Return of 3 'hallyu' actors fail to give TV dramas a boost

The return of three A-list South Korean actors who finished their military duties has drawn wide attention from fans of Korean TV dramas at home and abroad. But their new dramas were performing far below expectations, and even the stars with large followings abroad were unable to give them a badly needed boost. Lee Min-ho, who soared to stardom with the 2009 drama series "Boys Over Flowers," starred in the fantasy romance "The King: Eternal Monarch" on SBS this spring. It

TelevisionJune 26, 2020

[Eye Interview] Journeying the world on wings of music

This year was to have been my “big” travel year. The ambitious plan included two weeks in Tuscany, basking in the autumn sun and sauntering the streets of Florence. Having decided on the destination, I followed Instagram pictures of Italy in all their golden and azure glory, and had Rai Radio Tutta Italiana as background noise, the music on the Italian radio station transporting me thousands of miles away to a place that sounded full of life and joy. I served panettone on Christma

PerformanceJune 26, 2020

Ovo-lacto vegetarian burger at Fault Burger

When opening Fault Burger in Seoul’s Sinsa-dong this May, Yoon Seong-ho, CEO of the burger joint’s parent company, asked, “Does a burger have to only be like this?” Looking to think outside the traditional burger box, Yoon turned to the tennis court for inspiration and appropriated the term “fault,” which refers to a situation where a served ball misses the designated area of the court, for his latest enterprise. “We wanted to break away from any se

FoodJune 26, 2020

[Around the Hotels] Promotions and Packages

Retro bingsu at Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas’ Lobby Lounge presents mugwort bingsu in collaboration with Danish royal porcelain brand Royal Copenhagen. Retro mugwort bingsu, prepared by the hotel’s patissier with Korean herb mugwort, is served in a bowl from Royal Copenhagen. This year, the bingsu is also available in individual servings. Retro mugwort bingsu is available until the end of August at 45,000 won for two to three servings

FoodJune 26, 2020

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Alive (Korea) Opened June 24 Thriller, Drama Directed by Cho Il-hyung An unexplainable disease spreads in the city, turning infected people into zombie-like creatures, and Jun-woo (Yoo Ah-in), a YouTuber and gamer, is stranded inside his house alone. What food he had left is soon finished, and in a matter of days, electricity and water are cut off. The creatures roam around the apartment complex, sometimes making their way inside houses. Just as Jun-woo starts to lose hope, another survivor on

FilmJune 26, 2020

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights across Korea

Taebaek Sunflower Festival The Taebaek Sunflower Festival takes place July 14-Aug. 16 in Guwau Village, celebrating the area’s wide array of colorful wildflowers and endless fields of sunflowers. The village in Gangwon Province has the largest sunflower field in Korea. The festival area is filled with 300 species of wild flowers, along with a walking path nearby the sunflower field. Hands-on programs related to wild flowers will be prepared. For more information in Korean, visit sunf

TravelJune 26, 2020

Korea National University of Cultural Heritage releases book on Korean embroidery

Korea National University of Cultural Heritage’s traditional arts and crafts professor Sim Yeon-ok has published a book, titled “2,000 Years of Korean Embroidery,” which offers historical analyses on the technical development of Korean embroidery, in collaboration with her students. Established in 2000, the Korea National University of Cultural Heritage is run by the Cultural Heritage Administration. The book presents 48 historic embroidery works from the ancient kingdoms p

BooksJune 25, 2020

[Herald Interview] Lee Bong-geun moves pansori from stage to big screen

A master of the traditional Korean music genre pansori, Lee Bong-geun is launching a new career as an actor in the upcoming film “The Singer.” In it he plays the lead, Shim Hak-gyu, also a pansori singer. Speaking with the local media on Wednesday, Lee said he vicariously experienced the original form of pansori -- a traditional form of narrative music -- during the filming. “I thought that perhaps this is how the past masters would have sung. Although pansori has now become

FilmJune 25, 2020

Top court confirms artist not guilty of fraud for selling heavily assisted paintings

The Supreme Court on Thursday confirmed a ruling that cleared a singer-painter of fraud for selling his paintings that were created with the help of assistants. Cho Young-nam, once a popular folk singer, was accused of fraudulently selling 21 pieces of art to 17 people for a total of 153 million won ($126,792) from September 2011 to January 2015. Cho called the paintings his own, but it was later found out that assistants he had hired actually painted them, and he only added some final touche

Arts & DesignJune 25, 2020

Korean War remembered at MMCA show

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea (MMCA) is hosting a special exhibition to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Korean War by looking at the memories of the war captured through artworks and contemplating the lessons learned from the war. The English title of the exhibition, “Unflattening,” derives from a novel by Nick Sousanis, and suggests that people should look back at the war from diverse perspectives. The Korean title can be translated into Englis

Arts & DesignJune 24, 2020

Actor Woo Do-hwan to start military service next month

South Korean star actor Woo Do-hwan will join the military on July 6, his agency said Wednesday. Woo, 27, debuted in 2011 and rose to stardom after starring in the hit television series "The King: Eternal Monarch" this year and the film "The Divine Fury" in 2019. "Due to safety and health reasons, the location and time for Woo's entrance to the military camp will be kept closed without official media or farewell events," his agency, KeyEast, said in a statement.

TelevisionJune 24, 2020

[Herald Interview] CHA head reveals ambition to promote Korean cultural heritage worldwide

Cultural Heritage Administration head Chung Jae-suk on Monday talked about her ambition to play a more active role in promoting Korean cultural heritage around the world. “The CHA’s role has been restricted to preserving cultural heritage. Even now this role accounts for a large part of our work, up to 70-80 percent of our budget. I understand the importance of preserving cultural heritage but from now on we have to also consider how we will promote these items,” Chung said

CultureJune 24, 2020

Actor Park Bo-gum to join Navy in August: officials

Actor Park Bo-gum is expected to join the Navy's military band in August to fulfill his mandatory military service, officials said Wednesday. Last month, the 26 year-old celebrity applied for a naval military band and honor guard unit. After going through a performance test and interview, he was deemed qualified to be a member specializing in piano, according to the officials. Park will begin his service on Aug. 31 at the Navy Education and Training Command in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Pro

TelevisionJune 24, 2020

‘Fanfare,’ a fantastical toss and turn of five villains overnight

While the sound of fanfare precedes celebratory events these days, in the past it often marked the start of a war that would leave all dead bar the victors. To the vanquished, the sound of the fanfare would be horrific, but to the vanquisher it would mark the start of a party. Likewise, crime-thriller “Fanfare” from aspiring Korean director Lee Don-ku is an 88-minute whirlwind of blood-splattering horror and satirical humor, as five of the cruelest villains tangle with each other i

FilmJune 24, 2020

Korean artists express support for BLM Korea Arts

Around 200 people working in the art industry signed the BLM Korea Arts online declaration, which calls for racial equality in South Korean art facilities. Titled “Korean art facilities need to reflect and reform regarding the racial discrimination problem,” the online declaration was released June 15 by Korean artist Young-jun Tak, who works in Seoul and Berlin. Tak’s body of work focuses on issues such as discrimination against LGBTQ individuals by Korean Christians, somet

Arts & DesignJune 24, 2020

Remake of ‘Hotel del Luna’ coming to the US

Last year’s popular drama “Hotel Del Luna” will be remade into a US television series. Studio Dragon, the maker of the drama, which recently opened a US branch, announced a collaboration with Skydance TV on Wednesday to plan and produce the US remake. Skydance TV is the production company behind “Terminator: Dark Fate,” “6 Underground” and “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” among others. This is the first time a Korean studio will be w

TelevisionJune 24, 2020

Painting album by Joseon master painter to go on block next month

A painting album by Jeong Seon (1676~1759), an artist hailed as the Joseon-period master of landscape paintings, will be put on auction for the first time next month. Designated as Treasure No. 1796, the painting album of Haeak palgyeong and Songyu palhyeondo comprises 16 paintings by Jeong Seon -- eight scenes of Mt. Kumgang (Haeak palgyeong) located in today‘s North Korea and eight paintings depicting the eight Confucian scholars of China’s Song Dynasty (Songyu palhyeondo). The

Arts & DesignJune 24, 2020

‘Negotiations’ to resume overseas shooting in July

Star-studded blockbuster “Negotiations” may become the first Korean film to restart overseas shooting since the COVID-19 pandemic virtually stopped all international travel The film’s local distributor, Megabox Plus M on Tuesday announced that the film’s producers will return to shooting in Jordan in early July. The producers of the film starring top-tier actors Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin halted all overseas shooting plans earlier this year, just after the global out

FilmJune 23, 2020

Lee Seung-gi, Jasper Liu team up in Netflix travel show ‘Twogether’

Netflix’s upcoming variety show “Twogether” features star actors from two countries who set off on a journey to meet their fans in Asia. Featuring Korean actor-singer Lee Seung-gi and Taiwanese actor Jasper Liu, the upcoming show will draw the bromance between the two stars as they overcome language and cultural barriers on their way to connect with fans. Star variety producer Cho Hyo-jin -- who produced Netflix’s “Busted” -- and producer Ko Min-seok have

TelevisionJune 23, 2020

[Herald Review] ‘Mozart!’ sings of miracle

The curtain went up on the musical “Mozart!” amid tears. The show depicts the great maestro as an ordinary human being that the modern audience can easily relate to. The musical, written by celebrated duo Michael Kunze and Sylvester Levay, features Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) as a fragile being trapped by his childhood. Though a grown man, Mozart is consistently haunted by Amade, the personification of his genius.   Though Mozart is an 18th century figure, the musical

PerformanceJune 23, 2020