Tether 인연 premieres at Summerhall and comes from Scotland’s award-winning Wonder Fools and South Korea’s celebrated Theatre SAN. Wonder Fools have produced some amazing and innovative shows and, after two years of cross-cultural collaboration, another innovative and brilliant piece of theatre is born.
A live band plays as the audience enters, drawn into a joyful Ceilidh. At key points in the show, audience members join in both traditional Scottish dances and a Korean circle dance, giving the experience that vibrant, communal energy.
The story starts to unfold, jumping across three different time periods from the 1900s and unrest in Glasgow, to the Korean War and then the 1970s. Starting in a classic Glasgow pub, we meet the feisty landlady in her youth alongside her older self. They often sit on stage and respond as they watch the memories unfold, helping to anchor the story’s emotional core.
The action moves to Korea with projected English subtitles for both the Korean and English/Scots dialogue. Although speaking in Korean, everyone understands each other. However, reading the projected subtitles whilst also looking at the actors can distance you from the action and it’s hard to look away, even when it’s English/Scots being spoken.
The story explores how music links us, tethers us to a place, a person, a time and even links two cultures, drawing a fascinating parallel between traditional ballads and the Korean Arirang song form.
The live music in Tether 인연 is a central highlight and the musicians an integral part of the production. Blending traditional Korean and Scottish instruments into a seamless lyrical mix, the soundscape, composed by Stuart Ramage, is captivating, for instance when key moments are punctuated by the ominous, rhythmic tapping of the Korean Gayageum.
Under the joint direction of Robbie Gordon, Jack Nurse, and Yoon, the cast delivers an energetic, powerful, and engaging performance. Amid the frenetic energy, the music, the dancing and the time jumps, the emotional moments are still allowed to breathe and I confess to a wee tear by the end.
Tether 인연 is one of those Fringe productions where all your expectations about how theatre should tell a complex, multi-layered story are upended. It is presented in such an inventive, joyful and poignant way that you leave grinning, eager to tell everyone you know to go see it.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
