Theater

A scene from “Jack the Ripper.” (mmusical company)“Jack the Ripper”: With a story based on the unsolved murder case in London in 1888, this popular musical is on its third run in Seoul. The star-studded cast includes Ahn Jae-wook, Lee Ji-hoon, Eom Gi-jun and Super Junior’s Seong-min in the role of Daniel, Shin Seong-woo and Lee Geon-myeong for the role of Jack and Yu Jun-sang for the role of Ander

July 8, 2011

Buddy Holly tribute a real ‘Rave’

Various Artists“Rave On”FantasyPaul McCartney may be getting a little long in the tooth, but he steals the show from younger artists on “Rave On,” a new Buddy Holly tribute record.Using a distorted vocal effect that makes him sound like a mixture between Steven Tyler and Howlin’ Wolf, McCartney and his band tear through “It’s So Easy” with a fervor that singers half his age would have a hard time

July 8, 2011

Beyonce still impressive

Beyonce“4” Columbia“Run the World (Girls),” the first single from Beyonce’s fourth solo album, “4,” has all the hallmarks of a signature No. 1 Beyonce smash ― a bombastic, larger-than-life sound, a call-and-response hook, a heavy dose of girl power and a fierce drumbeat.Surprisingly, though, it landed with a thud on radio, and the buzz around “4” hasn’t been encouraging ― there’s even talk that th

July 8, 2011

Selena Gomez generic on 3rd album

Selena Gomez & the Scene“When the Sun Goes Down”Hollywood RecordsThere comes a point when a Disney or Nickelodeon star tries to make the transition to official recording artist. This is Selena Gomez’s moment.Musically speaking, Gomez is no Miley Cyrus or Vanessa Hudgens ― that’s because she’s better. She’s got a decent voice, and showcased that on last year’s “A Year Without Rain,” a pop ballad th

July 8, 2011

From baseball field to musical stage

Yoon Hyun-min (Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald)Baseball player-turned-actor takes main role in musical ‘Spring Awakening’For someone who used to swing a bat for 11 years, Yoon Hyun-min seemed surprisingly soft and delicate. The image of Melchior, the character he plays in the musical “Spring Awakening” which started its second round here in June, came out as he talked. “If the first Melchior was ra

July 7, 2011

Chang Kiha & the Faces let listeners find own answers

Rock band aims to keep making indie music, plans Japan tour in fallWhile idol-centered K-pop has been heavily covered by the media, the Korean indie scene has received relatively little attention. Seeking diversity of Korean music, The Korea Herald is running a series of interviews shedding light on the Korean scene. This is the third installment of the series. ― Ed.Chang Kiha & the Faces, a five-

July 6, 2011

Kolleen Park returns to the theater

Music director-TV celeb to show her acting talent for first time in 20 years with musical ‘Next to Normal’It was difficult to recall charismatic conductor Kolleen Park seeing her on a musical stage ― looking somewhat frail and vulnerable, her voice even trembled slightly as she led the song “You don’t know” in front of the press on Monday at Doosan Art Center in Yeonji-dong, central Seoul. Park, a

July 5, 2011

Lady Gaga in another quirky outfit

Pop star Lady Gaga appeared on Japanese talk show “Room of Tetsuko” wearing yet another unique outfit called “costume onion,” according a report from Oricon.co.jp. The singer shocked the Japanese interviewer Tetsuko with a round black dress resembling an onion and a “reverse vortex” hairstyle measuring 50 centimeters high. She also sported her iconic 40 centimeter high-heeled shoes. Gaga offered h

July 5, 2011

Yoon promises continued support for Korean traditional music

Yoon Young-dal, CEO of Crown-Haitai Confectionary, received the 20th Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award on Monday at the Shilla Hotel’s Dynasty Hall in central Seoul. The foundation recognized Yoon’s contributions to developing and promoting the Korean traditional music “gugak” worldwide and his efforts to discover and foster young gugak musicians. “Since sometime ago, we have tended to

July 4, 2011

Museum shows royal books returned from France

  Five significant copies among 297 returned Uigwe shown to mediaThe National Museum of Korea on Monday revealed five significant copies of the total of 297 retrieved ancient royal books, known as “Uigwe,” to the media for the first time since their return from France earlier this year.Korea retrieved the royal documents ― which contain both text and hand-drawn illustrations of significant royal r

July 4, 2011

Barenboim to lead peace concert at Imjingak

Israeli conductor Daniel Barenboim will lead his youth orchestra, consisting of artists from the Middle East including Israelis and Palestinians, to perform at Imjingak near the demilitarized zone to promote peace on the Korean peninsula.The concert will be held on Aug. 15, Liberation Day in Korea, the organizer said.Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, which the conductor formed in 199

July 3, 2011

Album cover caught for copyright issues

 Playboy magazine has claimed trademark infringement on YG Entertainment’s popular duo “GD&TOP” album. 　 YG Entertainment has confirmed on their official website that GD&TOP’s first album’s cover was designed based on the magazine’s rabbit logo and took into account Playboy’s demands to stop using the trademark.YG also said that they will discontinue the production of the original album and create

July 3, 2011

Summer music fests around the corner

Top music acts will perform at summer music festivals at major amusement parks in late July and early August. Summer Wave Festival will be held at Everland in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on July 22-23.Will.i.am., the talented producer and member of The Black Eyed Peas, will be performing a DJ set, while Korean American hip-hop rapper Tiger JK, UV and 2PM will also take to the stage.The performances

July 3, 2011

Calendar

Exhibitions“Pilgrim”: Hollywood actor Richard Gere is holding a photo exhibition in Seoul. The show is composed of 64 photographs taken by the actor, capturing Tibet, its people and community, as well as 24 photos by 24 artists including Annie Leibovitz, Jerry Uelsmann and Steve Meisel. Gere has established and is running The Gere Foundation to aid those suffering because of wars and natural disas

July 1, 2011

eye-like

Peyroux explores rootsier sound Madeleine Peyroux“Standing on the Rooftop’’ Emarcy/DeccaMadeleine Peyroux impressed on her 1996 debut “Dreamland,” singing early jazz and blues standards with a tone uncannily reminiscent of Billie Holiday, re-emerged as an innovative interpreter of more contemporary fare by Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and others on 2004’s best-selling “Careless Love” and established h

July 1, 2011

Koreans win five prizes in Tchaikovsky competition

MOSCOW ― South Korean artists clinched five prizes, including two top vocal prizes, in one of the world’s most prestigious classical music competitions.Bass Park Jong-min, 24, and soprano Seo Sun-young, 27, of Korea won first prizes in the male and female solo vocal categories of the 14th International Tchaikovsky Competition that closed here on Thursday.In the two-week-long contest, Korea’s risin

July 1, 2011

Girl’s Generation charms French

K-Pop enthusiasts in France surprised many people in Korea as they queued for hours to see the SM Town concert. Now they are gathering online to talk about the stars. The French fan site “Sweety Nine Forum” (snsd.frenchboard.com) has a fan base ranging from the 12 to 26-years-old, but what they share in common is the Girl’s Generation. They talk about what they like about the girl group and list c

July 1, 2011

Chung makes a sweep of French cultural honors

The French Ministry of Culture and Communication conferred the country’s top French cultural order “Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters” on Maestro conductor and pianist Chung Myung-whun Wednesday, making him a recipient of all three French cultural honors.The medal is the highest honor among the three “Order of Arts and Letters,” awarded to an artist who has made significant contribution t

June 30, 2011