Beast rumored to be starting own talent agency

K-pop boy band Beast may be taking on a new venture in the entertainment industry. 　The group, which celebrated its seventh anniversary earlier this month, is reportedly partnering with a former producer from JYP Pictures -- a moving pictures unit of K-pop powerhouse JYP Entertainment -- to create a new entertainment agency, according to industry insiders on Thursday. 　With this new project, Beast is setting its sights beyond the music industry with the aim of appearing in more dramas, variety s

PerformanceOct. 27, 2016

[Herald Review] Contemporary ballet meets Korean folklore in ‘Sin-si’

The Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theater’s latest production “Sin-Si, the Festival of the Sun” is the epitome of stage culture fusion, unifying contemporary and classical ballet movements with traditional Korean music and dance. Depicting the motif of the Dangun Mythology through a hodgepodge of dancing styles, the Sejong Center’s newest performance piece tells the 7,000-year-old tale of Hwanung, the son of heaven, who descended to Earth to provide guidance to the rivaling Ung (bear) and Ho (tiger)

PerformanceOct. 27, 2016

Actor Namgung Won receives national order for cultural contribution

Veteran actor Namgung Won, one of the most prominent Korean film stars from the 1960s to ’80s, on Thursday received the Order of Cultural Merit, Silver Crown, the second highest medal awarded to those who have significantly contributed to the cultural development of the country.“I am proud that I was able to devote my youth to acting during the 1960s, a time when Korean popular culture and film blossomed. I miss those times,” Namgung told The Korea Herald ahead of the awards ceremony, held Thurs

CultureOct. 27, 2016

Israel unveils ‘oldest’ Hebrew mention of Jerusalem

JERUSALEM (AFP) -- Israeli archaeologists Wednesday unveiled a seventh century B.C. text they said contains the earliest mention in Hebrew of Jerusalem outside the Bible, prompting officials to stress the Jewish connection to the city.“For Israeli archaeology, this is the first mention in Hebrew of the city of Jerusalem outside the New Testament,” Amir Ganor of Israel’s antiquities authority told AFP as the papyrus was presented in Jerusalem. The antiquities authority said the papyrus, found nea

CultureOct. 27, 2016

Hollywood remake of ‘Sunny’ underway

The hit Korean movie “Sunny” is getting a US remake, CJ Entertainment said Thursday.The company is currently engaged in the production process with RatPac Entertainment, run by Brett Ratner, the director of the “Rush Hour” movies.  Heather Hach, who wrote the 2003 remake of “Freaky Friday,” will write the script. The director has yet to be chosen. The original “Sunny,” directed by Korean auteur Kang Hyung-chul, tells the story of a group of middle-aged women who come together after being apart f

FilmOct. 27, 2016

What happened when Nadia got pregnant?

“The Mothers” By Brit BennettRiverhead (278 pages, $26)The Mothers of Upper Room Chapel are worried about the future: “Anyone knows a church is only as good as its women, and when we all passed on to glory, who would hold this church up?” they demand, gazing with disapproval at the teenagers in their small Southern California congregation. Who will carry on? Not the “sullen and slow” boys, not the girls, who are “even worse.”How can any community survive with such a disappointing legacy?“The Mot

BooksOct. 26, 2016

Memoir of ‘Glamour and Dysfunction’

“Scream: A Memoir of Glamour and Dysfunction” By Tama JanowitzDey Street Books (304 pages, $25.99)When author Tama Janowitz was 15 years old, her pothead father suggested she enter a wet T-shirt contest if she couldn’t find a summer job. As one of New York City’s “It-Girl” writers in the 1980s, she rubbed elbows with the likes of Andy Warhol and the who’s who of magazine editors by day, and retreated to a meat locker-turned-apartment at night. Later, she traded city life for upstate New York, wh

BooksOct. 26, 2016

B.A.P’s Bang Yong-guk diagnosed with panic disorder

Bang Yong-guk, the lead vocalist for K-pop group B.A.P, will be halting all promotional activities due to a recent diagnosis of panic disorder. “I will do my best to return stronger,” Bang said on Twitter on Tuesday. “As a leader, I am regretful and sorry that I cannot stand by (B.A.P) members and our fans.”The group’s management agency TS Entertainment also followed up with a statement that said, “putting (Bang’s) fast recovery as our top priority, we decided to start the album promotion withou

PerformanceOct. 26, 2016

Jeon Ji-yoon to debut as solo artist

Jeon Ji-yoon, a former member of disbanded K-pop girl group 4Minute, is gearing up for her debut as a soloist. 　The 26-year-old artist will be releasing a new album “Day and Night” next month, according to her management agency JS E&M on Wednesday.The upcoming album’s two main tracks -- “I Do” and “Magnet” -- were written and composed by the singer herself. “The album is called ‘Day and Night’ because ‘I Do’ is perfect for daytime and ‘Magnet’ for night time,” said JS E&M, which she recently joi

PerformanceOct. 26, 2016

Seoul Fashion Week closes with all eyes on budding local designers

From the latest floral design trends for next year’s spring fashion to the daringly dark “Suicide Squad” inspired collection, HERA Seoul Fashion Week unveiled the latest collections from some of the country’s best up-and-coming designers. Held from Oct. 17 to 22 at Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Seoul Fashion Week showcased 41 designer brands and six global companies, while the “Generation Next Seoul,” SFW’s trade show, included more than 100 designer brands and young designers, as well as group fashi

Arts & DesignOct. 26, 2016

[Herald Interview] Park Bo-gum opens up on two sides of Lee Young

Actor Song Joong-ki made viewers swoon as a dashing army lieutenant in “Descendants of the Sun” earlier this year, but the latter half of 2016 has seen actor Park Bo-gum stir the hearts of many as Prince Lee Young in “Love in the Moonlight.”The historical romance series, which began in August and wrapped up last week on KBS, surpassed the 20 percent viewership mark after just three episodes. Park’s portrayal of an impish Joseon era prince, his gradual transformation into a thoughtful ruler, and

TelevisionOct. 26, 2016

Tokyo festival produces heartwarming trilogy of Asian films

TOKYO (AP) -- Cannes-winning Brillante Mendoza is among three directors tapped by the Tokyo International Film Festival to create "Reflections," a trilogy that depicts the intertwining of stories among Asian nations.Be it a Filipino worker in Japan or a Japanese bureaucrat in love with a Cambodian woman, the main characters are old and lonely, caught in an Asian nation other than their own, in films that reflect the real-life erasing of barriers in this region. Having premiered on Wednesday, "Re

FilmOct. 26, 2016

New biography explores real-life Victorian horror behind Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’

“Something in the Blood: The Untold Story of Bram Stoker, the Man who Wrote ‘Dracula’” By David J. SkalLiveright (652 pages, $35)Several years ago, I read the book “Dracula” for the first time, expecting that Bram Stoker’s 19th century fable of blood, lust and the undead would be a quaint echo of Dracula’s many screen incarnations. I was astonished at its powerful sense of creeping, unstoppable horror, still spellbinding more than 100 years after its publication.In “Something in the Blood: Bram

BooksOct. 26, 2016

Beatty becomes first US author to win Man Booker Prize

LONDON (AFP) -- Paul Beatty has become the first US author to win the Man Booker Prize for his novel “The Sellout,” which the novelist said should not be read as a “mono-directional” take on race.The jury behind the world’s most prestigious English-language literary award said the novel was a “shocking and unexpectedly funny” portrayal of Beatty’s native Los Angeles, using satire to explore racial equality in a fictional neighborhood.Beatty said readers should think of the novel as a work of fic

BooksOct. 26, 2016