A quick wordsearch of the 2019 Fringe catalogue provides the following items of Korean interest at the Fringe this year. LKL’s reviews of eight of the shows can be found here.
The Happy Prince
Children’s Shows (theatre, puppetry)
Venue 21 | C venues – C aquila – temple
13:15 | Aug 1-11, 13-18, 20-26 | 45 minutes | Buy tickets
Suitability: 3+
Group: Modl Theatre (Korea) in association with C theatreWhere is Happy Prince? Where are our neighbours? Happy Prince will find love with you! A beautiful story which sets a fire in the hearts of children and adults, from internationally-renowned Modl Theatre ‘What the Fringe is all about’ ***** (ThreeWeeks). ‘The best thing on the Fringe’ ***** (BritishTheatreGuide.com).
Joyce
Children’s Shows (theatre, puppetry)
Venue 139 | Assembly Roxy – Central
11:25 | Jul 31 Aug 1-26 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 0+
Group: Turtle CompanyReturn to a world where childhood imagination sparks unending curiosity. In this hilarious and heart-warming tale, a father and the family hamster venture into a foreign yet familiar land of a children’s storybook. On their way, they meet a slew of characters, including a stick of dynamite who could explode at any moment, a hard-headed futuristic spacewoman, a daydreaming medieval prince and a giant that yearns to be small. Complete with puppetry, music and live magic this innovative and imaginative new play is sure to dazzle the whole family!
Gukak Wears a New Flow
Music (traditional, world music)
Venue 16 | C venues – C viva – cellar
15:45 | Aug 14-16 | 45 minutes | Buy tickets
Suitability: 0+
Group: RootmergeThe performance clearly displays the musical colours of Rootmerge through their use of sanjo, a popular style of Joseon in the 18th century. Although the popularity of sanjo has faded, cementing it into the framework of tradition, this work brings a new flow to traditional Korean music.
Goliath in the Water
Dance, Physical Theatre and Circus (dance, performance art)
Venue 322 | Assembly Checkpoint
12:00 | Aug 1-11, 13-26 | 50 minutes | Buy tickets
Suitability: 8+
Group: Modeun Company – Korean Season presented by AtoBiz Ltd‘As David fights against Goliath, we live.’ Kim Aeran’s infinite and powerful work is inspired by the story of Goliath. Through dance, it paints a picture of us as small and powerless human beings, resistant to natural disasters and expressing our feelings in harmony with the stage. This highly acclaimed work from Moden Dance Company mixes traditional and modern dance with dynamic yet delicate results.
Doodle Pop
Children’s Shows (children’s, multimedia)
Venue 17 | Assembly George Square Studios – One
10:50 | Jul 31, Aug 1-11, 13-18, 20-25 | 55 minutes | Buy tickets
Suitability: 3+ (3 and older)
Group: BRUSH Theatre LLC – Korean Season presented by AtoBiz LtdWelcome to the eye-popping drawing adventure presented on a magical whiteboard. As two mischievous friends play, mysterious creatures appear and disappear as they draw and erase on the blank space with ink markers. Join the friends as they fill in the blanks with imagination, and unleash their impulse to draw and erase! Using the magic of projection to bring the doodles to life, this highly technical and utterly charming story is a show like no other. Let the doodles stir up your imagination!
Camino de Sangjaru
Music (world music, traditional)
Venue 17 | Assembly George Square Studios – Four
12:00 | Jul 31, Aug 1-11, 13-18, 20-26 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 8+
Country: Korea, Republic Of
Group: Korean Gipsy Sangjaru, MoonHwaMun – Korean Season by AtoBiz LtdThe traditional band Korean Gipsy Sangjaru set out to create ingenious world music based on the Korean traditional culture and arts. It’s touching, astonishing and emotional! Inspired by Paulo Coelho’s novel The Pilgrimage, the wanderers created diversified musical numbers on the way to Santiago. They created original music by blending tradition and modernity, East and West, youth and old age while on the road Camino de Sangjaru. The musical achievements of three young men, each with two or more Korean traditional instruments, will lead you to a fantastic new world. Join the captivating musical journey!
Black and White Tea Room – Counsellor
Written and directed by Cha Hyun Suk
Theatre (drama, modern)
Venue | 20 | Assembly Rooms – Drawing Room
18:20 | Aug 1-25 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 14+ (Guideline)
Group: Theatre Hooam – Korean Season presented by AtoBiz LtdThe world-renowned Theatre Hooam makes a welcome return to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with the award-winning Black and White Tea Room. A counsellor sets up his practice in the tea room of his dead wife and prepares to welcome a new client. It soon becomes clear that they have had a previous encounter… as the consultation continues, the pair find themselves facing an unnerving turn of events. A portrait of forgiveness and revenge, this show has received a string of awards including Best Performance at the Duo Festival, Seoul.
Spray
Theatre (physical theatre, performance art)
Venue 139 | Assembly Roxy – Central
14:35 | Jul 31, Aug 1-26 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 8+
Group: Cho-in Theatre Company – Korean Season presented by AtoBiz LtdA darkly comedic social satire with innovative staging and colourful physicality. Exhausted by his job and his noisy neighbour keeping him up at night, the man in apartment 709 picks up a parcel for 109 by mistake. The possibility of keeping the parcel awakens a thrill inside him and he begins to steal other parcels intentionally. One day, he decides to take one of his neighbour’s parcels, wanting to get revenge for her inconsiderate behaviour. But inside the box is the body of the neighbour’s cat… From Korean Theatre Directors’ Association 2018 Director of the Year Chung-euy Park.
CANCELLED. Kimchi: Life is a Happy Dream
Music (musical theatre, family)
Venue 58 | C venues – C south – main theatre
16:30 | Aug 11-18, 20-26 | 55 minutes | Buy tickets
Suitability: 0+
Group: NolEMaDang / Theatre Group Ullim (Korea)Kimjang is a Korean foodie tradition, where families and friends come together to make kimchi. What’s Kimchi? Kimchi is love. Kimchi is life. A heartwarming story about growing up: from birth through to marriage and old age. Be swept away by the spirit of Korea in this inventive and creatively comical journey through the circle of life. An interactive show with plenty of dance, innovative contemporary instruments and traditional musical underscoring. Predominately non-verbal, accessible to audiences of all languages. ‘Great fun! Superb!’ (Korean Herald). ‘Excellent, funny, interactive’ (Korea Times). ‘Hilarious, brilliant, engaging!’ (Seoul Times).
Macbeth
Theatre (physical theatre, dance)
Venue 58 | C venues – C south – main theatre
18:55 | Aug 1-26 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 8+
Group: Choin Theatre Company (Korea) in association with C theatreIn this uniquely Korean retelling of Shakespeare’s story, an ambitious actor dreaming of greatness is captivated by the role of Macbeth. Using puppets, music and dance, he embodies Macbeth’s story in a chameleonic, humorous, high-octane physical performance. But in thrusting himself so deeply into the role, he starts to lose himself in the shadows of Macbeth’s desires. In the end, he decides to take control of Macbeth’s story, refusing to succumb to the fate laid out for him. He achieves greatness, but at what cost? From Korean Theatre Directors’ Association 2018 Director of the Year, Cheong-euy Park.
The Merry Wives of Seoul
Theatre (comedy, classical)
Venue 58 | C venues – C south – main theatre
11:50 | Aug 11-17 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 8+
Group: EDP Theatre Company Soon Chun Hyang University (Korea)Korean-ised adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic. Falstaff, a fat and debauched knight, tries to tempt two married women in Seoul and steal their wealth. But these two clever women see through his plan and set out to deceive him. A story that proves that women are more than the traditional helpers of men, but agents in their own right who outwit the plans society makes for them, and are ready to reform current traditions. EDP Soonchunhyang University return to Edinburgh with this brand new uniquely Korean physical comedy take on Shakespeare’s timeless tale.
Korean Poetry Series Part 1
Music (international, world music)
Venue 138 | Acoustic Music Centre @ UCC – Main Room
14:30 | Aug 9 | 1 hour | Buy tickets
Suitability: 0+
Group: Korean PoetryKorean Poetry is a profound musical project using diverse eastern and western instruments to freely cross musical genres to showcase core themes of traditional Korean music and poems by putting them into new fusion arrangements. Based on, but not limited to, traditional Korean musical material, Korean Poetry challenges to push and expand the boundaries of fusion music by incorporating and balancing creative as well as popular perspectives into a new branch of genre-defying musical experience, in order to let the world know the beauty of Korea and its artistic culture.
Bilingual Producers Workshop – In Korean and English
Venue 2 | Fringe Central – Workshop Room
17:00 | 10 Aug | 2 hours | Buy tickets
Suitability: 0+
Country: United Kingdom – Scotland
Group: ChrisGrady.OrgPart of the Fringe Central Events Programme for Fringe participants. We invite Korean and UK producers and theatremakers in Edinburgh to discuss collaborations which are possible across our languages, cultures and nations to meet new producers, writers and companies. What are we doing already? What could we offer each other in practical ways in the short/medium term? What would make a difference to the work produced and the professionals making work? In association with Ginny Kim. All discussions will be bilingual to honour the rich nuances of both languages.
And finally, a UK company that presents a production that touches on the Korean War
Beyond Glory
Theatre (storytelling, historical)
Venue 39 | theSpace on the Mile – Space 2
16:20 | Aug 2-3, 5-10 | 1 hour 15 minutes | Buy tickets
Suitability: 14+ (Restriction)
Country: United Kingdom – England
Group: Redwood ProductionsSet against the backdrops of the Vietnam War, World War II and the Korean War, Beyond Glory tells the stirring, emotional, and heroic true stories of eight recipients of America’s highest military award, the Medal of Honor, told by one actor. Beyond Glory gathers these men together in the present to look back on the defining moments of their lives and to examine the meaning of courage, duty, and ultimately, humility.
(automatically generated) Read LKL’s review of this event here.