books – ScotsGay Arts

***** (5 stars)

“Haunting and Heartwarming”

Over the last few years, courtesy of my bonus granddaughter Maddy, I have become addicted to Korean drama on Netflix. Imagine my delight, therefore, when I came across the listing for this show!

I’m very happy to say it lived up to all my expectations and more. It was a joy to see and hear live actors speaking and singing Korean – and with subtitles projected on to the back screen, there was no problem understanding what was going on. [I even got to recognise familiar words and phrases…]

The Joseon dynasty ruled in Korea from 1392-1910, and has been a source of many period dramas, or ones where contemporary characters discover that they lived previous lives in that period. The costumes are gorgeous, the manners very elegant; there’s a lot of fighting with swords, and a huge amount of intrigue and skulduggery.

1457, the boy at rest contains gorgeous costumes, but no sword-fighting. There is, however, a very wicked plot surrounding the young king Danjon. His father died when he was only ten and his uncle, whom he greatly loved and admired, desired the throne for himself. Danjon stepped down from the throne, hoping to lead a quiet life with his beloved wife Jeongsun. His uncle, fearing that the young man would always be a focus for rebellion, banished him to a far away province. The new king still did not feel safe, even after torturing and executing anyone who opposed his rule: finally he sent his nephew the order to take poison.

This sounds as though the show is unmitigated misery – far from it! There is superb acting, wonderful music, lively dancing, drumming and singing, audience involvement, a lot of fun along the way, and the opportunity to reflect on concepts of fate and mortality.

The comic humour in the piece largely comes from three very lively Dokkaebi – day goblins – who live in the area to which the young king is exiled, and whose duty is to protect the area from bad humans. They come to investigate the humans in the audience – are we bad, in which case they can do terrible things to us? They are pranksters at heart, but principled ones…. They encourage our participation, narrate the story and add their own goblin commentary – how can these humans be so awful to each other? [How indeed?]

There is a magnificent confrontation between the young king and his uncle: the boy loves his people but the uncle says love is not enough in a king – he must have power. He demonstrates this when, later on, some of the boy king’s loyal ministers refuse to accept the man they see as a usurper. They must all be destroyed – there must be no more support for the exiled king.

The music is a brilliant and constant presence. There are some wonderful love songs and haunting songs of longing for the young king and his wife. I wish I could credit them by name, because they are both superb. The nobility of the young king is impressive – he rebukes anyone who calls him ‘your majesty’ because he doesn’t want them to suffer on his account. Even the official bringing the ‘gift’ of poison is treated with loving courtesy. His young wife, Jeongsun, refuses to accept help from the usurping king, preferring instead to support herself by dyeing cloth. She cherishes Danjon’s memory all her life, even when news of his death reaches her and she realises there is now no hope of meeting him again some day.

All this sounds very miserable – but it isn’t, even though it’s very sad. There are many moments of humour, and there are decent people who refuse to denounce the young king, and show him their love. The young couple’s sorrow is heartfelt and deeply moving to witness; we too feel sorrow at the loss of people we love. The show ends with a Requiem in which we are reminded that our loved ones who have died live on in our memories, and that by thinking of them we can help them reach a place of peace.

This is a superb show from Poem and Star Theatre Company, part of the Korean Season at the Fringe. Come and enjoy, be moved, and carry its haunting atmosphere and heartwarming affection with you as you go through this crowded city and into the rest of your life.1457, The Boy At Rest, Studio 1 at Assembly George Square (Venue 17) for more information go to: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/1457-the-boy-at-rest

**** (4 stars)

“What a joy!”

When I first came to Edinburgh I worked at the Quaker Meeting House, which in August became venue 40, and to venue 40 came Andy Hunter with the Theatre of Widdershins’ The King’s Got Donkey’s Ears. It was a huge pleasure to sit, as the venue staff member, in his performances and each time admire the skill of his storytelling and marvel at the set and puppets, all of which he’d built, the clever script and the wonderful soundtrack. And each year, I’d look for the Widdershins Fringe offering, and make sure I saw it.

It’s been a goodly number of years since Widdershins last visited Edinburgh, and Andy now has new knees, but his skill hasn’t diminished one bit. Snow White, Rose Red and Bear Brown is full of witty wordplay, clever alliteration, many clever topical references, and jokes that are sometimes really funny and sometimes delightfully groanworthy. Andy’s rapport with the audience is as close as ever, and we gladly join in when needed with glugs, groans, and bird noises – and even beard-pulling on occasion!

The story begins with a large black bird, a nest with a large and shiny blue egg in it, and a very small person with a tall red hat and a long grey beard who steals the egg. We see the many creatures that inhabit the forest – butterflies, fairies, and even a dragon.

In a lovely little cottage in this magical forest lived a poor woodcutter, Edward. He and his wife Damson, who was a healer and herbalist, were very happy – but as time went by, they realised they were lacking the one thing that would complete their life – a baby. Damson was overjoyed when she realised she was pregnant. While walking through the winter’s snow one day, she came across a perfect white rose. In leaning down to sniff it, she scratched herself on a thorn and a single drop of blood fell on to the snow. Somehow, Damson knew she was carrying a daughter: she wished that the child might be as perfect as the rose, as pure as the snow, and have lips as red as blood.

All was going well, when one day Edward went out into the forest and didn’t come back. Damson gave birth in the spring to not one but two little girls – Snow White and Rose Red – and, with Edward still absent, set about raising the two lively, delightful girls by herself. One winter’s night when the girls were eight years old, there was a knocking at the door – a huge brown bear, cold and hungry, stood on the doorstep…

There is so much to see on stage that I wish I were back being one of the venue staff so I could see the show over and over again. The puppets are delightful, so characterful and so varied I’d have a hard time choosing my favourite – it’s not just the babies, who are a real handful, and the wonderfully kind, helpful and feisty girls they grow into: there are their parents, all the forest creatures, the bear, and of course the big black bird and the gnome who began our story.

The set is full of fascinating things – the fir trees that pop up, surrounding the clearing in which the family live, the swings in the trees on which the girls love to play, a wonderful picnic full of scrumptious-looking cakes, the Very Big Book of the Gnome, at whose superb illustrations I’d love to get another look, and, and, and…

The story is engrossing, there’s much for both children and adults to laugh at; there’s suspense and some fear; there’s a lecture about gnomes and the difference between them and dwarves [who are always found in sevens]; we learn a lot of words to describe the different degrees of grumpiness, the best word being crabbit; and there’s the wonderful musical soundtrack running through the narrative.

The audience loved it! The show is a delight for people of all ages, and Andy is only here till August 17^th – so hurry and get a ticket before he disappears down to England and we have to wait another year for Theatre of Widdershins to appear in Edinburgh!

Snow White Rose Red Bear Brown, Scottish Storytelling Centre (Venue 30) for more information go to: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/snow-white-rose-red-bear-brown

Tag: books

1457, The Boy At Rest, Studio 1 at Assembly George Square (Venue 17)

Snow White Rose Red Bear Brown, Scottish Storytelling Centre (Venue 30) Review