Fringe Review: Tao – Samurai Magical Drummers
A spellbinding performance from the East that rightly raises the roof.
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The honest truth is that words are entirely insufficient to describe the Tao Drummers. The only way to fully appreciate the full body and mind experience of their show is to go and see it. £17 may seem a lot even for a Fringe show, but it is worth every penny. If you only go to see one show this year, make it this one. The experience is one you will treasure for the rest of your life.
Close your eyes and you hear the most amazing music being created by nothing more than big sticks on stretched drum skins. You feel the vibration from the soles of your feet right up through your body. But closing your eyes means missing a breathtaking display of human skill – speed, control, agility, impeccable timing, humour and strength.
The costumes are stunning, the drums impressive and the lighting evocative. Every one of the drummers has exceptional ability, is extremely fit and has a graceful elegance whether playing a haunting melody on a wooden flute or drumming a furious tattoo on a drum five feet in diameter. The speed at which they can drum creates optical illusions as their arms and drumsticks blur into ribbons of motion, flaring in the theatre lights.
The effort involved is evident in their faces and in the ninja-like cries and shouts. Also evident though is a real sense of enjoyment which passes easily to the audience. You cannot help but feel buoyed by the energy of the drumming. In contrast, when two of the women play flutes, the clarity of the notes and the perfect harmonies transport you to an other-worldly place.
The standing ovation received by the Tao Drummers tonight was, I am sure, by no means an unusual end to a remarkable seventy minutes of sheer jaw-dropping entertainment.
Now lets see a pirate group try to follow that (go ninjas!)
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Tao – Samurai Magical Drummers
Assembly at Assembly Hall
More info and book tickets online
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