[Photo News] Singapore Airlines spends day with children

 SINGAPORE AIRLINES SPENDS DAY WITH CHILDREN - Thirty-five Singapore Airlines executives and staff including General Manager Sia Nam Kung provided a cooking class and museum experience program to the visually-handicapped and underprivileged children on Saturday in collaboration with the Jongno Community Welfare Center. Parents of participating children could watch a movie and were provided lunch. Singapore Airlines

PeopleJuly 20, 2015

MC Mong returns with first concert in 6 years

 Hip-hop artist MC Mong, who was once mired in a draft-dodging scandal, will hold his first solo concert in six years, his label DreamT Entertainment said on Monday. 　Titled “The Happiest Time in My Life,” the concert will be held at the Lehzin Comics V-Hall in Seogyo-dong, western Seoul on Sept. 4-6 and 11-13. 　“The concert will be a time where MC Mong will meet with fans in six years,” an official from the label said. “He is preparing for a memorable time to share with his fans who have waited

July 20, 2015

[Herald Interview] Magical world underneath water

A girl in a white feather dress has her eyes closed and floats aimlessly with her dress and hair moving naturally to reveal their velvety layers. The weightless calm captivates the viewer, wondering where this place with such a calm state could be. “Angel 1,” Swan Song by Zena Holloway (Courtesy of the artist)This mystical photo is in fact taken underwater by photographer Zena Holloway, a British photographer who specializes in underwater photography. She is holding her first exhibition in Seoul

PerformanceJuly 20, 2015

Beast’s ‘Gotta Go to Work’ dominates charts

(Cube Entertainment)Beast’s pre-released track “Gotta Go to Work” topped the six online music charts in South Korea. The song emerged as a bestselling title on Melon, Olleh Music, Genie, Bugs, Soribada and Mnet.In addition, its music video attracted more than 3 million views since its initial release on Monday. Expectations are also rising for the group’s upcoming eighth EP, “Ordinary.” The new album is scheduled to be released on July 27.By Kim Yu-jin (kimyujin@heraldcorp.com)

July 20, 2015

K-pop girl groups battle on summer charts

Sistar (Starship Entertainment)The K-pop charts have been a tough battleground for Korea’s top pop groups in July, but the competition has been particularly fierce among girl groups.While big-name boy bands have generally timed their album releases to avoid head-on clashes, girl groups rolled the dice, with established names returning to the stage at the same time.Here’s a wrap-up of the summer girl group face-off in the K-pop scene so far, who’s come out on top and what’s to come in the coming

July 19, 2015

[Herald Review] ‘Chicago’ induces unapologetic laughter at lust, greed and murder

A scene from the original cast production of “Chicago,” on run at the National Theater of Korea until Aug. 8. (Seensee Company)One of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history, “Chicago” has made its way back to Seoul with an American cast who brilliantly recreate the good ol’ days of scandalous jazz tunes.  Sprinkled with a wicked murderous twist, the show weaves one of musical theater’s more shamefully alluring tales of lies and human greed. “You’re about to hear a story of murder, gree

PerformanceJuly 19, 2015

Calendar

THEATRE   MUSICAL 'ARIRANG' - A scene from "Arirang," a musical adaptation from the epic novel of the same title by Jo Jung-rae, currently playing at LG Arts Center in southern Seoul (Seensee)“The Last Empress”: After premiering in 1995, “The Last Empress” musical is considered to be the first big-time hit Korean original musical. The story tells the 19th-century tale of the first wife of the nation’s first king -- Empress Myeongseong, who was considered as a strong opponent of Japan’s colonial

CultureJuly 17, 2015

Bona fide Southern-style barbecue at Manimal Smokehouse

Before noon, on a blistering summer weekday, Manimal Smokehouse co-owner Jeff Kang is seven hours deep into smoking cured hunks of beef and pork into juicy goodness. The scent of burning oak travels all the way down the steep metal staircase leading up to this four-man barbecue project, a 30-seat restaurant located in Itaewon that was almost a year in-the-making.Manimal opened its doors near Noksapyeong Station this April and ever since then Kang has been busy barbecuing from around 11 p.m. to 2

FoodJuly 17, 2015

‘The Last Empress’ gets an overhaul for its 20th anniversary

Known as the godfather of Korean musicals, Yun Ho-jin occupies a special place in the Korean musical scene 20 years after he burst upon the scene with “The Last Empress,” a large-scale original musical, the likes of which had never before been seen in Korea.An adaptation of a novel by Yi Min-yol based on the assassination of Queen Min, also known as Empress Myeongseong, by Japanese killers in 1895, the grand opera-like musical took the nascent local musical scene by storm when it premiered at th

PerformanceJuly 17, 2015

[Weekender] Rooftop bars to check out in Seoul

As summer starts to heat up, the regular spots for an evening drink in Seoul can seem quite unwelcoming: dark underground bars with loud music, restaurants that sit you in front of sizzling pans of pork, and crowded bars where people jostle to get past each other.Luckily, in recent years, rooftop bars have been popping up around Seoul. Concentrated in the downtown area, rooftop bars offer great views and fresh air above all of the bustle below. Here are three rooftop bars in Seoul worth checking

Life&CultureJuly 17, 2015

[Weekender] Summer music fests to stomp out the heat

　Despite grueling temperatures that make going outside seem like an unwanted tax on the body, this summer still has all the makings of an unforgettable season of music festival fun. 　　Following last month’s two-day EDM blowout Ultra Music Festival, which drew more than 100,000 partygoers, the remaining summer months promise an eclectic array of big-time international acts and fan-favorite local names.　　Ansan M Valley Rock Festival　　Forced to cancel its festivities last year in light of the tragi

PerformanceJuly 17, 2015

[Weekender] Mango bingsu, a summer delight

A bowl of shaved ice topped with sweet red bean paste has long been a classic summer dessert for Koreans. The traditional combination of ice, red bean paste and condensed milk has been an inspiration for many other creative summer desserts, too. This summer, the traditional summer treat, “bingsu,” has become tropical, as mango has emerged as a new variant. Sweet, fragrant chunks of mango have become a substitute to the classic red bean paste. For Homibing, a local shaved ice dessert chain that o

CultureJuly 17, 2015

[Weekender] Surviving summer

The blazing sun, sticky air, sultry sleepless nights and mosquito bites -- yes, it’s summer again. You know what it brings. Iced drinks and shaved ice desserts called “bingsu” will be selling like hot cakes on streets of Seoul. Women will pay extra attention to shield their skin from the sun, with layers and layers of sun block and sun visors with the widest possible brims. Popular beaches and swimming pools will crowd to a mixture that locals joke is “half people and half water.” (Yonhap)And fr

CultureJuly 17, 2015

[Weekender] Beat the heatwave, traditional way

Traditionally, when the summer heatwave strikes, Koreans tuck in to hot bowls of stamina-boosting soups under the mantra of “battling heat with heat.”Although seemingly counterintuitive, it was believed that the internal organs in your body became cold during the hot weather, and eating hot food restored balance by warming your body inside and cooling your body outside through sweat. Regardless of the scientific validity of this theory, this tradition is still alive and well.  On three “bok” day

CultureJuly 17, 2015

[Weekender] Spine-chilling horror for mid-summer goosebumps

Haunted houses, horror films and even venturing into abandoned estates: such fear-inducing activities have long been a way for many Koreans to escape -- or at least momentarily forget -- the country’s sweltering summer, and chill the spine. Between the months of June and August every year, Korean cinemas see mass premieres of horror flicks, while a number of Halloween-ish festivals take place, with zombie marathons, goblin-themed mazes and booths where professional makeup and costume artists hel

CultureJuly 17, 2015

Two Korean designers present menswear in NY Fashion Week

Two Korean menswear designers presented their spring-summer looks in the men’s collection during New York Fashion Week, drawing interest with innovative and unique designs. Kang Dong-jun of DBYD and Jang Hyung-chul of Ordinary People showed their creations as part of the Korean government-organized Concept Korea event, held semiannually during New York Fashion Week since 2010 to introduce Korean designers in the fashion hub of New York. A model presents creations of Ordinary People by Jang Hyung

Arts & DesignJuly 16, 2015

Book delves into identity factor of Korea-Japan relations

In the field of political science, the issue of national identity has been marginalized due to its abstract, impractical and amorphous nature that makes it difficult for one to empirically back his or her analyses of international relations.For mainstream theorists -- be they liberalists or realists -- material power, trade volume, investment amounts and other tangible, thus, measurable, data are critical sources of research, while “soft” concepts like identity have largely been overlooked.This

BooksJuly 16, 2015