London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

Fringe visit: Tiger in Blossom

This is a simple retelling for children of the Korean folk tale of the Tiger and the Woodcutter, in which a woodcutter, about to be killed by a tiger in the forest, persuades the beast that he used to be human, and is in fact his elder brother. The initially sceptical tiger eventually falls for … [Read More]

Fringe visit: The Song of Beast (after Hamlet)

Imagine Hamlet scripted / co-directed by Park Chan-Wook (Oldboy), Ryu Seung-wan (Veteran / Unjust) and Yoon Jong-bin (Nameless Gangster), with dialogue input from Yang Ik-joon (Breathless), and music by Cho Young-wook (Oldboy) and you’re starting to get close what this production is like. The setting is moved from Denmark to an abattoir which has a … [Read More]

Fringe visit: Chef – Come Dine with Us

A Korean physical theatre / comedy performance involving cooking? Does that sound like Nanta? Well, yes. We loved Nanta when it came to Kingston and were happy to see what this seemingly very similar show had to offer. Judging by the poster, it certainly had a thoroughly ripped male torso to entice you. The scenario … [Read More]

Fringe visit: Snap

This show was far from being my highlight of the Fringe. The audience seemed to enjoy it, and the reviews are very favourable, particularly from families with children. I myself couldn’t help feeling that I’d seen it all before: the sort of sleight of hand magic tricks you see done on TV variety shows.  On … [Read More]

Fringe visit: Tago – Korean Drum II

On paper, one hour of Korean drumming doesn’t sound appealing, but this type of show is consistently popular with fringe-goers. There is enough variety to keep the audience interested, from Buddhist temple percussion to Samulnori, and the energy and enthusiasm of the performers is infectious. There is also some very non-traditional percussion: a trolley which … [Read More]

Minister Thae moves south

Here are a few links relating to Minister Thae Yong-ho’s defection. Minister Thae was the cultural attache at the DPRK embassy in London, and according to reports effectively the deputy head of mission. At LKL, we came across him during the second art exhibition held at the embassy back in 2014. He was probably there … [Read More]

Event news: Chuseok at the British Museum

Advance notice of the Autumn festivities at the British Museum, coinciding with the start of the K-music Festival. More details coming soon Chuseok Festival at the British Museum Thursday, 15 September 2016, 11.00am-5.00pm: “Understanding Chuseok” Lectures and musical performances Friday, 16 September 2016, 6.00-8.30pm: “Celebrating Chuseok: the Korean Harvest Moon Festival” Musical performances, K-pop DJ, … [Read More]

Krys Lee featured in the Guardian

There’s a really good interview with Krys Lee (Drifting House, How I Became a North Korean) in The Guardian: “The acclaimed short story writer talks about her debut novel, trying to understand her violent father and moving back from the US to South Korea”. The novel is available on Amazon from 18 August. Krys Lee … [Read More]

Brief review: Taming of the Shrew, at the KCC

It was a great treat to see a shortened version of ‘Taming of The Shrew’ at the Korean Cultural Centre recently, performed in English by EDP, student drama club of Soon Chun Hyang University. Even if the academic talks that preceded it were not quite as lively, one valuable outcome of attending the seminar was … [Read More]

A selection of clippings from Rio 2016

1. The ROK team’s opening parade: who’s the foreign-looking chap who can’t tuck his shirt in or do his top button up? 2. The first selfie to go viral — gymnast Lee Eun-Ju (ROK) with Hong Un Jong (DPRK) (photo: Reuters): 3. The first world record of the games – in archery: “South Korean world … [Read More]

Songlines reviews some Korean releases

As if to warm us up for this year’s K-music Festival, Songlines July issue reviews three recent Korean CDs: The one of most interest to past attendees of the festival will be a review of Jambinai’s latest release, A Hermitage. Songlines were strangely lukewarm about it. Not so Consequence of Sound: “Experimental outfit blends traditional Korean … [Read More]

K-music 2016 – the official press release

The 2016 K-music festival offers a really exciting line-up. Here’s the official press release with links to more details about the individual concerts. Book your tickets at www.serious.org.uk/k-music – where you can also get a festival pass: all 7 concerts for just £70. There’s also a special section dedicated to the festival on the KCCUK website. K-MUSIC … [Read More]