HIGHLIGHTS

Exhibitions

“Isabelle Huppert: Woman of Many Faces”: The photo exhibition shows the lesser known sides of Isabelle Huppert, France’s star actress. It features more than 110 portrait photos of the actress taken by around 70 photographers including Henri Cartier Bresson, Robert Doisneau, Chun Kyung-woo and filmmaker Ronald Chammah, Huppert’s husband. The touring show was held in seven cities including Paris, Madrid and Tokyo. The exhibition begins on Sunday and runs through Aug. 13 at The Museum of Photography, Seoul, in Bangi-dong, eastern Seoul. Tickets range from 2,000 won to 8,000 won. For more information, call (02) 418-1315 or visit www.photomuseum.or.kr. 

“Aggregation 2007-2011”: Chun Kwang Young, one of the best-selling South Korean artists, is holding a solo exhibition at Gallery Hyundai Gangnam Space in Sinsa-dong, southern Seoul. He will be showcasing his signature series, “Aggregation,” which he begun in the 1990s. He used pages from old books and numerous triangular Styrofoam blocks to create three dimensional artworks, even on canvas. The exhibition runs from June 1 to June 30. For more information, call (02) 519-0800 or visit www.galleryhyundai.com.

“Korean Rhapsody: A Montage of History and Memory”: Korea’s restless modern history unfolds at Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art in Hannam-dong, southern Seoul, in the form of paintings, photographs, installations and media works. The exhibition displays 80 historical documents and artworks that reflect crucial moments in Korea’s painful but dynamic past. While staying within the theme, the exhibits are of very high quality, created by renowned local and foreign artists. The exhibition runs until June 5. Tickets range from 4,000 won to 7,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2014-6900 or visit www.leeum.org.

“Senile Lines”: Francois Morellet, known as the master of geometrical abstract art, is holding his 456th solo exhibition at Gallery Hyundai in Sagan-dong, central Seoul. He is one of the most spotlighted artists in France right now. The Louvre Museum in Paris commissioned Morellet to make a permanent installation work for the museum last year and Centre Georges Pompidou is holding his retrospective exhibition. The exhibition runs through June 19. For more information, call (02) 2287-3500 or visit www.galleryhyundai.co.kr.

“Dreams Come True: The Art of Disney’s Classic Fairy Tales”: Organized by the Walt Disney Animation Research Library, the exhibition offers more than 600 drawings, original animations, concept artworks, figures, props and music notes from Walt Disney. The exhibition is divided into nine parts -- “Three Little Pigs,” “The Ugly Duckling,” “Mickey and the Beanstalk,” “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” “Cinderella,” “Sleeping Beauty,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Princess and the Frog” and “Tangled.” It runs through Sept. 25 at Seoul Arts Center’s Hangaram Design Museum in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul. For details, visit www.DCTexhibition.com. 


Pop Music

“Last Night Fever: We Will Be Back”: Rock band Oh Ji-eun and the Wolves has announced that it will temporarily stop band activities and hold its last concert on May 29 at the KT&G Sangsang Madang in Hongdae area in Seoul. Sharing emotions with straight forward guitar-pop sounds and realistic and humorous lyrics, the band has been actively performing for the past nine months after the formation. The band held two solo concerts, participated in four music festivals and radio music programs. For more information, visit shop.mintpaper.com.

“Linkin Park Live in Seoul”: U.S. rock band Linkin Park, whose concerts in Korea completely sold out in 2003 and 2007, are to visit again to hold a live concert at the Olympic Park Gymnastics Stadium on Sept. 8 at 8 p.m. Ticketing opened on May 19 at ticket.interpark.com. With record-breaking sales of its debut album “Hybrid Theory” in 2000, the band’s musical style has kept evolving over the past 10 years. The upcoming concert will promote 2010 album “A Thousand Suns.” Tickets range from 99,000 won to 110,000 won. For more information, call (02) 3141-3488.

“Ron Carter: Golden Striker Trio Live in Seoul”: Jazz bassist Ron Carter, pianist Mulgrew Miller and guitarist Russell Malone will hold a trio show at Yonsei University’s Concert Hall on June 21 at 8 p.m. The Golden Striker Trio, set up in 2003, released two albums. Without any drums, their jazz melodies through guitar, piano and bass were praised as masterful and the team received enthusiastic response from the audience at the 2007 Carnergie Hall concert. Ron Carter has participated in more than 3,500 recordings so far. The concert of the Golden Striker Trio will be its first in Korea. Tickets range from 88,000 won to 132,000 won. For more information, call (02) 3143-5155.

“2011 Jisan Valley Rock Festival”: The nation’s largest-scale festival takes place from July 29 to July 31 at the Jisan Forest Resort in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. The rock festival began in 2009 and reached 70,000 revelers in 2010. The lineup announced so far includes Suede, The Chemical Brothers, Arctic Monkeys, Incubus, Deli Spice, Jaurim, and 10 cm. The third-phase online ticket purchase, which offers a 10 percent discount, is currently open at valleyrockfestival.mnet.com. One-day passes are 110,000 won and three-day passes 220,000 won, if purchased on-the-spot. A third line-up announcement will be made in the last week of May, organizer Mnet said. For more information, visit valleyrockfestival.mnet.com.


Theater

“Midsummer”: Written and directed by David Greig, the two-person play “Midsummer” is about Helena, a successful divorce lawyer, and Bob, a gang member, who accidently has a one night stand. The original version premiered at the Traverse Theater in Edinburgh in 2008 and was favorably reviewed by critics and theatergoers. Actress Ye Ji-won stars as Helena and veteran musical stars Suh Beom-seok and Lee Seok-jun share the role as Bob. “Midsummer” runs until June 12 at Seoul Arts Center in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul. For more information, call 1588-5212 or visit www.od10years.com.

“Please Look After Mom”: The hit novel “Please Look After Mom” by Shin Kyung-sook is turned into a musical. Starring well-known actress Kim Seong-nyeo as the mother, the musical tells a heartbreaking story about a family searching for their lost mother. The musical runs through June 19 at Chungmu Art Hall in Sindang-dong, central Seoul. Tickets range from 30,000 won to 90,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2230-6601.

“Jekyll & Hyde”: Based on the novel “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson, the musical “Jekyll & Hyde” runs through August at Charlotte Theater in Jamsil-dong, southern Seoul. It is one of the most popular musicals in Seoul which born many musical stars like Cho Seung-woo. Tickets range from 50,000 won to 130,000 won. For more information call 1644-0078.

“Audition”: The musical portrays the friendship, love and hope of an unknown rock band. The whole show is like a live concert with the band playing all the music. The musical is steadily popular since its premiere in 2007 and a decision was made earlier this year to turn it into a movie. Moon Hee-jun, former leader of the popular 90’s K-pop group H.O.T., plays Jun-cheol, the band’s leader. The musical runs through July 24 at Art One Theater in Daehangno, central Seoul. Tickets range from 40,000 won to 50,000 won. For more information, call (02) 762-0010 or visit www.e-eda.com.

“Finding Kim Jong-wook”: The play tells a bubbly story about a girl who seeks her first love, who she met during a trip to India seven years ago, and a guy who opens a first-love search company after getting fired from his job. Knowing just which buttons to push to make viewers reminisce about their own first loves, the musical soon became something of an archetype for Korean romantic comedy. It is staged as an open run at Daehangno Art Madang in Hyehwa-dong, central Seoul. For more information, call (02) 501-7888.

Festival

“2011 Haeundae Sand Festival”: The festival will take place at Busan’s extremely popular summer vacation spot Haeundae Beach from June 3-6. One of the highlights of the festival is the hot sand bath. Visitors will be buried in sand from head to toe. Other events include a beach volleyball competition, an exhibition of different types of sand from around the world and a marathon race. At night, there will be fireworks, concerts and other entertainment events. Popular tourist destinations such as the Jagalchi Market, Gwangalli and Taejongdae are all located nearby. For more information, visit sandfestival.haeundae.go.kr.

“Muju Firefly Festival”: The fireflies of Muju in North Jeolla Province are considered so special to Koreans that they have been designated as one of Korea’s natural monuments. The Muju Firefly Festival will be held from June 3-11 in Muju County. The nighttime fireflies exploration event, which starts at 8 p.m., is the most popular. There are other hands-on events to help visitors experience the fireflies’ living environment, such as trout fishing and rafting. For more information, visit firefly.or.kr.

“Gangneung Danoje Festival”: The Gangneung festival was designated a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2005. The festival this year will be held through June 9 in Gangneung in Gangwon Province. Events include rituals such as Yeongsinje, a deity-greeting ritual. Folk performances, the Korean traditional wrestling called ssireum, swing riding and tug-of-war competitions will be offered after the rituals. There will be also colorful programs including watching a traditional wedding ceremony, making surichui rice cake, washing hair in water infused with sweet flags (calamus), drinking alcohol offered for deities and fireworks. For detailed programs, visit www.danofestival.or.kr or call (033) 641-1593.

“Incheon Bupyeong Pungmul Festival”: The traditional music festival in Bupyeong, Incheon, will offer farmers’ music (pungmul) performances as well as performances by invited groups from other Asian countries. One of the noticeable events will be a massive game of tug-of-war with a 100-meter-long rope. Other events include a pungmul competition. The festival will run through May 29. For more information, call (032) 509-7515~7 or visit bpf.or.kr.

Dance

“The 1st Ballet Festival Korea”: Korea’s representative ballet troupes gathered together to better promote the dance in the country. Korea National Ballet will open the festival with “Swan Lake” on June 12 at Seoul Arts Center’s Opera Theater and 11 more performances by ballet troupes such as Seoul Ballet Theater, Universal Ballet Theater and Gwangju City Ballet will follow. The festival runs from June 12 to 28 at venues nationwide. For more information, call (02) 587-6181 or visit www.kballet.org. 

“2011 International Modern Dance Festival”: Organized by the Contemporary Dance Association of Korea, the 30th International Modern Dance Festival is held under the theme “Beauty Beyond Body.” 24 dance teams from seven different countries will showcase their works, including some which minors are not allowed to see. The dance festival runs until Sunday at Korea Performing Arts Center, Noel Small Theater and Marronnier Park TTL Open Stage, all in Daehangro, central Seoul. For more information, visit www.modafe.org.

“To My Mother”: Quattrostation, the only dance troupe in Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, holds a performance at Tongyeong Community Center until Sunday. Dancers from Korea, Germany and Taiwan will showcase differently interpreted dances inspired from German scriptwriter Bertolt Brecht’s poem “To my mother.” Tickets range from 5,000 won to 10,000 won. For more information, email quattrostation@gmail.com

“Varekai”: Canadian troupe Cirque du Soleil peforms “Varekai” until Sunday at the tent of the Big Top Theater in Jamsil Sports Complex, southern Seoul. The show is about a story of Icarus from Greek mythology. Tickets range from 60,000 won to 220,000 won. The 220,000-won “Tapis Rouge” ticket includes a VIP lounge service and souvenirs such as a program and CD. For more information, call (02) 541-6235 or visit www.varekai.co.kr.

“This is Modern 2”: Universal Ballet will present a wide range of modern ballet including legendary choreographer Jiri Kylian’s “Petite Mort” and “Sechs Tanze” and Korean choreographer Hue Young-soon’s “This is Your Life.” The show will run from June 9 to 12 at Universal Art Center in Neung-dong, eastern Seoul. Tickets range from 10,000 won to 70,000 won. For more information, call 070-7124-1737 or visit www.uac.co.kr. 

Classical Music

“2011 Korea Opera Festival”: The Korea Opera Festival’s focus in 2011 will be to well present two original Korean operas produced by local opera companies, as production skills of Korean opera companies have made great progress in recent years, the organizers of the festival said. With five opera companies participating in the event, the Second Korea Opera Festival will kick off on June 23 and run through July 24 at the Seoul Arts Center’s Opera Theater and Towel Theater. Two original Korean operas “Nongae” and “When the Buckwheat Blooms” will be showcased. The other operas to be staged include “I Puritani” by the Gloria Opera Company, “Tosca” by the Beseto Opera Company and “Siegfried” for children by the KNO. Tickets for five operas during the Korea Opera Festival will range from 10,000 won to 150,000 won. For more information, call (02) 586-5282.

“Masaaki Suzuki & Bachsolisten Seoul”: Japanese Bach maestro Massaki Suzuki will lead rising Korean baroque ensemble Bachsolisten Seoul to perform Bach’s most sublime choral work Mass in b minor. The ensemble originally started with classical singers but recently added orchestral members for the upcoming concert. Also, nine instrumental performers from the Bach Collegium Japan will collaborate. The concert will be held on June 5 at the LG Arts Center. Tickets range from 20,000 won to 80,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2005-0114 or visit www.lgart.com

“Ken Cowan Dancing Pipes”: Canadian pipe organist Ken Kowan is to perform famous classical pieces including those by Bach, Saint-Saens and Liszt on June 18 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. Korean violinist Kim Nam-yoon will collaborate with Kowan to stage “Chaconne,” which is known for its sad melodies. The concert will start at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from 20,000 won to 70,000 won. For more information, call (02) 399-1114~6.

“Paik Kun-woo, and Liszt”: Maestro Paik Kun-woo is to hold a rare “Paik Kun-woo, and Liszt” piano recital to celebrate the 200th year of the composer’s birth, covering almost all of Liszt’s pieces in two concerts on June 19 and June 26 at Seoul Arts Center’s Concert Hall. The two programs are similar to Paik’s “all-Liszt” programs in Paris in 1982. The eight works of the June 19 program includes “La Vallee d’Obermann,” from the “Annees de Pelerinage,” “Consolation Nr. 3 in D Flat Major,” “2 Legendes,” “Mephisto Waltz No. 1.” On June 26, the program of Liszt’s late works will include “5 Hungarian folk songs,” “La Lugubre gondola II,” “Romance,” “Scherzo und Marsch,” “Sunt Lacrymae Rerum,” “Sursum Corda” and Sonata in B minor. “Paik Kun-woo, and Liszt” will be held at Seoul Arts Center’s Concert Hall at 8 p.m. on June 19 and 25. Tickets range from 40,000 won to 120,000 won. For details, call (02) 318-4304.