Colorful light show to illuminate Seoul's winter night

A nighttime light show will take place in central Seoul for about two weeks to celebrate the end of this year and the beginning of next year, municipal officials said Wednesday. The light show, dubbed "Seoul Light," will be staged at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza, or DDP, from Friday to Jan. 3, according to officials at the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Design Foundation.The show featuring a mix of colorful light and visuals and music will be held every hour from 7 p.m. to

CultureDec. 18, 2019

BTS to perform at most-watched American New Year's Eve concert

K-pop boy band BTS will ring in the new year performing at the United States' most-watched New Year's Eve concert, the special program's organizer has said."Making 2020 right by ringing in the new year with BTS! Join us live from Times Square on New Year's Eve," the organizer of "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2020" said on its Facebook page on Tuesday.  The special New Year's Eve program this year will air concerts from Times Square in New York a

PerformanceDec. 18, 2019

Se-dol over HanDol: S. Korean Go master Lee beats AI player

In the first match of his retirement series, South Korean Go master Lee Se-dol defeated home-developed artificial intelligence program HanDol on Wednesday.Lee secured the victory after 92 stones thanks to an early blunder by HanDol, a program developed by South Korea's NHN Entertainment Corp.Lee announced his retirement from Go, or baduk in Korean, last month, saying he felt he could no longer beat AI programs. Lee famously defeated AlphaGo of Google's DeepMind in 2016 in one match of a five-mat

CultureDec. 18, 2019

K-pop, K-culture driving themes of 2020 Korea Grand Sale

Music, aesthetics and other aspects of Korean culture will be the main features of the 10th Korea Grand Sale, its organizers said Tuesday. The Visit Korea Committee announced the details of the annual event, which runs Jan. 16 through Feb. 29 and offers benefits and cultural opportunities to foreign visitors.The focal point of next year’s event will be the special five-point promotion of “K-pop, K-beauty, K-food, K-heritage and K-winter.”Organizers are holding a lucky draw for

CultureDec. 17, 2019

[Photo News] Partnering for a better world

Togo’s Deputy Minister Victor G. Yawotse Vovor shakes hands with the founder of the International Youth Fellowship, Park Ock-soo (right), during an event for a joint agreement, in Lomo on Saturday. The two sides agreed to implement the “2018-2020 National Development Plan” to foster the country’s fundamentals, technology and youths. Established in 2001, the IYF seeks to provide education programs for the younger generation in developing countries like Africa. (IYF)

CultureDec. 17, 2019

[Herald Review] Remembering singer Whitney Houston with ‘Bodyguard’

The name Whitney Houston takes many straight back to the 1980s and ’90s. The US singer took the world by storm soon after her 1985 debut. Her first two studio albums, “Whitney Houston” and “Whitney” topped the Billboard charts for weeks. Enjoying a huge success in the music scene, the singer took a leap to the big screen, making her acting debut on the film “The Bodyguard” in 1992. She recorded six new songs, including the iconic track “I’ll

PerformanceDec. 17, 2019

BTS' 'Map of the Soul' tops S. Korean album chart for 2019

Continuing its winning streak from a year earlier, boy band BTS topped the South Korean album sales chart for this year, chart results showed Tuesday.BTS' latest album, "Map of the Soul: Persona," sold more than 3.69 million copies since its release in April, topping the album sales category of the Gaon Music Chart compiled by the Korea Music Content Association. The album chart covers the period from Jan. 1 to Dec. 7.It marks overriding chart dominance by BTS following the band's No.

PerformanceDec. 17, 2019

[Video] The puzzle of flavor

Imagine a glass of cold craft beer and place it in front of you. “Psssh.” That’s the sound of beer being extracted from the machine. “Tssst.” Next, the frothy foam on top brings oxygen to the liquor. Afterward, have a quick sip and let the fresh brew glide down. This is perhaps the high point of the day, only rivaled later when you lay down in your cozy bed, ready to fall off to sleep. It’s no secret that Koreans spend some of the longest hours in th

FoodDec. 17, 2019

BTS' 'Map of the Soul' album certified gold in France

"Map of the Soul: Persona," the latest album by K-pop boy band BTS, has been certified "Gold" by the French recording industry. Breaking the news, the National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing said in its official website and social media account on Monday that the BTS album has sold 50,000 equivalent copies. For the achievement, the album was certified "Or," the French word for Gold, the association said, adding a message, "Bravo!"The association hono

PerformanceDec. 17, 2019

‘Parasite’ short-listed for best international film Oscar

Director Bong Joon-ho’s “Parasite” has been short-listed for the Oscar for best international feature film, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday.The Palme d’Or-winning black comedy has now advanced to the next round of voting in the category -- formerly known as foreign language film -- to compete with nine other films: the “The Painted Bird” by Vaclav Marhoul from the Czech Republic, “Truth and Justice” by Tanel Toom fr

FilmDec. 17, 2019

CICI announces Korea Image Awards winners

The Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) announced on Monday this year’s Korea Image Awards winners -- SK Telecom, K-pop columnist Jeff Benjamin and jazz vocalist Nah Youn-sun. SK Telecom was awarded the Korea Image Stepping Stone Award for its efforts to commercialize 5G technology worldwide as the nation’s top mobile carrier. SKT CEO Park Jung-ho will be given the award on behalf of the company, according to CICI. The award ceremony will be held Jan. 14 at InterContinent

PeopleDec. 16, 2019

LTI Korea awards recognize excellence in literary translation

The Literature Translation Institute of Korea announced on Monday the winners of its translation awards this year, recognizing their contributions to the promotion of Korean literature worldwide. The 17th LTI Korea Translation Awards went to Yoon Sun-me, who translated Han Kang’s novel “Human Acts” into Spanish as “Actos Humanos”; Sora Kim-Russel, who translated Kim Un-su’s novel “The Plotters” into English; and Li San-lun and Kim Hwan, who transla

PeopleDec. 16, 2019

From time-tested to new productions, diverse musicals on offer in 2020

‘Aida’ bids farewell, ‘Mamma Mia!’ returns and ‘Jamie’ gets Asian premiereWith the year winding to a close, local production companies and theaters have been announcing the musicals set for the stage next year, with lineups including licensed international hits and locally brewed shows alike.Last month, Seensee Company launched a local production of “Aida,” which will continue through Feb. 23 at Blue Square in Yongsan, central Seoul. What is slated

PerformanceDec. 16, 2019

'Parasite' wins four awards from Chicago Film Critics Association

South Korea's black comedy film "Parasite" bagged four trophies, including best picture from the Chicago Film Critics Association, continuing its award-winning rally in the United States in the runup to the Oscar ceremony early next year.According to the announcement by the CFCA released Saturday (US time), "Parasite," directed by Bong Joon-ho, won best picture, best foreign language film, best director and best original screenplay."Little Women" by Greta Gerwig als

FilmDec. 16, 2019

[Herald Review] Eternal romance of ‘Phantom’ touches hearts of Koreans

Musical “The Phantom of the Opera” is set in the iconic Paris Opera House in central Paris, also known as the Palais Garnier. Built in the late 19th century by Charles Garnier, the establishment is one of the city’s must-see spots to this day. A mysterious figure referred to as the phantom lives beneath the opera house, away from others. He wears a mask to hide his scarred face. He falls in love with young soprano Christine Daae. Christine comes to believe the phantom is her &l

PerformanceDec. 15, 2019

Chandelier crashes, ‘Phantom’ returns to Korea

BUSAN -- Musical “The Phantom of the Opera” has finally landed in Korea, kicking off in Busan and taking the audience into the haunting love story set in Paris in the late 19th century. This is the first time the international tour of the opera is visiting Busan, having already performed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Tel Aviv, Israel; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. After Busan, the tour moves on to Seoul and Daegu.  Based on the novel of the same name written by Gaston Leroux, &

PerformanceDec. 15, 2019

Exhibition looks at overarching presence of virtual reality

In a video introducing Niantic’s mobile game Pokemon Go, which uses augmented reality, Pikachu is running around in an open-air cafe, past real people. The uplifting yellow creature even plays hide-and-seek using real-world objects like flower pots. “Watching the video, I thought this real world has become an image -- in an allegorical sense. It was somewhat scary too when I thought about how the real world and virtual reality overlap with one another, the one with Pikachu and the ot

Arts & DesignDec. 15, 2019

[Herald Review] ‘Start-up,’ a loveable disappointment that fails to take off

[Honestly, Choi Jeong-yeol’s “Start-up” is a film that I would’ve loved to like. The film had such loveable characters and felt so likeable, yet both the narrative and comedy kept falling short.Perhaps the best way to describe it is that it is a poor-man’s version of “Exit,” a 2019 action comedy which blended just a hint of drama with three tablespoons of suspense, two cups of laughter, awesome characters and a whole bunch of creative settings to conjure

FilmDec. 15, 2019

PyeongChang invites tourists to trout and snow festivals

PyeongChang, the venue of the 2018 Winter Olympics, is gearing up to host two winter festivals to attract tourists from home and abroad.The county government of PyeongChang, about 180 kilometers east of Seoul, said Friday it is putting the finishing touches on the 13th PyeongChang Trout Festival and the 28th Daegwallyeong Snow Festival.The trout festival will take place from Dec. 21 to Feb. 2, 2020, while the snow festival is scheduled for Jan. 10-19, county officials said, stressing that easier

Life&CultureDec. 14, 2019

Guide to indulging in winter street food

With the freezing cold season approaching, the craving for hot street food grows. Seoul’s street food is perfect for warming the soul. Get some cash ready, put on a coat and head to Myeong-dong to fill your belly. Street food in Myeong-dong is simply amazing. For those who enjoy spicy stuff, it’s like paradise. What is happiness, if not this? Vendors get ready around 4 p.m., and people start visiting them around 5 p.m.Hotteok (Sugar-filled griddlecake)If the country’s frosty te

FoodDec. 13, 2019