Most Popular
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Ador CEO denies allegations, accuses Hybe of mistreating NewJeans
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Medical reform committee kicks off despite boycott from doctors
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10-man S. Korea lose to Indonesia to miss out on Paris Olympic football qualification
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DP leader says he will meet Yoon without conditions
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Over 9,000 hotline calls made by stalking victims in 2023
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[Hello India] Hyundai Motor vows to boost 'clean mobility' in India
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Monthly users on local streaming platforms outpace Netflix, Disney+
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US will take steps for three-way engagement on nuclear deterrence with S. Korea, Japan: Campbell
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Second Gimpo civil servant found dead, after apologizing for not finishing work
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Seoul to promote luxurious side of the city
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Why Confucian printing woodblocks matter
ANDONG, North Gyeongsang Province ― The legacy of Joseon, Korea’s last ruling dynasty, is alive and strong in this historic town. Billed as the heartland of Korean Confucianism, Andong boasts a number of private Confucian academies and clan villages from the 1392-1910 Joseon era, living proof that this region was home to many of the most prominent Confucian scholars of the time. What’s little known to the outside world, and even to many Koreans, is that the essence of the spiritual world of Jose
Dec. 14, 2014
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Trailblazer in globalizing Korean classics
Choi Byong-hyon, a professor of English literature at Honam University in Gwangju, is widely regarded as one of the top translators of the Korean classics, especially historically important texts that are written in hard-to-decipher Chinese characters. Choi has already published four translated books in the category. The latest one, published in June by Harvard University, is a 1,056-page tome, “The Annals of King T’aejo: Founder of Korea’s Choson Dynasty.” He completed the massive translation p
Dec. 12, 2014
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Calendar
Pop musicPsy Concert: “All Night Stand”: Just as he did last year, Psy will be returning to the stage for four energy-filled nights for his upcoming “All Night Stand” holiday concert series. Inarguably the world’s most famous K-pop star to date, Psy has held some form of a holiday concert annually for the past decade, with last year’s four-day event attracting 60,000 fans. The man who defined Gangnam style will host five shows from Dec. 19-24, with two separate performances on Christmas Eve. The
Dec. 12, 2014
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Winnie-the-Pooh illustration sells for record price
LONDON (AFP) ― The original drawing of an iconic literary illustration depicting Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends playing “poohsticks” sold at auction in London on Tuesday for a record-breaking 314,500 pounds ($490,000).The sale of E. H. Shepard’s ink drawing of the much-loved A. A. Milne characters Pooh, Christopher Robin and Piglet broke the world record for any book illustration in the sale at Sotheby’s auction house.The drawing, which has become one of the most famous book illustrations of it
Dec. 10, 2014
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Students learn compassion through solar project
WINTER GARDEN, Florida ― Valencia College student Thomas Dillen held a solar panel as high as he could, trying to catch the waning sunlight.Two dozen fourth- and fifth-grade students at Tildenville Elementary School clustered around him, hoping the panel would power the portable generators they’ve been building to send to an orphanage in Africa. “Yay!” the students cheered when an LED light bulb attached to one of the generators lit up.The students are working on a project that’s one part scienc
Dec. 10, 2014
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Helping kids embrace new rituals when holiday tinged by loss
Sometimes the most wonderful time of the year arrives at the worst time of your life.Divorce, death, layoffs ― grief-inducing losses don’t take a holiday, and they can wreak havoc on yours, particularly if you’ve got children looking for you to uphold the annual traditions that bring them so much joy.A familiar face no longer at the dinner table, fewer gifts, even a new, unfamiliar home ― all can feel like an affront to the senses at a time of year when rituals are sacred.We contacted a handful
Dec. 10, 2014
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‘Metamorphosis’ depicts ever-changing society
How do people react to the waves of change in society? Theater director Choi Won-seok pondered this question before writing “Metamorphosis” in 2009. Some people ride the tides, while others swim against the current or just evade the turmoil. There is no right or wrong answer. It is only a matter of choice, says the director. “Byeontae,” a homonym for a pervert, is the play’s title in Korean. The poster, showing half-naked body of an actress, gives an impression that the play is R-rated or contai
Dec. 8, 2014
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’Tis the season for ‘Nutcracker’
A year-end tradition continues as Tchaikovsky’s ballet “Nutcracker,” Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 “Choral” and other seasonal favorites all return to Seoul’s cultural scene. From Seoul Arts Center in the south to the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in the north, the always-popular returning classics take up a large part of the lineup, while some new productions add a spice of diversity.Here’s a guide to the music and performing arts scene this festive season, including seasonal favorites as
Dec. 7, 2014
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Seoul Philharmonic CEO claims artistic director behind accusations
Park Hyun-jung, CEO of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, who faces demands for her resignation from employees accusing her of sexual harassment and arbitrary personnel management, said Friday that artistic director Chung Myung-whun may have been behind the recent accusations against her.She also refused to step down and vowed to cooperate with investigations into the complaints.“I am willing to cooperate with the national auditing agency, prosecutors or anyone in investigating this case,” she sa
Dec. 5, 2014
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Work on Rome subway digs up ancient farm, tools
ROME (AP) ― Archaeologists have unearthed an ancient commercial farm in the heart of modern Rome, taking advantage of subway construction to explore deeply in urban settings. They worked some 20 meters down near St. John in Lateran Basilica. Today’s Rome rests upon medieval layers and, under those, more ancient strata of life. Rossella Rea, the dig’s leader and a culture ministry official, said Wednesday that archaeologists discovered a first-century agricultural business, the closest to Rome’s
Dec. 4, 2014
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Outdoor play returns to indoor theater
During the fall harvest season and in the first month of the lunar year in Korea, people used to gather at their village square and watch art puppet dances, mask dances or acrobatic shows, all to the beats of various traditional percussion instruments. Some would dance to the music and beat instruments in time with energizing refrains, “Ul-ssi-gu!” or “Ul-ssu!” to interact with the performers in the madangnori, a traditional outdoor performance. “Simcheongjeon,” a famous classical story about fi
Dec. 4, 2014
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‘Notre-Dame de Paris’ readies for revival
The cast of French musical “Notre-Dame de Paris” showcases the show’s famous numbers during a press conference in Seoul on Monday. (Mast Entertainment)Nine years after the original French production of the musical “Notre-Dame de Paris” closed its wildly successful run in Paris, the show’s creators have united for a grand revival. And Korean fans will be the first to watch it. In Gyeongju, a small, unassuming Korean town in North Gyeongsang Province known for its long history, director Gilles Mah
Dec. 3, 2014
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Interior designer creates ‘calm’ home environments for autistic kids
MINNEAPOLIS ― A.J. Paron-Wildes’ home, a walk-out rambler in suburban Oak Park Heights, Minnesota, is a study in calm ― all clean, uncluttered spaces and earthy, neutral hues that echo the autumn leaves framing the view of the St. Croix River. On an autumn afternoon, daughter Eva, 6, is having an after-school snack, while son Devin, 19, sketches intently, seated at the studio desk in his orderly bedroom.This peaceful environment is entirely by design. When you have an autistic child, calm is a p
Dec. 3, 2014
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The motor home life: Should you go down that road?
Blame wet feet.It took several days of rain on a Colorado family vacation to move Julianne Vanden Wyngaard from tent camper to motor home owner.“I thought when cooking outside one wet evening, please get me off the ground,” says the carillonneur and Grand Valley State University faculty member from Grand Rapids, Michigan.The Vanden Wyngaards started with a 24-foot motor home, which they used for camping. Some 10 years ago, anticipating semiretirement and a chance to be snowbirds, they took the p
Dec. 3, 2014
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Opera ‘Eugene Onegin’ to be performed as concert
In Seoul’s small but vibrant operatic scene, opera is virtually synonymous with a thrilling drama, spectacle and over-the-top singing. In surveys, “Carmen,” “La Traviata” or “Aida” come out as some of Koreans’ all-time favorites. To add the spice of diversity to the scene, Seoul Arts Center is offering local fans a chance to uncover a hidden gem in the operatic repertory ― one that is loved by fans around the world, but is rarely performed in Korea. For just one night on Dec. 6, it will present
Dec. 2, 2014
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‘Comfort women’ stories rekindled on stage
“Bongsunhwa (Garden Balsam)” is not being staged to criticize the Japanese people because they were also victims of the war. It artistically accuses the Japanese government of refusing to offer a heartfelt apology for its imperialistic deeds, says its artistic director Kim Hye-ryun.The play, which deals with the issue of victims of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery, euphemistically called “comfort women,” will be restaged in Korea this month. Premiered here last year, “Bongsunhwa” received wide acc
Dec. 1, 2014
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Webtoon artists to present works through Huffington Post
Korea’s leading Web-comics writers have joined forces in their push to go global. They are set to publish their works, translated into English, through the Huffington Post, a major U.S. online media outlet, sometime next year, local news reports said Monday. “We’re currently in talks with the Huffington Post regarding what to publish and how to publish (it),” Yonhap cited Lee Seong-wook, the representative of Toonion, as saying. He said the first batch of the works will likely be available in th
Dec. 1, 2014
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Festivals Calendar - December 2014
The following are the major cultural and tourist festivals to be held in South Korea in December. * Seoul Independent Film FestivalWhen: Nov. 27-Dec. 5Where: CGV Apgujeong and Indie Space theaters in SeoulThe Seoul Independent Film Festival (SIFF) is an annual competitive independent film festival dedicated to showcasing films of all genres and promoting films that challenge traditional mindsets and provide new perspectives. A total of 46 films are up for competition during the nine-day fes
Nov. 30, 2014
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Calendar
FestivalsThe New Year Festival, Busan: This festival greets the first sunrise of the New Year on Haeundae Beach and at Yongdusan Park, two popular tourist sites. Festival-goers will bid farewell to 2014 at a bell-tolling event at Yongdusan Park from 11 p.m. on Dec. 31 to 12:30 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2015. The event will resume with the sunrise on Haeundae Beach at 6:40 a.m. Small and large events such as fireworks, concerts and other entertainment will add to the festive mood. For more information, vis
Nov. 28, 2014
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‘Nongak’ added to UNESCO heritage list
Korean farmers’ traditional folk dance and music “nongak” has been recognized by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity, the Korean government said Thursday. It is Korea’s 17th item to be inscribed on the international heritage list, following the addition in December last year of “gimjang,” the culture of making and sharing kimchi. Meeting in Paris, representatives of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage decided to add th
Nov. 28, 2014