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For culture lovers, a year of diversity

For lovers of the arts, there is plenty to look forward to in 2005.
Art exhibits will feature the work of Matthew Barney, the Barbizon School and Australian video artists.
On the dance scene, noted contemporary choreographer Pina Bausch and Carmen Mota’s flamenco group will visit Seoul.
The American musical “The Sound of Music,” as well as the French musical “Notre Dame de Paris,” will be staged this winter.
For those of a less classical bent, there are concerts by Marilyn Manson, Norah Jones and Sting.
So mark your calendar, and get ready for an active cultural year.

Concerts:
“Norah Jones in Seoul”
March 5 at 7:30 p.m.
COEX Convention Hall
Norah Jones, an American singer-songwriter, is visiting Seoul for the first time. In 2000, she released her first album, “Come Away with Me,” which blends elements of jazz, soul, country and folk-pop. Her latest album, “Feels like Home,” has been nominated for six Grammy awards. The concert in Seoul will feature songs from both albums.
Ticket: 50,000-250,000 won
02-541-6234

“Marilyn Manson: Shocking Again 2005”
Feb. 2 at 8 p.m.
Olympic Hall, Olympic Park
“Shocking,” “exceptional,” “bizarre,” “provocative” and “strange” are the words the local organizer uses to express the concept of the musician’s second concert in Korea. Manson’s last concert in Seoul, which was held in October 2003, took place after the Korea Media Ratings Board had denied him permission three times. The board finally approved his concert after the musician signed a contract agreeing not to defile religious or national symbols or do anything sexually graphic while on stage. For the upcoming concert in February the local organizer says Manson will turn the stage into “a goth-rock opera.” To be admitted, you must be 18 years old or over (born before Feb. 1, 1987).
Ticket: 66,000 won-77,000 won
02-3141-3488

“Sting: Sacred Love Tour”
Jan. 28 at 8 p.m., Jan. 29 at 7 p.m.
Olympic gymnasium, Olympic Park
Sting, a British singer who is known for his intriguing lyrics, is again visiting Korea. The musician has appealed to a mass audience of adult pop fans and young listeners worldwide, and has produced a number of hits, including “We’ll Be Together” and “If You Love Somebody.” The concert in Seoul is the musician’s second visit to Korea, and the first in nine years.
Ticket: 55,000 won-165,000 won
02-1588-9088

“Pat Metheny: The Way Up”
April 26-30; Weekdays at 8 p.m., Saturday at 6 p.m.
LG Arts Center
The jazz guitarist performs in Seoul for the second time. Metheny joined Gary Burton’s band at the age of 19, and he’s played or recorded with dozens of the industry’s most innovative musicians, including Jaco Pastorius. In 1977, he formed the Pat Metheny Group, consisting of himself, pianist Lyle Mays and bassist Steve Rodby. The band has won consecutive Grammy awards for its last seven recordings.
The concert in Seoul, which is part of a worldwide tour in 2005, will feature songs from the group’s new recording, “The Way Up.”
Ticket: 30,000 won-90,000 won
02-2005-0114

“Richard Clayderman in Seoul”
Feb. 27 and 28 at 7 p.m.
Olympic Hall, Olympic Park
Clayderman is known as “the prince of romance” among his fans in Korea, and was so dubbed by Nancy Reagan.
His hit, “Ballade Pour Adeline,” is one of the most popular instrumental pieces among Koreans. Tickets for his three concerts in Korea in 1990, 1996 and 1999 were all sold out.
Clayderman’s style combines classics with pop standards, including remakes of songs by the Beatles and from “West Side Story.” His concerts in Korea also have attracted a wide audience because the musician is known for playing popular Korean songs. Two years ago, he participated in an album release consisting of noted piano pieces by other artists. He has sold 70 million copies of his albums, with several platinum discs to his credit.
Ticket: 55,000 won-165,000 won
02-1588-7890

Musicals/Opera:
The Sound of Music
Feb. 12 through 20: Monday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; other days at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sejong Center for the Performing Arts
The original Broadway production team is visiting Seoul to present the renowned musical. For the show in Seoul, the organizers of the local production are using an exact replica of a stage set that was used during a Broadway run in 1998. Family discounts are available.
Tickets: 30,000 won-140,000 won
02-1588-7890

Notre Dame de Paris
Feb. 25 through March 20: Tuesdays to Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m; Sundays and holidays at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Sejong Center for the Performing Arts
This famous French musical is coming to Seoul, for those who want to see a “non-Broadway style” show.
Based on “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” by Victor Hugo, “Notre Dame de Paris” had its first performance in 1998 in France, selling more than 2 million tickets there, and it has been called the “national musical” since then.
It has been performed in Canada, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy, drawing international acclaim. Its performance in Korea will be the first in Asia.
To create the same set as in the original French version, the production is bringing heavy stage equipment and accessories from France. Also, the performers have been chosen from one of three original teams that performed in France.
The main character, Quasimodo, will be played by Matt Laurent, a well-known singer and musical actor from Canada.
The show will include a combination of modern dance, acrobatics and break dancing set to spectacular music.
Tickets: 40,000 won-150,000 won
02-1544-1555

Goguryeo, Goguryeo
March 30 through April 2 at 7:30 p.m.
Sejong Center for the Performing Arts
This opera by the New Seoul Opera Troupe, which was produced partly in response to the recent controversy with China over the history of the Goguryeo kingdom, depicts the life story of Gwanggaeto, a “great king” of Goguryeo.
Tickets: 20,000 won- 200,000 won
02-399-1111

Dance:
Pina Bausch
June 22, 24, 25, 26: Weekdays at 8 p.m., weekends at 6 p.m.
LG Arts Center
One of the most innovative contemporary choreographers is performing in Seoul on themes related to Korea. Bausch, a founder of Tanztheater Wuppertal, created “Masurca Fogo” for Lisbon’s Expo in 1998. Since then, she’s choreographed a number of pieces inspired by cities around the world. The upcoming performance is part of a work commissioned by LG Arts Center, which is celebrating its fifth anniversary this year.
In November, the German choreographer visited the fishing village of Haeran to watch a traditional shaman’s ritual there in preparation for choreographing her latest work.
Tickets: 30,000 won-100,000 won
02-2005-0114

Bejart Ballet Lausanne in Daejeon
Feb. 12 and 13 at 7 p.m.
Daejeon Culture and Arts Center
A leading modern dance troupe led by Maurice Bejart is performing in Daejeon. The group, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, is known for mixing pop elements, such as performing to the music of Queen in costumes designed by Gianni Versace.
The troupe’s last performance at the Sejong Center for Performing Arts in Seoul ended with the famous song “The Show Must Go On” by Freddie Mercury and Queen. For the upcoming performance, the group will perform four pieces, including “Brel and Barbara,” “Wien, Wien,” “Firebird” and “Bolero.”
Tickets: 20,000 won-80,000 won
041-610-222

Carmen Mota’s Fuego
Through Jan. 9
Weekdays at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Seoul Arts Center
If the visit of Joaquin Cortes in Seoul last year fueled the fervor for flamenco in Korea, organizers of “Carmen Mota’s Fuego” say that this show will illustrate the modern trends of the dance genre.
Tickets: 30,000 won-100,000 won
02-1588-7890

DV8 Physical Theatre
March 31 through April 2
Weekdays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 6 p.m.
LG Arts Center
An English theater troupe is bringing a new contemporary production to Korea. The group, led by Lloyd Newson, whose production credits include “Dead Dreams of Monochrome Men” and “Strange Fish,” has established itself as one of the most provocative modern dance troupes.
Tickets: 30,000 won-70,000 won
02-2005-0114

Galleries:
“Matthew Barney”
Oct. 14 through Jan. 8, 2006
Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art
Matthew Barney is best known as the producer of the “Cremaster” films, a series of works created out of sequence. The films feature the artist in myriad roles, including characters as diverse as a satyr, a magician and a ram. He has been dubbed the most important artist of his generation, notably in the New York Times last year. For the exhibit in Seoul he is bringing his “Drawing Restraint” series.
02-2014-6901

“Artists from Leipzig”
April 9 through June 26
Arario Gallery, Cheonan
An exhibition of seven young, contemporary German painters, the show puts together artistic traditions of eastern Germany.
041-551-5100

“I Thought I Knew, But I was Wrong”
Feb. 25 through March 18
Ssamzie Space
The exhibition presents new video art from Australia, hosted in part by the Australian Center for Moving Images. Artists include Tracey Moffat, Linda Johnson and Patricia Peccinini, whose work was introduced at the Venice Biennale last year. Other works are by young Australian video artists.
02-3142-1695

“Furniture Design by Jean Prouve”
Jan. 21 through Feb. 20
Kukje Gallery
Works by the late Jean Prouve, a French furniture designer and architect, will be on display. The artist was first apprenticed to a blacksmith, Emile Robert, and then to the metal workshop of Szabo. His works have had immense influence on the development of “nomadic architecture” and portable furniture. The Seoul exhibit will include the designer’s innovative style of chairs and desks.
02-735-8449

“Art of Barbizon”
June 3 through late August
Hangaram Design Museum
An extensive collection from artists of the Barbizon School, considered the forerunners of the Impressionists, will be on display. The name derives from the village in northern France where most of the school’s painters resided. The exhibit in Seoul includes French landscape paintings from major European museums.
02-580-1536

by Park Soo-mee, Choi Sun-young