Fly to the Sky single hits No.1, Brian cries

Fly to the Sky’s Brian Joo said Tuesday that he cried when he heard that their first single in five years hit No. 1 on the charts.“I prayed, then cried as soon as I got up and heard the news,” Joo said during the showcase for their ninth album, “CONTINUUM,” at Olympic Park in southeastern Seoul. Fly to the Sky (H2media)The veteran duo’s latest single “You You You” topped nine music charts within an hour of its release. The recent comeback marks the first time that the two members have reunited s

May 21, 2014

Infinite marks its return with showcases in East Asia

K-pop boy band Infinite released its new EP album “Season 2,” kicking off with a showcase in Tokyo on Monday.According to Infinite’s management company, Woollim Entertainment, the six members came to the stage for　the “Infinite 1.2.3 Showcase” to mark the release of their second EP after a three-year hiatus.(Woollim Entertainment)“Our large-scale comeback showcase in South Korea, Taiwan and Japan successfully kicked off in Tokyo,” a management company official said.The showcase began at 6:30 p.m

May 21, 2014

Paul McCartney‘s Seoul concert likely to be canceled

 Pop legend Paul McCartney’s first concert in Korea may be called off due to health problems, according to news reports Wednesday.(Yonhap)“McCartney’s condition is not getting better as was expected. The concert may be canceled,” Yonhap quoted an unnamed concert management company’s official as saying. The 71-year-old Beatles guitarist had been schedule to perform next Wednesday at the 20th Hyundai Card Super Concert in Seoul. The company will make a decision later in the day whether to change t

PerformanceMay 21, 2014

[Newsmaker] K-pop legend Seo Taiji to return

K-pop legend Seo Taiji will be making a comeback to the local music scene with a new album and a series of concerts after signing with concert organizer Show21, an affiliate of entertainment agency Wellmade Yedang.Seo is slated to release his ninth studio album this fall and team up with Wellmade Yedang to organize a nationwide concert tour, beginning with a performance in Seoul, the entertainment agency said Monday. Seo Taiji Company ― known for successfully launching large-scale music events i

PerformanceMay 20, 2014

Bowing photography exhibition looks at mechanics of tradition

Westerners face a lot of unfamiliar forms of etiquette when they come to Korea, but the most familiar, and perhaps the hardest to get used to, is the subject of a new exhibition in Gwangju.Martyn Thompson’s collection of photographs and sculptures looks at the Korean bow, depicting it in stages to expose the details of the action.The photographs show figures performing traditional full bows in stages, each stage superimposed on top of the others. The overall effect gives the impression of a mech

Expat LivingMay 20, 2014

‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ gets feminine, physical take

Summer is slowly slipping across the city, and the Seoul Shakespeare Company’s sultry take on “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is ready to usher her in.In the well-known tale, four amorous young Athenians free themselves from the stale city streets and head for the forest in pursuit of true love. But they encounter much more than their hearts originally desired as they enter the realm of the fairies in this sexy and subversive production directed by Seoul National University drama professor Raymond S

Expat LivingMay 20, 2014

Nanny estate? Expat starts cheese-making goat farm

With a surging interest in artisan food, a desire for the simple life and a common hankering for hard-to-get foods from home, a few expats here might daydream about running a farm. For most, it stays that way.But former university teacher Doug Huffer took the plunge. Now he spends his days cutting growth from nearby hedges and riverbanks to feed to Stella, Sarah and Bianca and the rest of his small milk herd.The goats’ Italian names are a hint at the farm’s origins. Huffer’s wife went to school

Expat LivingMay 20, 2014

A rare look at North Korean architecture

In Pyongyang, there are none of the narrow alleys that are commonly found in old cities. Instead, streets are up to 50 meters wide, lined with buildings with perfect symmetry. They are among major features of socialist architecture. Architecture in North Korea is little known to the world. North Korean architects have been out of the spotlight, as they are not considered as individual, independent artists, but workers who follow “Kim Jong-il’s Architectural Theory,” a set of architecture guideli

Arts & DesignMay 20, 2014

‘Madam Ong’ recast as active independent woman

The National Changguek Theater of Korea is presenting “Madame Ong” next month as the third performance of its seven-part changgeuk series in an effort to bring the beauty and uniqueness of traditional Korean performance to the public. Changgeuk is a form of Korean traditional opera, performed as a play in pansori (Korean folk narrative) style. While pansori is performed by a solo singer, changgeuk involves many actors and vocalists, percussion music, and engaging plotlines to fit large theaters

PerformanceMay 20, 2014

Carell surprise, British biopic lead race for Cannes gold

CANNES, France (AFP) ― A Hollywood wrestling drama, a British biopic of an iconic artist and an intimate Turkish look at a troubled marriage led the pack on Tuesday for the top prize at Cannes. Halfway through the competition, critics cheered for a few stand-out pictures among 18 contenders vying for the coveted Palme d’Or in what they called a surprise-filled year at the world’s premier film festival. An international critics’ poll in British film magazine Screen had Mike Leigh’s “Mr. Turner” a

FilmMay 20, 2014

Once ignored, iron Buddha gets new status

The National Museum of Korea’s revamped Unified Silla section, which opens to the public Tuesday, displays an undisputed new star: a larger-than-life Buddha statue made of cast iron. Placed in a spacious room right in the middle of the hall, the statue overwhelms visitors with its mystic beauty and half-smile. The exquisiteness of this artifact, which dates back to the late eighth or early ninth century, however, went unnoticed until recently.  Iron seated Buddha (National Museum of Korea)“This

CultureMay 20, 2014

Hyundai City Break, Pentaport announce first-string lineups

The newly inaugurated Hyundai Card City Break music festival has brought out the big guns with the announcement on Tuesday of its first-string lineup that includes headline acts Maroon 5 and Psy. The upcoming rock fest will mark Maroon 5’s third performance in Korea and “Gangnam Style” phenom Psy’s first local performance since his extravagant four-day Christmas concert series last year. Psy (Hyundai Card)Maroon 5 (Hyundai Card)In only its second year, competing against a number of the country’s

May 20, 2014

Dress styles of Korean actresses heat Cannes

Korean actresses attending the Cannes Film Festival are drawing the media spotlight for their fashion styles, from earrings to dresses. Jeon Do-yeon, 41, the first Korean to serve as a jury member at the 67th international film festival, grabbed the eyes of global fans with a “clever” dress style. At a photo call held for the members of the jury last week, Jeon wore a Chanel white lace dress with unbalanced earrings. Her light makeup added to the style of loveliness and innocence. (OSEN)Later in

May 20, 2014

Beast, Infinite to compete in futsal matches

The MBC TV show “Idol’s Futsal Championship” will feature a host of K-pop boy bands including Beast, Infinite and Got7, according to news reports. On the TV program, specially launched in the run-up to the Brazil World Cup, the idol stars will play futsal, a fast-paced soccer game played on a smaller field. The lineup includes three members from Beast, Yoon Doo-joon, Lee Gi-kwang and Yoseop, and three from Infinite, Dongwoo, Woohyun and Hoya, as well as the boy bands BTOB and VIXX. (Captured fro

May 20, 2014

2PM’s Wooyoung designs his own Vogue shoots

Wooyoung, a member of K-pop idol boy band 2PM, planned and modeled for Vogue Girl’s June edition.Wooyoung designed the photo shoots for the fashion magazine to express his maturity rather than his typical image as Adonis. The photos in the magazine were shot with overcast weather, a car with shattered windows, and containers in the background.The singer participated in all stages of the magazine project, suggesting concepts and giving modeling ideas to the staff.“I realized that reflecting my id

May 20, 2014

Kara Project unveils 7th member Yuji

DSP Media, K-pop girl group Kara’s management agency, unveiled Yuji as the last contestant to join “Kara Project” on Tuesday. “Kara Project” is a joint scheme initiated by MBC Music and DSP Media to choose members to join Kara among seven trainees at the company after two members -- Kang Ji-young and Jung Nicole -- left the group for personal reasons. Kara currently has three members -- Goo Ha-ra, Han Seung-yeon and Park Gyu-ri. Yuji is the latest addition to six other would-be Kara members -- S

May 20, 2014

Kwon Sang-woo to star SBS TV show ‘Seduction’

Actor Kwon Sang-woo will star a new SBS TV drama, temporarily titled “Seduction” (Yuhok in Korean), the TV station confirmed on Tuesday. The show will air after the conclusion of “Doctor Stranger.” The exact date of airing is not specified yet. Actress Lee Mi-yeon is considering SBS TV’s offer to costar the show with Kwon.  Actor Kwon Sang-woo (Cosmopolitan, TEARS)“Seduction” is a romantic melodrama about financially embattled husband Cha Seok-hoon (Kwon), a naïve man from a rural village in Gan

May 20, 2014

Psy, Maroon 5 to hit stage together

This summer, K-pop sensation Psy and American pop rock band Maroon 5, who once vied for the top spot on Billboard chart, confirmed that they would appear in the rock festival Hyundai Card Citybreak 2014 slated for Aug. 9-10 in Seoul. The annual rock festival, launched last year, will feature over 30 artists ranging from internationally renowned bands to popular local musicians on three big stages at the Seoul World Cup Stadium. The first lineup, disclosed Tuesday, includes world-famous Maroon 5,

May 20, 2014