King to appoint palace royal guards in reenactment of court ceremony at Gyeongbokgung Palace

A reenactment of the Joseon Kingdom's royal guard appointment ceremony will take place at Heungnyemun Gate, the second inner gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace, at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Titled “The King Chooses His Palace Royal Guard,” the guard appointment ceremony event will be performed by some 200 people -- including 160 actors, 20 dancers and 20 musicians -- who will reimagine the ceremony based on historical records. During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), a royal guard unit called t

CultureMarch 22, 2023

BTS’ Jimin stars in KBS variety show

Public broadcaster KBS announced that Jimin of K-pop superstar group BTS is scheduled to star in its Thursday night variety show, “Beat Coin,” in an episode set to air on March 30. “Jimin said he liked to watch ‘Beat Coin’ even before starring in our show. The cast were surprised to see Jimin at the shooting site as well. Everyone always gives everything to entertain the viewers, but I think the viewers can have high expectations for our upcoming part with Jimin,&

TelevisionMarch 22, 2023

[Herald Review] 'Six' nods to modern-day divas in 'herstory' of King Henry VIII's wives

“Six the Musical” is about the six wives of King Henry VIII, who ruled England from 1509 until his death in 1547. Through the creative process of young playwrights Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, the six women have been brought to life, finding their voices to tell “herstory” instead of "history," which portrays them as nothing but the unfortunate wives of the king, only to be remembered by the rhyme -- "divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived.&

PerformanceMarch 22, 2023

Tenor Ha Man-teak presents recital tour

South Korean tenor Ha Man-teak will embark on a recital tour for the first time in 11 years. Starting from Jeonju, North Jeolla Province on Wednesday, the singer-turned-businessman will bring his recital to Daejeon on Thursday and to Seoul on Saturday before bringing the tour to a close at Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province on Tuesday. Under the title “Se Ti Manca,” an Italian phrase meaning “Do you miss it?” in English, Ha will sing various songs like F.P. Tosti’s “

PerformanceMarch 22, 2023

Wavve's ‘Combat Correspondent’ Korea’s most expensive drama series to date

Local streaming service Wavve announced Tuesday that it will join hands with Eric Beck, the German screenwriter behind Paramount’s neo-Western American drama series “Yellowstone,” to produce an original historical drama series based on true events during the Korean War of 1950-1953. The 10-part series with the working title “Combat Correspondent” will center around the story of American reporter Marguerite Higgins (1920-1966), the first woman to receive the Pulitzer

TelevisionMarch 22, 2023

[From the Scene] Art Basel Hong Kong heralds city's comeback after pandemic

HONG KONG -- Returning after four years, Art Basel Hong Kong has pumped energy back into the city, attracting art lovers from around the world who swarmed the booths at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on Tuesday, “The city never stood still during the pandemic. It continued to push the boundaries and innovate. In fact, the cultural landscape in Hong Kong has continued to grow from strength to strength,” said Noah Horowitz, CEO of Art Basel, at a press reception Tuesday

Arts & DesignMarch 21, 2023

LTI Korea accepting applications for translation academy

The Literature Translation Institute, Korea’s Translation Academy is accepting applications for the 2023 academic year, which begins this August. The academy offers a two-year program in the translation of Korean literary and cultural texts such as films and webtoons, into seven languages -- English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Chinese and Japanese. About 70 students will be accepted -- about 10 students per language. The classes for the 15-week semester will be held in person at the

BooksMarch 21, 2023

ChatGPT sparks trend in publication and sales of related books

With the number of users of ChatGPT, an interactive artificial intelligence chatbot, exceeding 100 million worldwide, the publishing industry in Korea is seeing a rapid rise in the number of publications and sales related to ChatGPT. A total of 17 books on ChatGPT, including preorders, were published in February. The sales of the related books in January increased 3.4 times compared to the previous month, and the number soared to 94.5 times in February, according to a recent report by Yes24, Kor

BooksMarch 21, 2023

ChatGPT's first book in Korea explores ‘45 Ways to Find a Purpose in Life’

Can AI write its own book? The question prompted one Korean editor to test just how far ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot, could go. “45 Ways to Find a Purpose in Life,” published by Snowfox Books, is the first book officially authored by ChatGPT in Korea, and having hit the shelves on Feb. 21. It only took seven days from the time of its writing to its first sale, according to Seo Jin, CEO and the book’s editor at Snowfox Books. The entire process of writing, editing

BooksMarch 21, 2023

[Photo news]Joseon palaces welcome spring spectators

Colourful flowers adorning Seoul’s old palaces are just around corner as spring has officially arrived in Seoul in the middle of March. The Royal Palaces and Tombs Center of Cultural Heritage Administration on Tuesday announced that the spring blossoms in the royal palaces will peak from late March to early April, forecasting blossoms of cherry, apricot, plum and weeping cherry to kick off the season on Thursday. The palace authority chose three places for best flowers in Seoul’s Jos

TravelMarch 21, 2023

Doosan Humanities Theater marks 10th anniversary with program on age, generations

An exhibition, three plays and eight lectures under the theme of "Age, Age, Age" make up this year's annual program at the Doosan Humanities Theater, which showcases exhibitions, plays and lectures that explore contemporary themes. The programmed events will take place at the Doosan Art Center and Doosan Gallery in Jongno-gu, Seoul, from April 3 to July 15. “Korea is an aging society. We are living longer while the birth rate is dropping," said Doosan Humanities Theater

PerformanceMarch 21, 2023

MBC audition show ‘Fantasy Boys’ to be streamed across Asia

Terrestrial broadcaster MBC announced that its upcoming audition program “Fantasy Boys,” set to premiere on March 30, will also be available in 12 different Asian countries via video streaming platforms. While the platform Abema will stream “Fantasy Boys” in Japan, viewers in many Southeast Asian countries, including Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam will be able to watch the show through Chinese streamer iQiyi. In Korea, it will be strea

TelevisionMarch 21, 2023

Cho Yong-pil to hold solo concert in May

Pop legend Cho Yong-pil, who is widely known as “Gawang” -- the king of singing or pop music in Korean -- will hold a solo concert in Seoul on May 13, the concert’s organizer announced Tuesday. Titled “2023 Cho Yong-pil & the Great Birth Concert,” the concert is set to be held at the Seoul Olympic Stadium inside the Olympics sports complex in Jamsil, southern Seoul. The Great Birth is a band that has worked with Cho at his concerts since 1979. This is Cho'

PerformanceMarch 21, 2023

Do or die: Actor Jeon Do-yeon’s approach to ‘Kill Boksoon’ action scenes

Cannes-winning actor Jeon Do-yeon said she practiced a “do or die” mindset for her role as a top assassin in her first-ever action film, “Kill Boksoon.” “I was particularly careful about doing action scenes and practiced a lot because I had to (work with) fellow actors, not stuntpeople. I worried about getting too emotional and overdoing the action scenes,” she told reporters during a press conference held at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas on Tuesday.

FilmMarch 21, 2023

[Herald Review] 'Korea Emotion': a blend of gugak, hanbok and ballet

It's difficult to express emotions, especially when the emotion itself isn't clearly defined by language. In Korea, there’s a complex, multi-faceted emotion called “jeong,” which is deeply rooted in Korean culture. "Jeong" is often described as a feeling of affection or attachment that arises from a sense of emotional connection. It is sometimes characterized by feelings of warmth, fondness or longing and yearning for someone or something. But after watching

PerformanceMarch 20, 2023

JTBC mystery show ‘Crime Scene’ to return with new season

Content production company Studio LuluLala (SLL) confirmed that its whodunnit variety series, “Crime Scene,” will be making a return after six years. SLL, a subsidiary of cable channel JTBC formerly known as JTBC Studios, announced Monday that it is in talks with Tving -- an online streaming service provider run by entertainment giant CJ ENM -- to produce a fourth season, titled “Crime Scene Returns.” The show is a mystery variety program featuring celebrities and TV pers

TelevisionMarch 20, 2023

Kakao Entertainment continues fight against pirate content sites in Indonesia

Kakao Entertainment announced on Monday that it blocked over 15,000 illegally distributed webtoons and shut down major pirate webtoon platforms in Indonesia in 2022. Webtoons are digital comics that are read by scrolling down one's screen, mainly on readers’ smartphones. Kakao Entertainment’s Protecting the Contents of Kakao Entertainment, known as P.Cok for short, Kakao Entertainment's global webtoon division team, said that it reported and blocked the distribution of 15,6

BooksMarch 20, 2023

Possible Goryeo remains discovered at construction site

A historical site and numerous cultural relics thought to date back to the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392) have been found at a construction site in Sinyeong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration and a private association commissioned to conduct a preliminary survey of the site on Monday. An architectural history survey was launched in December at the site, which had been used as a parking lot and was in the process of being developed into an apartment complex. The

CultureMarch 20, 2023

Top spring chamber music festival to highlight bigger ensembles

The Seoul Spring Festival of Chamber Music, a highly anticipated annual event led by violinist Kang Dong-suk, is set to return bigger this May with the theme, "The More, The Merrier!," featuring larger ensembles than in previous years. Going beyond traditional small chamber music ensembles, this year’s festival will offer a variety of sextets, septets and octets, according to the festival's organizers on Monday. The festival will commence April 26 at the Sejong Center for th

PerformanceMarch 20, 2023

Rio Tinto has more work to do, cultural heritage audit finds

MELBOURNE - Rio Tinto has more work to do to protect Indigenous cultural heritage at its mines around the world, according to an independent audit of its practices, the world's biggest iron ore miner said on Monday. Rio Tinto commissioned the audit as part of a pledge to overhaul its practices after it destroyed culturally significant rock shelters at Juukan Gorge in Western Australia for an iron ore mine in 2020. The report noted improved practices particularly at Rio's iron ore ope

CultureMarch 20, 2023