-
Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival unveils 2nd lineup including Little Simz
The 2025 Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival has announced its second list of artists, featuring a diverse mix of musicians from both Korea and abroad. Performing in Korea for the first time at this year’s Pentaport is British hip-hop artist and actress Little Simz. She rose to global acclaim after winning the Brit Award for Best New Artist and the Mercury Prize in 2022. Her 2021 studio album "Sometimes I Might Be Introvert" received widespread praise for its grand orchestration and deep personal st
May 19, 2025 -
'Maybe Happy Ending’ clinches Drama League and Critics' Circle awards
In a landmark season for Korean theater on the international stage, “Maybe Happy Ending” added two more accolades on Friday to its growing list of honors at the 91st Annual Drama League Awards. The Broadway adaptation of the beloved South Korean musical won outstanding production of a musical, and director Michael Arden was awarded outstanding direction of a musical. The wins mark another significant milestone in the show's journey from intimate Seoul theaters to Broadway’s spotlight. Earlier th
May 18, 2025 -
'The Rising World,' Seoul's new opera blends myth, invention and global vision
In its first venture into producing an original opera, the Seoul Arts Center has partnered with an international creative team — and chosen English as the language of performance. “The Rising World: The Spirit of Water,” set to premiere in May, draws inspiration from Korea’s historical water clock and the country’s rich folklore surrounding water spirits. According to the creative team, the opera is not an adaptation of an existing tale, but a newly imagined story that weaves Korean cultural mot
May 18, 2025 -
Ballet Festival Korea welcomes season of connection and legacy
As late spring melts into early summer, Seoul once again turns to ballet to usher in the season with elegance and power. The 15th edition of Ballet Festival Korea kicked off on May 9, with a double bell from the newly established Seoul Metropolitan Ballet — "Walking Mad" and "Bliss" — by acclaimed Swedish choreographer Johan Inger, running through Sunday. This year’s program under the theme of connection, brings together 12 dance companies for 26 performances and five accompanying events, rangin
May 16, 2025 -
Sohn Min-soo, Lim Yunchan join four hands
The celebrated teacher-pupil pianists Sohn Min-soo and Lim Yunchan will share the stage this July in a rare four-hands concert. The “Hyundai Card Culture Project 30: Sohn Min-soo & Lim Yunchan” concert, part of Hyundai Card’s Culture Project series, takes place July 14 at Lotte Concert Hall and July 15 at Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall. The program features a rare duo recital by two of Korea’s most renowned pianists. Sohn, a laureate of the Honens International Piano Competition and a respected
May 14, 2025 -
La Scala names Chung Myung-whun music director, first Asian to hold the position
In a historic move, Teatro alla Scala in Milan announced South Korean conductor Chung Myung-whun as its next music director Monday, appointing the first Asian musician to the post in the opera house’s 247-year history. Chung, 72, will take up the position following the conclusion of Riccardo Chailly’s tenure at the end of 2026 and will serve through February 2030. His appointment was unanimously approved by La Scala’s board of directors during a meeting Monday. “Over the years, Maestro Chung has
May 12, 2025 -
Did Simcheong truly want to give herself up for her father? 'Pure Heart' asks
At the prow of a boat amid crashing waves, a small girl plunges into a vast ocean. The iconic scene of Korean folktale "Simcheong" is the epitome of filial devotion: The girl casts herself into the Indangsu Sea to restore her blind father’s sight. In “Pure Heart,” the National Jeongdong Theater’s latest reinterpretation of this age-old tale, Simcheong awakens after plunging into the shadowy abyss not in darkness or deep blue, but in soft pink light and waves, in a glowing, luminous undersea real
May 12, 2025 -
Matthew Bourne’s all-male ‘Swan Lake’ returns to Korea for 30th anniversary
Matthew Bourne’s groundbreaking "Swan Lake" — the ballet that catapulted the British choreographer to international fame — is returning to Korea for the first time in six years to mark its 30th anniversary. Reimagined with a menacing and powerful male ensemble of swans in place of the traditional female corps de ballet, the production has garnered both critical acclaim and popular attention worldwide. Since its Korean debut in 2005, the production has been staged four times in the country, drawi
May 12, 2025 -
Explore emotional duality of high-profile choreographer at Asia premiere of double bill
Acclaimed Swedish dancer-turned-choreographer Johan Inger says he is impressed with Korea’s growing commitment to contemporary dance and sees a bright future for the newly established Seoul Metropolitan Ballet. The 57-year-old artist is in Seoul for the Asia premiere of his double bill, “Walking Mad” and “Bliss,” set to run Friday through May 18 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. Following Ohad Naharin’s “Decadance” in March, Inger is the latest high-profile figure in the company’s bo
May 7, 2025 -
William Kentridge returns with provocative works that ask rather than answer
This month, audiences in South Korea will once again encounter the haunting, layered world of the South African artist known for collapsing the boundaries between drawing, film, music and performance. William Kentridge, whose diverse works have previously been showcased at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, the Asia Culture Center and the Amorepacific Museum of Art, returns to Seoul with two of his recent works under the GS Arts Center’s Artists series: "Sibyl," and multi
May 7, 2025 -
'Maybe Happy Ending' wins top award from New York Drama Critics' Circle
The original Korean musical "Maybe Happy Ending" has been named Best Musical by the New York Drama Critics' Circle. According to the organization's website on Wednesday, the musical -- a collaboration between writer Park Chun-hue, also known as Hue Park, and composer Will Aronson -- won the prestigious award at the 89th annual ceremony. It secured a majority on the first ballot, receiving 15 out of 23 votes from active New York-area drama critics. The New York Drama Critics' Circle, presented an
May 7, 2025 -
Sold-out final run of 'Godot' by two veteran stars
It’s not every day a theater production sells out instantly in Korea -- let alone one headlined by two octogenarian actors. But Shin Gu, 88, and Park Geun-hyung, 84, have done it again. Tickets for their final run of “Waiting for Godot” were snapped up the moment they went on sale. The production runs from Friday through May 25 at the National Theater of Korea’s Daloreum Theater. This farewell staging marks the end of a landmark collaboration that has captivated audiences since its 2023 premiere
May 6, 2025 -
'Maybe Happy Ending’ earns 10 Tony nominations
“Maybe Happy Ending,” a Broadway adaptation of the beloved South Korean musical, has earned 10 nominations at the 78th annual Tony Awards, including best musical, best direction of a musical for Michael Arden, and best actor in a musical for Darren Criss. This achievement places it alongside "Buena Vista Social Club" and "Death Becomes Her" as one of the most-nominated shows of the year. The winners will be announced at the ceremony on June 8. Set in a near-futuristic Seoul, "Maybe Happy Ending"
May 6, 2025 -
Yoo Seung-ho returns to stage as Brutus in reimagining of 'Julius Caesar'
Actors Yoo Seung-ho and Son Ho-jun, who last shared the stage in the Korean production of "Angels in America," are reuniting for "Killing Caesar." The new theatrical project will run from May 10 to July 20 at Sogang University's Mary Hall in Seoul. The actors shared that their return to the stage — less than a year after their last performance — was driven by what they described as “a longing that overpowered the fear of the stage.” "The stage is a place of learning for actors. And I wanted to e
May 1, 2025 -
Unflinching Spanish stage performer dares audiences 'to confront their demons'
Spanish multidisciplinary artist and theater director Angelica Liddell has come to Korea with her searing and provocative play, “Liebestod. The Smell of Blood Does Not Leave My Eyes. Juan Belmonte.” “Liebestod,” which premiered at the 2021 Avignon Festival, marks the third installment in Belgian director Milo Rau’s “History of Theatre” series. The work draws on the legendary Spanish bullfighter Juan Belmonte and the “Liebestod” (Love-Death) from Wagner’s opera “Tristan und Isolde.” Death, blood,
May 1, 2025