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

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

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

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

Cho Seung-woo is to return as the iconic rock star character Hedwig in the rock musical “Hedwig and the Angry Inch.” According to production company Shownote, Cho, Oh Man-seok, Lee Kyu-hyeong, Ko Eun-sung and Ren from boy band Newest will take the title role in the 13th run of “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” in South Korea. The musical, written by Stephen Trask and John Cameron Mitchell, tells the story of a genderqueer rock singer from East Germany. The singer, Hedwig, lea

Sound immersive play “In This Garden We Loved” began its run at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, complete with 60 speakers installed across the theater. The play is the third edition of the Sejong Center’s Contemporary S series project that aims to present innovative, original show productions. It is the first time that French writer Pascal Quignard’s play “Dans Ce Jardin Qu’On Aimait” (“In This Garden We Loved”) is bei

Sejongdaero, one of the best known streets in Seoul and a main thoroughfare of downtown Seoul, is ready to welcome pedestrians.  Named after King Sejong (1397-1450) of the Joseon era, who led the invention of Hanguel, the writing system for the Korean language, the broad avenue runs from the southern end of Gwanghwamun Plaza, passes the city gate Sungnyemun and continues to Seoul Station.  In May, the construction of Sejongdaero Forest Road was completed, ending months of constructio

Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, drinking at home has become the new norm. It is nearly impossible to grab a drink after work with friends in the Seoul city area, with drinking and dining establishments only allowed to operate until 10 p.m. and nonessential gatherings of five or more people banned. Rather than just quenching the immediate thirst with beer from a supermarket or reaching for the same old green bottle of soju, more people -- not just alcohol aficionados -- are joining in on t

“Beetlejuice” tells a fun, humorous and exciting story about loneliness and death, said actor Yu Jun-sang who plays the eponymous character in the Korean-language version of the musical. Yu, who deftly moves between the small screen, the silver screen and the stage, plays the iconic Beetlejuice character, a green haired ghost who has been in existence for 9.8 billion years and is obsessed with life. Wishing to befriend a couple who recently became ghosts in an accidental death, h

Concert pianist Son Yeol-eum will hold a recital dedicated to medical staff serving on the COVID-19 front lines at the Myeong-dong Cathedral on Monday. The cathedral under the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul invited Son, the joint second prize winner at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2011, to perform. The concert, held in support of those hit by the pandemic, will be attended by some 150 health care workers at COVID-19 facilities. “I wish to deliver the warmest comfo

Novus String Quartet, a leading chamber music act, is set for a groundbreaking project, performing the complete cycle of Shostakovich’s 15 string quartets. The chamber music act -- consisting of violinists Kim Jae-young and Kim Young-uk, violist Kim Kyu-hyun and cellist Lee Won-hae -- will perform the 15 string quartets written by the Russian musician Shostakovich (1906-1975), on four consecutive days of June 16-19 at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. “We were reckless,&rdq

Artists across the musical spectrum, including Wendy of Red Velvet, Taeil of NCT, Leenalchi and Han Young-ae, are honoring singer Kim Min-ki with covers of his best-known song “Morning Dew” and more. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the release of “Morning Dew” that was written, composed and sung by Kim, the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation has created an 18-track album dedicated to the singer-songwriter. The iconic song has come to be closely associated with stude

Korean dance is more than just practicing techniques. It is about connecting the energy of people, according to Kim Mae-ja, master of changmu. Kim, 78, is the founder and a leading figure of changmu, contemporary dance based on traditional Korean dance. Based on tradition, she created a new school of dance which strives to embrace both tradition and innovation. She is often referred to as the Isadora Duncan of Korea. Kim’s life will be brought to the stage in the upcoming dance show &l

Harmonicist Park Jong-seong, 36, will go on the stage with the Prime Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of conductor Baek Yoon-hak at the Gangdong Arts Center in eastern Seoul on June 13. Park has won awards with his harmonica at international competitions in Japan, China and Germany. The musician has also released three solo albums so far. “There have been occasions where I was invited to orchestral performances to play one or two works. But it is the first time to invite an orche

The 2021 Ballet Festival Korea will take place at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul from June 15 to 30, presenting shows that reflect the changing times under the theme of “Blended Experiences and Emotions.” Eleven dance troupes from Korea are participating this year, putting on a variety of ballet performances from classic works to experimental contemporary ballet movements.  “(After the festival) we will work on staging these shows outside of Seoul,” Park