Writer: Youn Young Park & Susannah Pearce

Director: Jin-Sup Han

Reviewer: John Roberts

The Public Reviews Rating:

The Emperors Quest is everything a children’s show should be, well written, beautifully executed with stunning turns and full to the brim with enchanting songs.

Ling is a school girl who unlike most of her friends has a love of all things gardening, devoting all her time to the care and attention of the plants and flowers in her garden. In the palace the Emperor has decided to retire and has announced that he is to find a successor from the younger members of his Kingdom and so one day he calls all the children to his palace where he sets them a quest.

At the heart of this production is a strong moral of being true to yourself and is delightfully told through excellent music, which incorporates melodies and lyrics from Korea, China and even Japan.

This is one of the strongest ensemble productions that I have seen at this year’s fringe with excellent performances coming from all, especially Amy Ip as Ling who encapsulates the desire and conviction of a schoolgirl with real truth, but it is the performance from Kevin Kyle as Bobo that really tugs at the heart strings and his solo song towards his dad is immensely touching.

The direction is sublime and the action moves swiftly along with real pace, the production also uses great interaction with the audience, The Emperors Quest should be on everyone’s list – especially those with children.

Ed Fringe 2010: The Emperors Quest – C Venues, 5.0 out of 5 based on 1 rating

Tags: Amy Ip, C Venues, Edinburgh Fringe 2010, Jin-Sup Han, Kevin Jyle, Susannah Pearce, The Emperors Quest, Youn Young Park