K-pop meets orchestra

SM Classics Live 2025 with SPO to present orchestral versions of SM's hit songs, feature K-pop stars Minho and Wendy The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and SM Entertainment will present an inaugural concert series this month, featuring hit music of the entertainment powerhouse artists including BoA, Girls' Generation, Red Velvet, NCT, asepa, Exo, SHInee, RIIZE and more. Titled “SM Classics Live 2025 with Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra,” the two-day concerts will feature SM Entertainment’s most belov

Feb. 4, 2025

Ahn Eun-me’s kaleidoscopic 'Dragons' to tour UK

Ahn Eun Me Dance Company, the South Korean contemporary dance troupe led by choreographer Ahn Eun-me, will embark on an eight-city tour across the UK in February and March with its visually striking production, “Dragons,” according to Dance Consortium. Celebrated for her avant-garde choreography, Ahn blends dance, music, holograms and her signature vivid costumes in “Dragons,” a kaleidoscopic production that fuses modern and traditional dance styles from across Asia. Premiered in 2021, “Dragons”

Feb. 2, 2025

Game on with 'gugak': how Korean traditional music ventures into gaming industry

National Gugak Center, National Theater of Korea deepen collaboration with gaming industry Pearl Abyss, the video game developer known for its sandbox-style fantasy MMORPG Black Desert, received the commendation from the Culture Ministry on Dec. 27 during its year-end ceremony. Why? It was because of "gugak," or the traditional Korean music. The award was presented at the National Gugak Center in Seoul. Pearl Abyss launched Land of Morning Light: Seoul, an expansion for Black Desert, on Sept. 12

Jan. 29, 2025

Staying in Seoul for Lunar New Year? Check out these traditional fun, festive programs

From Monday to Thursday, a range of programs at different cultural venues will give visitors the chance to dive into traditional celebrations.

Jan. 25, 2025

Ambiguous Dance Company joins Coldplay for visual project 'A Film For The Future'

Dance company to perform in Seoul, France, Switzerland Ambiguous Dance Company has collaborated once again with the British rock band Coldplay on their visual project "A Film For The Future." This follows their previous collaboration in 2021 in the dance video for Coldplay's song "Higher Power." "A Film For The Future" is an experimental visual project based on Coldplay’s 10th album "Moon Music" (2024), involving over 150 artists worldwide. The 44-minute project released Wednesday through Coldpl

Jan. 24, 2025

Time travel to meet century-old clowns, spirits in 'Gwangdae'

'Gwangdae' runs until Feb. 16 with English subtitles The National Jeongdong Theater’s latest ambitious production, "Gwangdae," is running as part of the 2025 K-Culture Series. Meaning "clown" in Korean, gwangdae refers to traditional Korean performers who are versatile artists skilled in a variety of forms of entertainment, including singing, dancing and acrobatics. This 80-minute show offers a vibrant fusion of Korea’s traditional art forms, presented as an immersive spectacle of music, dance a

Jan. 23, 2025

'Unsuk Chin Edition' wins 2025 ICMA contemporary music category

'With six large-scale works spanning two decades of her output, this edition is also the most comprehensive and faithful portrait of one of the essential musical authors of the first quarter of the 21st century,' ICMA writes. The "Unsuk Chin Edition," a comprehensive recording of works by Korean composer Chin Unsuk performed by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, has won the 2025 International Classical Music Award in the category for contemporary music. The ICMA jury praised the recording for "c

Jan. 22, 2025

Behind new works: Where does inspiration come from?

ARKO's selections inspired by true events, novels, movies, reflecting deep contemplation on artists, forms of art For 17 years, Arts Council Korea, a government-funded organization dedicated to fostering artistic creativity and cultural exchange, has served as a platform showcasing new works of performing arts headlined under ARKO Selection. Starting this month, 31 productions will be staged at venues across Seoul throughout the year, presenting fresh perspectives and innovation. The second batc

Jan. 22, 2025

Seoul's ambitious ballet gamble

Sejong Center for the Performing Arts 2025 lineup features largest-ever in-house productions Seoul Metropolitan Ballet, established last year as Korea's first and only public contemporary ballet company, enters its second year with an ambitious goal: establishing itself as a cornerstone of contemporary ballet on the global stage. “The greatest challenge over the past year was building the company’s own repertoire,” said Ahn Ho-sang, CEO of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, during a pres

Jan. 22, 2025

'Swan Lake' to Ibsen: LG Arts Center reveals 2025 season

Season package tickets go on sale Tuesday LG Arts Center has unveiled a 2025 season lineup that celebrates the center's 25th anniversary. The lineup includes iconic dance works by legendary contemporary artists such as Matthew Bourne and Pina Bausch, collaborations between Korea’s leading pianists and world-renowned orchestras, and new theater productions that build on the success of last year’s Korean adaptation of "The Cherry Orchard." Matthew Bourne, Royal Ballet gala and Pina Bausch Matthew

Jan. 20, 2025

'The Man Who Laughs' returns with star-studded cast

The hit production features four actors including NCT's Doyoung for lead role Gwynplaine The Korean original musical “The Man Who Laughs” returned with its fourth run last week. Based on the classic novel by Victor Hugo, who described it as one of his most significant works, the adaptation was directed and scripted by Robert Johanson, with music composed by Frank Wildhorn, known for his work on “Jekyll & Hyde,” “Synaro,” and “Mata Hari,” which are all being performed simultaneously in Seoul. Jac

Jan. 17, 2025

CJ ENM brings back musical classics

Fan favorites '42nd Street,' 'Kinky Boots' return South Korean entertainment giant CJ ENM is set to revive a string of beloved musical classics this year. Returning after five years, the musical "Werther," based on Goethe's "The Sorrows of Young Werther" and revolving around the story of Werther's sublime love for Charlotte, will feature a a star-studded cast that includes Um Ki-joon, Jeon Mi-do, Yang Yo-seob, Kim Min-seok, Lee Ji-hye and Ryu In-ah. Having premiered in 2000, the musical has been

Jan. 14, 2025

'Il Tenore' takes home grand prize at Korea Musical Awards

Hong Kwang-ho, Kim Soo-ha shine as best actor and actress, 'Hadestown' takes home six awards The musical "Il Tenore," or "The Tenor" in English, won the Grand Prize at the 9th Korea Musical Awards ceremony held at the Universal Arts Center in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, Monday. Premiered in Seoul in 2023, the musical tells the story of a medical student aspiring to become Korea’s first opera tenor during the 1930s Japanese colonial period. Inspired by the real-life story of Lee In-sun (1907–1960), the n

Jan. 14, 2025

'Let's compete, Berlin Philharmonic': New Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra CEO

Jung Jae-wal aims to make the Seoul-based orchestra as competitive as the city, fully backing SPO Artistic Director Jaap van Zweden To become a leading ensemble capable of competing with the Berlin Philharmonic: This is the ambitious goal announced by Jung Jae-wal, the new CEO of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, during a press conference Monday. "Seoul ranks sixth on the Global Power City Index. It is inevitable for an orchestra in such a city to be equally competitive," said Jung, 60, in layin

Jan. 13, 2025

'The Lives of Others' explores humanity beyond ideology in Korean stage adaptation

'Placing respect, compassion and humanity above any ideology,' says German film director What does it truly mean to understand another human being? This is the question that lies at the heart of the Korean stage adaptation of “The Lives of Others,” currently running at the LG Arts Center. Based on Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s acclaimed 2006 German film -- which won the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film -- the production marks actor Sohn Sang-gyu’s directorial debut. Set in

Jan. 13, 2025