Colours, Energy, Light: 'Nanta'

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The lights were dimmed, and there wasn’t a sound. I could see an old wooden barrel in the centre standing upright. Off to one side there was a wooden stool with some pots and pans surrounding it and a little further back another stool with a bowl of water next to that. Slowly three people wearing dark robes entered and took their place at one of the stations, each of them carrying a candle to light their way. The person at the barrel was chopping something, every slice of the knife hitting the board with a tap, tap, tap. The person at the first stool was stirring something, every stir hitting the pot with a clink, clink, clink. The third person was washing something, every turn of her hand making a splash, splash, splash. Every sound seemed to compliment the other. It was eerie yet mesmerizing at the same time. This was a kitchen, they were chefs, and they were getting ready for the night ahead.

Slowly but methodically the tapping, clinking and splashing started to form a beat, faster and faster, louder and louder, I couldn’t take my eyes off them. Then the lights came on, the three chefs tore off their robes to reveal white chef uniforms and music started playing to the beat of their drumming. This was “Nanta”: a non-verbal Korean theatre performance.

It was my last night in Seoul and after spending 5 days exploring the city’s sights I had decided to entertain myself with a live performance. One thing I really enjoy doing when I visit a new place is to experience the culture through a show and in my opinion there was no better way to do that than the internationally acclaimed “Nanta”. Nanta (called Cookin’ in English) can be enjoyed by anyone, as it uses both visual and musical cues to portray the tale.

The story opens with the three chefs getting ready for the night, when their angry Manager comes in to tell them they have one hour to prepare a whole list of dishes for a wedding, and that they are to teach his nephew how to cook at the same time. About a third of the way in the actors decide that they need the “bride” and “groom” to taste test their soup and so begins the audience participation. That night the head chef walked up the aisle slowly looking for the best bride. As he got closer and closer my heart beat faster and faster, and I tried not to make eye contact. However his feet stopped next to my chair and he offered an outstretched hand: would I be the bride? Although I had no idea what was in store, I knew this was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down.

There I was dressed in traditional Korean wedding attire with the performers drumming away with their utensils, cabbage flying all around, music coming from all angles, feeling like I was part of the culture, feeling alive. Whether or not you actually participate on stage the show does an excellent job of making every audience member feel like they are sharing in the experience. From the captivating opening scene to the lively finale the audience watches enthralled by the music, the lights, the acting, the drumming, the sheer skill of the performers in handling a knife, and the comical scenes that are regularly thrown in.

Walking back to my hotel after the performance, feeling that it was a perfect end to a perfect holiday, I couldn’t help but feel that Nanta captured the essence of Seoul. It was a performance full of color, camaraderie and activity, exactly the atmosphere I had experienced in my short time there. Seoul has liveliness, and I will definitely be making another trip back to Korea, it proved to me that the rest of the country deserves my attention too.

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Photos

Audience participation
Dresses as a Korean bride sampling the food