudmila,” Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K. 466

Performance July 12, 2021

With social distancing measures in the greater Seoul area raised to the highest in the revised four-tier system from Monday, most musicals have been rescheduled to continue performing while complying with the semi-lockdown rule. Under the Level 4 social distancing in force for two weeks starting Monday, performing arts venues must close at 10 p.m. and the number of audience members for each performance is limited to a maximum of 5,000 with every other seat left vacant, allowing for a group of

Culture July 11, 2021

After some hiccups, the curtain has finally been raised on the Seoul-run of the licensed musical “Beetlejuice.” The Korean-language musical opened Tuesday at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul. The 150-minute musical was initially set to open June 18, but was twice delayed due to “technical issues.” Even on the opening day, the show started 15 minutes later than scheduled due to a ticketing system malfunction. On stage, however,

Performance July 10, 2021

   The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is considering two sites in central Seoul to build an exclusive establishment dedicated to late Samsung Group Chairman Lee Kun-hee’s personal collection that was donated to the government.　 The grounds of the National Museum of Korea in Yongsan-gu and the Songhyeon-dong area near the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, are the two potential sites. The Culture Ministry has been running a separate task force and

Arts & Design July 7, 2021

The musical “Red Book” has canceled its performances for two weeks, after lead actor Cha Ji-yeon was confirmed to have COVID-19. Atheod, the production company behind the musical, announced through social media on Monday that all performances from Tuesday to July 17 have been canceled. A day before the announcement was made, actor Cha tested positive for the virus. According to Atheod’s announcement, all cast and staff members for the show have been tested. Several cast me

Performance July 6, 2021

Actor Cha Ji-yeon, 39, has been tested positive for the coronavirus on Sunday, although the rest of the cast on the musical she was starring in tested negative. Cha’s agency C-JeS Entertainment announced Sunday that Cha -- who has been starring in musical “Red Book,” while preparing for upcoming musical show “Gwanghwamun Sonata” and an upcoming Netflix series “The Bride of Black” -- was confirmed with COVID-19. “Cha was being tested for COVID-1

Performance July 5, 2021

Though the works of Russian composer Rachmaninoff are often appreciated for their ardent passion and overflow of emotions, pianist Cho Jae-hyuck aims to examine a more reserved, thought-out side of the Romantic composer’s works with his latest recording of his piano concerto pieces. In Korea, Cho recently released a studio-recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18, and No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, under the French music label Evidence. The international relea

Performance July 3, 2021

After a yearlong postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Korea National Opera went onstage Thursday for the Korean premiere of Puccini’s 1910 opera “La Fanciulla del West.” After the Italian production team completed a two-week, mandatory self-quarantine, the national opera troupe took to the stage Thursday at the Seoul Arts Center. Every other seat at the theater was left empty due to coronavirus restrictions. “La Fanciulla del West” was written by Itali

Performance July 2, 2021

The summer edition of the 2021 Chuncheon International Mime Festival will open Monday, under the title “Summer:Movement.” The summer festival held in the city of Chuncheon, Gangwon Province will kick off with its Mime Fringe program from Monday to Wednesday. The program was launched in 2018 to support young mime artists. This year it has been expanded to also include artists who have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the 13 acts, the organizers will award one act with prize

Performance July 2, 2021

The Gyeonggi Sinawi Orchestra is to present its new original musical, “Geumak,” Aug. 18 to 29 at the Gyeonggi Arts Center in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. The fantasy period musical is set in the Joseon era (1392-1910). A mysterious event surrounding a forbidden music score from the Silla Kingdom (57 BC-AD 935) unfolds at Jangagwon, the institution in charge of court music and dance. The orchestra’s Artistic Director Won Il directs the production. Won was the music director fo

Performance June 30, 2021

The Korea National Opera is set for the Korean premiere of Puccini’s 1910 opera “La Fanciulla del West.” The upcoming performance, set to run from Thursday at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul, features sopranos Karine Babajanyan and Lilla Lee, tenors Marco Berti and Oliver Kook. Puccini wrote the opera after watching the play “The Girl of the Golden West,” written by the American author David Belasco, in New York. The opera is set in a mining camp in Calif

Performance June 29, 2021

Soprano Sua Jo, known locally as Jo Su-a, has released her debut album “La Prima Donna” under the Sony Classical label Monday. According to Sony Music Entertainment Korea, the album features well-known arias such as “Lascia Ch’io Pianga” and “Ombra Mai Fu” from Handel’s 1711 opera “Rinaldo,” and Italian baroque music such as “Amarilli, Mia Bella” and “Amor Ch’attendi” written by Caccini and “Caro Mi

Performance June 28, 2021

Concert pianist Cho Seong-jin, the first Korean to win the 17th International Chopin Piano Competition in 2015, is to release a new album featuring Frederic Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 on Aug. 26. Like the debut studio-recorded album in 2016, Cho joined hands with the London Symphony Orchestra led by the Italian maestro Gianandrea Noseda. Though Cho has performed the work on multiple occasions including the debut performance at the BBC Proms in 2018, it is the first time for the concer

Performance June 27, 2021

The National Dance Company of Korea’s “Sanjo” is to begin run at the National Theater of Korea on Thursday. In the 80-minute dance show, the national dance company visually depicts the aesthetics of “sanjo,” which refers to a style of traditional Korean music in which an instrumental solo performance is accompanied by “janggu” drumming. 　 While the term sanjo directly translates to “scattered melodies,” it features the gathering and scatte

Performance June 24, 2021