#EdFringe: Tang and Four Dreams: Review
★★★★
Extraordinary music, costuming and projections tell the deeply poetic story of Tang Xianzu, known as the Shakespeare of the East.
We witness several moments across Tang’s life, along with sections of some of his most famous pieces from Four Dreams and The Peony Pavilion. Following themes of love, legacy and making a different, and honour, their standing and prosperity, we see Tang fall in love and marry, take the imperial exams, face competitors and rivals and mourn his wife. He just wants to contribute to his country and finally relents to do so through writing plays and beautiful poetic words.
The show navigates the delicate and intricate balance of singing and performing dramatically in a tonal language, and is performed entirely in Chinese with English subtitles.
A spectacular orchestra of at 12 players, which includes traditional Chinese instruments such as the erhu, sheng and suoana, creates an incredible sound. Led by Cai Jielin and composed by Xu Jianquiang, the sound is one of the strongest elements of the show, and becomes even more beautifully layered and intricate when the talented voices are added.
Stand out cast members are Wang Citing as Xin’an and Madame Wu, and Wang Yunkai as Daydream and a variety of other characters. Their voices are pure and soar above the gorgeous music and command attention, convey story and evoke emotion.
Visual effect team Cheng Yuhuai and Shu Sheng have created a stunning backdrop for the show, through animations as beautiful as traditional Asian art that belongs in a museum. It quickly and beautiful transforms the space, and complete with stunning costume and make up design from Dong Guiying, simple staging and lighting, and the attention to detail in every element, the show is simply breathtaking to behold.
The narrative is a little light on, as they try to cram a lot into the hour, but it is more than made up for with the spectacular visual and aural elements. An exceptional display of Chinese culture and storytelling through a chamber musical, complete with stunning visual displays, dance and song, this show is a beautiful journey with the potential to be a full length musical to further delve into Tang’s life and legacy as the bard of the East.
Tang and Four Dreams played at Assembly George Square at Gordon Aikman Theatre for three shows only, and then in London at Shaw Theatre. More Info.
