Stages in four of the nation's cities are set to explode with the percussion-laden rhythms and acrobatics of a group of hard-drinking and salacious goblins over the coming week, when the Korean theater group, Tokebi Storm, kicks off its first tour of Taiwan at Taipei's Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall tomorrow evening.
Formed in 1995 by Korean playwright, Ye In-dong, the highly colorful and rhythmic Tokebi Storm was one of the first theater groups in Korea to blend age-old traditional folklore and music with contemporary themes.
"We are somewhere between the modern and the classical. We use age-old music and folklore to tackle modern-day issues such as office politics and relationships," said Shari S. Kim, Tokebi Storm's tour manager.
Although the high-octane acrobatic antics, dance routines and heavy percussion of Tokebi Storm performances might appear far-removed from less-raucous Korean folk arts, Tokebi's musical inspiration draws heavily on tradition.
Taking inspiration from Pungmul, a percussion-heavy shamanistic style of Korean folk music traditionally used in rural areas to expel evil spirits from villages and purify drinking wells, the group has transformed the age-old art form into a colorful contemporary celebration of music and dance.
"Tokebi is unique because we create new sounds by blending the simple percussion of the ancient art form of Pungmul with various contemporary musical instruments," Kim said. "Such a mix creates a rhythmical hodgepodge of sounds that, while partially traditional, are accessible to audiences unfamiliar with Korean folklore and music."
PHOTO COURTESY OF PARIS INTERNATIONAL
Along with assailing audiences with its unique percussion-fuelled banquet of noise, Tokebi Storm boasts a cast of unforgettable impish characters in order to create its on-stage fantasy world. The Tokebies, or goblins, are characters which, while gifted with supernatural powers, still posses some human elements and are prone to getting in to all sorts of mischief.
"Every culture has its spirits and mythological creatures. In contrast to the usually terrifying western apparitions, however, Tokebies are more human in many ways," said Kim."They may well have the supernatural powers of Hercules, Baccus and King Midas combined, but they still have the capriciousness of the village drunkard and the avariciousness of a lecherous ladies' man."
While the centerpiece of Tokebi Storm's performances is a nonsensical fantasy world in which its five main characters -- Captain, Naughty, Innocent, Sexy Girl and Tomboy -- kick-up a racket and run- amok, there is a storyline to the performance -- albeit a loose one.
The action begins in an office where Mr Lee and his boss, Mr Pak are working late into the night. The associates, who don't see eye-to-eye, fall asleep only to wake-up in Tokebi world.
After initially trying to flee Tokebi world, the pair are soon caught up in the humor and charm of the impish Tokebies. When they eventually wake up only to find themselves back in the office from where they came, Lee and Pak discover their conflicts have been magically resolved and that they have become good friends. Friends they may be, but both men soon wish they could return to the fantasy world of the Tokebies.
In order to reach wider audiences, Tokebi Storm has recently veered away from relying solely on traditional Korean music and dance. The group now includes South American and other world rhythms alongside that of Pungmul.
"We've changed and been influenced a little bit by all of the countries we've visited. Which, while meaning we've veered away from the initial concept, has made our shows more acceptable to foreign audiences," Kim said.
Although Tokebi's audiovisual extravaganza first took shape seven years ago, it wasn't until 2000 that the Korean goblins began to create a stir on the international scene.
A series of successful performances in Hong Kong and the US two years ago led to the group's invitation to perform at various festivals throughout Canada and the US, China and the internationally renowned Edinburgh Festival, where the group was awarded the Herald Angel Award for music last year.
Tokebi Storm begins its nationwide tour tomorrow evening, when the Tokebies will be taking the stage at Taipei's Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall at 7:30pm and then again on Sunday at 2:30pm and 7:30pm. From Wednesday, Tokebi Storm will be moving south, where it will perform at the Tainan Municipal Cultural Center (
The tour winds down in Kaohsiung on the weekend of June 15 and 16, when Tokebi Storm takes the stage of Kaohsiung's Chihteh Hall (
Tickets for all performances cost between NT$300 and NT$1,200 and are available from ERA ticketing outlets nationwide or direct from the venues.
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