[Herald Interview] Broadway gurus team up to stage Mata Hari musical

Broadway director and choreographer Jeff Calhoun has teamed up with some of the biggest names in the musical business, including composer Frank Wildhorn, to tackle the splendorous and mysterious tale of Mata Hari, one of the world’s most notorious female spies, in a new musical. The Korean audience will have the first chance to watch his work. “What’s great about Mata Hari is that people think they know her story, but I think there are a lot of variations depending on whose book you read,” said

PerformanceJune 16, 2015

[Market & Merchants] Bangsan Market ― where packaging meets aromatic materials

Bangsan Market in Jung-gu, Seoul ― just 6-7 minutes walk west from the renowned Dongdaemun Market ― may look like another traditional Korean market that sells all sorts of food and household accessories and products from the outset.But as visitors walk toward the entrance of Bangsan Market, they will immediately feel and notice a difference on the street as they pass by specialty stores that sell faucets, wallpaper and lighting equipment mostly for businesses.Walk a little more and step inside B

TravelJune 16, 2015

Bucheon film festival offers ‘love, fantasy, adventure’

This year’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival will take place under the theme of “Love, Fantasy and Adventure” and screen 235 films of various genres from 45 countries, including 64 films making their world premiere.According to the organizing committee, BiFan (formerly known as PiFan) differentiates itself from other fantasy film markets by broadening its definition of genre films beyond horror and the grotesque to include sci-fi, suspense and action.“As a premium genre film showcas

FilmJune 16, 2015

Veteran French designer shows his world of creativity

French fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac opened his first art exhibition in Asia with a dynamic, spontaneous painting performance Thursday in Seoul. On white clothes a model was wearing at Seoul’s Blue Square, the designer started drawing bold black lines. In a couple more strokes, the plain clothes were turned into a pop art piece boasting a newly created animated character.  French designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac holds a painting performance that celebrates the opening of his f

PerformanceJune 15, 2015

Seoul hopes to reassure tourists with MERS insurance plan

Myeong-dong, a popular tourist destination in Seoul, is quieter than usual Sunday. (Yonhap)As the Middle East respiratory syndrome continues to scare away tourists, the Korean government has come up with a desperate measure to lure them back: free, full-coverage MERS insurance to foreign visitors. The scheme, announced Monday along with other emergency measures to support the MERS-hit local tourism, is a show of confidence in the country’s ongoing efforts to contain the potentially deadly virus

CultureJune 15, 2015

[Herald Review] Two unsung heroes remembered in ‘Classified File’

The year is 1978. A little girl has been kidnapped for ransom in Busan, but the perpetrator does not contact the family for two weeks. Nearly everyone assumes that the girl is dead and is focused only on making an arrest, while the parents are praying that there is still some way to bring their daughter back safe. The girl’s mother meets a fortune-teller named Kim Joong-san, who tells her not only that her daughter is alive, but that she can be saved if she enlists the help of detective Gong Gil

FilmJune 15, 2015

Private raw food chef lends expertise for next line of Organica products

Christine Cho, a plant-based private chef based in New York City and one of the flavor masterminds behind Organica’s “Just Juice Cleanse” detox juice line, has returned to Korea to once again join hands with Organica in extending her healthy eating expertise for the next line of products from the premium organic whole foods company. With the global trend of heart-smart eating and the ever increasing demand for natural and organic foods, Organica’s non-processed foods and raw juices are looking t

FoodJune 14, 2015

EDM festival draws crowds despite MERS

Despite the ongoing Middle East respiratory syndrome scare in South Korea, an annual international EDM festival drew as many as 100,000 music lovers in Seoul over the weekend.Ultra Korea, the Korean arm of the global Ultra Music Festival, soldiered on with its schedule on June 12 and 13, opting to reinforce preventive measures against the outbreak rather than calling off the event. Bottles of disinfectant gel were placed in and out the stadium while everyone entering was scanned with body temper

PerformanceJune 14, 2015

Actress Lee So-yeon to marry in October

Actress Lee So-yeon is to marry an IT entrepreneur in October. According to reports, Lee met her future husband early this year, and is now preparing for the wedding. Lee, who shot to fame through the period movie “Untold Scandal” in 2003, met her man through her sister.  Lee So-yeonLee and her fiance, whose identity has not been revealed, are said to have been sighted dating at the campuses of their respective universities in order to avoid the public eye. The groom-to-be is currently studying

June 14, 2015

[Weekender] Dogs are colleagues to emergency rescue workers

Moran, a black Labrador retriever, can do more than just sit and roll over. She has special skills that no human and most pet dogs lack.With a keen sense of smell, the 30-kilogram Lab can track down missing persons miles away who are trapped in natural disaster areas or deep in the mountainous woods. She can help firemen and police solve mysteries on whether the missing victims are alive or dead.Moran is a rescue dog for the Special Rescue Team in Dobong-gu. The team, which works closely with th

CultureJune 12, 2015

Box Office

The Classified File (Korea)Opening June 18Crime. Directed by Kwak Kyung-taekWhen a Busan detective named Gil-young (Kim Yun-seok) is asked by a prominent businessman to lead up the investigation of his daughter’s kidnapping, he decides to run the investigation completely underground to deceive the perpetrator. While waging political conflicts within the agency, Gil-young enlists the help of a fortune-teller named Joong-san (Yoo Hae-jin) who has an uncanny ability to predict how events will unfol

FilmJune 12, 2015

Eyelike: A Thousand Horses, Galantis, Yelawolf

A Thousand Horses brash on ‘Southernality’A Thousand Horses“Southernality”(Republic Nashville)Southern rock specialists A Thousand Horses pride themselves on being influenced by some of the genre’s greats, such as The Black Crowes and The Allman Brothers. You can hear those influences throughout their latest album, “Southernality.”Push play on the album’s first track, “First Time,” and the listener is treated to a raucous keyboard-fueled song that is uncomfortably close to Black Crowes’ “Jealous

FilmJune 12, 2015

Olivia Cooke moves from horror’s shadows into indie film’s limelight

You can’t make a movie out of the tragicomic novel “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” without the perfect, terminally-ill final third character in that title. The film’s director, Alfonso Gomez-Rejon cast about and found someone in a genre that both he and she are well-versed in ― horror.“It’s a very expressive genre,” says Gomez-Rejon, who directed episodes of TV’s “American Horror Story” and the big screen “The Town That Dreaded Sundown.” He found his “Dying Girl” on TV’s “Bates Motel.” But youn

FilmJune 12, 2015

Travel Bits

Train ride to Korean rural regionsKorail is offering train tour packages to city slickers seeking to get away from their city lives and travel to rural areas to experience their food and farming culture this month.In partnership with government agencies such as the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Rural Development Administration, Korail’s “Rail Green” train tour will enable travelers to visit traditional farming villages.The train will take them to places such as Gwangyan

TravelJune 12, 2015

Yangshuo, perfect destination for soul-searching in China

For urban dwellers who are tired of the hustle and bustle of the city and dream of a break in a remote corner of the world, Yangshuo, a rural Chinese town in southern China, might be the perfect destination. The 2,000-year-old town is under the jurisdiction of Guilin City in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region of southwest China. It has just 30,000 people, but its world-class scenery of endless karst peaks and winding rivers make it a big draw for tourists. Guilin and Yangshuo, both of which ha

TravelJune 12, 2015

Around the Hotels

Cool down with a swim at Sheraton Seoul D Cube City HotelSheraton Seoul D Cube City Hotel is offering a cool summer vacation in the city with the “Frozen Summer” package, available from June 1 to Aug. 31. The 235,000 won-package includes a one-night stay in a Deluxe Room with an expansive view of the Seoul cityscape, and a sumptuous breakfast buffet for two at the hotel’s signature restaurant Feast, located on the 41st floor. The buffet is free of charge for one child under 36 months. During the

CultureJune 12, 2015

[Herald Interview] Veteran chef Butz on mission to ‘wow’ guests

Bernhard Butz, the culinary director at the Millennium Seoul Hilton, appears to be a tired and stressed chef at first glance.But it’s only natural that he looks that way after hearing his story and understanding what kind of responsibilities he has for the hotel.He manages five specialty restaurants, a bar and a deli, in addition to making sure breakfast, lunch and dinner are served properly to the highest standards.  Pastries called “Namssants” designed and made by Bernhard ButzAnd that’s not a

FoodJune 12, 2015

Gamjajeon (potato pancakes)

Gamjajeon is a variety of Korean savory pancake made with grated or ground potatoes. It’s a humble dish that can simply be made with potatoes. But, a little bit of onion helps prevent discoloring of the potatoes without overpowering their flavor. This is a basic recipe, but you can add other vegetables such as garlic chives (buchu), chili peppers, and/or perilla leaves (kkaennip) if you like.You can grate the potatoes or grind them in a blender or a food processor. I like to grate them on a grat

FoodJune 12, 2015

Polish art on extensive view in Seoul

Many Polish artists created works intended to raise the morale of fellow citizens after their country lost independence in 1795 to Russia, Prussia and Austria. During this tragic time of history, master painter Jan Matejko reminded Poles of the historical glories of Poland to elevate their spirits. Chopin borrowed melodies from Polish traditional dance and created great piano pieces, mazurkas and polonaises. Such art pieces reflecting the strength and spirit of Poles throughout its turbulent his

CultureJune 11, 2015

Kim Feel tells his own stories on first EP ‘Feel Free’

Kim Feel, a breakout star from the audition program “Superstar K6,” dropped his first EP, “Feel Free,” Thursday. The EP, he said, would be a way to introduce himself to the world as a musician.“On ‘Superstar K,’ we mostly performed cover songs. This is the first time that I’m coming out with songs that I helped to create, with my stories, with the kind of music I hope to keep performing in the future,” Kim said at a press showcase at M Cube in Seoul on Thursday.With the exception of just one tra

PerformanceJune 11, 2015