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Category Archives: Physical theatre & mime

Cho-in Theatre previews their return to Edinburgh

02-Jul-08

Cho-in Theatre previews their return to Edinburgh

The Cho-in Theatre Company ended their two-week tour of England at the KCC on Monday. They're now off to the Avignon Festival before returning for their now regular slot at the Edinburgh Fringe in August. Cho-in was founded in 2002 by Chung-euy Park. It has a wily eye on the international market, with its productions generally non-verbal, and having hired an English international manager (Lucinda Walker - right), who introduced the company to the KCC audience this week. The company's first two productions sound homely enough. Their brochure says introduces their first production, The Train (70 mins), thus: This beautiful Korean folktale explores the fragility of everyday life, and the endurance of human love. Similarly, the second production: The Angel and the Woodcutter is a ...
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Korean Artists at the Edinburgh Fringe

25-Jun-08

Korean Artists at the Edinburgh Fringe

I spotted that the Cho-in Theatre Company are putting on a performance at the KCC this coming Monday (30 June). A still from their production The Angel and the Woodcutter is shown on the right. This notice got me thinking about the Edinburgh Fringe, which was choc-full of Korean talent last year. Same again this year, with the emphasis on "physical theatre", including the b-boy crew who gave us the "Ballerina who loves b-boys" last year. Some more traditional performances as well. Here's the results of typing "Korea" into the Edinburgh Fringe website. Do check the website for any changes, and for venue details. Yo! Chunhyang - A Pansori Musical of Chunhyang Fusion musical retelling of Korea's Chunhyangga legend, mixing Western music and traditional ...
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We are not Chinese: Do not miss JUMP!

20-Apr-08

We are not Chinese: Do not miss JUMP!

JUMP! Yegam Theatre at Sadler's Wells Peacock Theatre, till 10 May 2008 Winner 'Comedy Award' at Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 2006 Korean National Assembly 'Grand Prize for Drama & Musical,' 2006 BBC TV 'The Royal Variety Performance,' December 2006 Review by Grace Kim To start with what everyone already knows, it's pretty much impossible not to enjoy JUMP! even if you happen to be a sad old grouch sucking on rotten lemons all day. If you haven't seen it already, and even if you have, take another look at this international smash hit Korean classic-- before someone gets hurt! "Don't go to the cinema, don't stay in and watch TV. Go and see the movie length Korean show Jump! and you'll get ...
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Become an LKL reviewer and win two free tickets to JUMP!

11-Apr-08
Yes, free tickets are potentially on offer to the hit martial arts comedy show, JUMP! which returns to the Peacock next week for a three-week run. Here’s the deal. I’m always looking for new talent to join the community of LKL guest contributors. And that includes volunteers to write reviews of particular events. Jump is a great show (I went two years ago). I’m unable to go along this year, but I’d like someone to write a review for this site and hopefully persuade other people to go along too. So, if you can convince me that you’ll write a review and get it ready before the show’s run ends, then Sadlers Wells are generously making available two free tickets for you and ...
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Jump Returns to the Peacock

11-Apr-08
The smash hit martial arts comedy Jump returns to the Peacock for the third year running. Expect lots of fun, virtuoso gymnastic solos, slick coordination, great visual humour and generally a good night out. But if you're a shy retiring type don't sit in an aisle seat near the front. Like many Korean stage shows, the audience is expected to participate. If you didn't catch this last year - or the year before - make sure you see it this time round. Or go see it again. At the Peacock, from 15 April. Links Map of the Peacock Book tickets Special deal: become an LKL reviewer and win 2 free tickets Related posts:Jump returns to the Peacock Ye-gam Inc’s hit martial arts slapstick show returns ...
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Woyzeck: review

25-Jan-08

Woyzeck: review

Sadari Movement Laboratory: Woyzeck Part of the London Mime Festival Review by Saharial I am not an expert on mime or dance in any way, and lack any technical terms of description and I also have no real point of reference or comparison as dance is not my forte. Thanks to Philip though I was given the opportunity to watch the Sadari Movement Laboratory's interpretation of Woyzeck which plays at the South Bank until Saturday. I had no idea what to expect -- all I knew was that it was mime or dance of a German play set to Argentinean tango music. 'Woyzeck' by the German playwright Georg Buchner is the story of a soldier that gets driven mad by various events and ...
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Woyzeck: synopsis

25-Jan-08
For the benefit of those who don't have time to read the programme notes of Sadari Movement Laboratory's interpretation of Woyzeck before the show -- maybe because of the rather laid-back style of service in the QEH foyer bar -- here is the synopsis: 1 Woyzeck & the Captain: The Captain bullies Woyzeck, and taunts him for his sin of fathering a child out of wedlock. 2 The Field: Woyzeck is in a field that is partially a cemetery. He is plagued by terrible visions: a human head that continually rolls down a hill, and a demonic horde under the ground blowing hellish trumpets and bells. 3 Marie sees the Military Parade: Marie holding her child sees the military marching past. She catches ...
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Woyzeck comes to London from Edinburgh

07-Jan-08

Woyzeck comes to London from Edinburgh

As part of the London Mime Festival 2008, one of the hits of last year's Edinburgh Fringe will be coming to the Queen Elizabeth Hall, 24-26 January. Sadari Movement Laboratory - Woyzeck Thursday 24 January 2008 - Saturday 26 January 2008 George Buchner's Woyzeck, based on the true story of a poor German soldier driven to madness by inhuman military discipline and murders his mistress, remains one of the most enigmatic, shocking and influential works of modern theatre. In this gripping, stripped-down version from Korea, objects, bodies, movement and space combine to create a dynamic physical and visual language, revealing the characters' emotional states with shattering clarity and force. Astor Piazzola's passionate and atmospheric tango music is an integral part of the drama. Founded ...
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Mime at Barton Green

29-Nov-07
It was a cold and frosty evening in New Malden ((23 November)). But inside the Barton Green Theatre it was warm and cosy. From the outside, the building looks like a cricket pavilion, but if so the green itself would not be large enough for a proper game. Inside it's a small, welcoming community theatre, with slightly battered armchairs in a side room which served as a bar. The auditorium was packed -- it was standing room only. As was to be expected, the ethnic mix of the audience was almost 100% Korean (I only counted 3 westerners including myself in the capacity crowd of about 70) with the age range spanning 6 to 60. The scarcity of non-Koreans in the ...
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New Malden Arts Festival

09-Nov-07
I've just been sent brief details of the New Malden Arts festival which takes place over the next couple of weeks. Korean interest is in the form of mime artist Ko Jae-kyung (right). Also, Francesca Cho will have some works on display. 12 NOV - 17 NOV 2007 Art Exhibitions Venues: Tudor Williams, Café 32, Dae Young Travel, London New Days Gallery, Fonetek 17 NOV 2007, 14.00 - 17.30 Open Performances Venues: Tudor Williams, Bar Malden, Malden Centre, Hobkirk House, Waitrose Square, 17 NOV 2007, 10:00 -17:00 Interactive Arts Project Venues: Hairline, Tudor Williams, Malden Centre 17 NOV 2007, 18:00 Launch Party at Barton Green Celebration of Partnership between Theatre 4 All and Green Theatre Company with music (20min) and mime performances (20min) in Barton Green Theatre. Drinks ...
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More Korean performances at Edinburgh Fringe

31-Jul-07
My recent post on Korean events at the Edinburgh Fringe seriously undersold the Korean involvement there. I was simply reproducing the publicity of one particular organisation - Korea@fringe. But that organisation is only responsible for the six acts I mentioned in my previous post. Thanks to Colin Bartlett for pointing this out. So here is, as far as I am aware, a complete list of the Korean acts at the Fringe (derived simply by searching the Fringe website for the keyword "Korea"). The Angel and the Woodcutter - Cho-in Theatre group, 1-27 August Venue C Award-winning physical theatre. An innovative infusion of traditional and contemporary style. Comedic but utterly compelling. Amidst war and desperation blooms a beautiful Korean folk tale that speaks ...
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Yegam Inc: BreakOut

21-Apr-07
Those who have been to see Jump will be familiar with the formula. Some very clever slapstick, a small amount of enforced audience participation, and some excellent acrobatics. Whereas in Jump the acrobatics involved martial arts, in Break Out it involved some pretty impressive breakdancing. With the Taekwondo in Jump, the amazing displays flowed naturally from the plot: you have some burglars in the house, so obviously you try to rough them up a bit, and they try to rough you up in return. But how do you introduce breakdancing into a prison escape plot? With difficulty. Something about an ancient text which lands in the prison and somehow gives the prisoners magical breakdancing powers. If that sounds like something out ...
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Jump returns to the Peacock

19-Jan-07
Ye-gam Inc's hit martial arts slapstick show returns to the Peacock Theatre in London for a 10-week run in February. Do go along and take your friends. You don't have to be a Korean culture buff to enjoy it. In fact, it probably helps if you're not. Even if you aren't a fan of Jackie Chan movies, you can't help but be astounded by Jump's virtuoso blend of tae kwon do and acrobatics. The Times Here's what I thought of it a year ago. And here's a press release from the Peacock: "Did I say five stars? Make it 50." Evening Standard Ye Gam Theatre Company Jump Peacock Theatre, Portugal St, WC2A Tuesday 6 February - Saturday 14 April 2007 Tickets: £10 - £34 Ticket office: 0870 737 0337 ...
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Jump receives royal approval

07-Dec-06
At the Royal Variety Performance at the Colisseum on Monday Night there was an unusual item. The show, fronted by K-film fan Jonathan Ross, is held every year in aid of the Entertainment Artistes Benevolent Fund, and this year was attended by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall (usually, for non-Brits among our readers, it's the Queen who's the centre of attention). Performers included the usual best of non-controversial Anglo-American talent, including Rod Stewart, Barry Manilow, Take That and the Sugarbabes. I'm told, however, that one of the star acts of the evening was Ye-Gam Inc's Jump, which performed to great enthusiasm in London earlier this year. The show will be televised on BBC1 on December 12. Thanks to Jase for ...
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Ye-Gam Inc:

12-Feb-06
A highly entertaining mix of slapstick, gymnastics and martial arts. The first half lacked structure, though it served to introduce the different characters in the "family". Valiant members of the audience were also dragged up on stage. The second half was much more fun, with a comic story-line to hold things together. Knowing references were made to films such as the Matrix and some of your favourite Hong Kong kung fu movies, and a grand finale of jumps, backflips and other party pieces brought the evening to a rousing conclusion. The best night out I've had in quite a while. Links: Reviews from the Independent, the Guardian, The Stage, and the Sunday Times (at the bottom of the page) The site at the Peacock, with stills and a video, ...
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