The Ballad

Zoo Southside, Edinburgh Festival

Traditionally, Scottish ballads have never ended happily, so it follows that anyone going to see this tenderly told dance duet should arm themselves with a pack of hankies.

Aye! Productions have taken the emotive language of the ballad form and turned it into a wordless piece of physical and aerial theatre, beautifully performed by Tara Hodgson and Saul Garcia. In keeping with the rural character of the form, their set is a fallen tree trunk, and a collection of rounded pebbles, which are creatively used to represent various objects and even at one point, the developing stages of pregnancy. Kathryn Sawers provides wistful piano accompaniment of her own compositions.

The tale follows two lovers from the minute they clap eyes on one another through the entirety of their relationship. Beginning with sweet awkwardness and affectionate humour in the Amelie vein, as the bond between the pair intensifies, so does the movement. Although there is a clunky moment of transition from ground to aerial dance, the first kiss between the couple is mesmerising, and perfectly symbolic as Hodgson's legs lift into the air behind her, and she swims dizzy and weightless.

The piece shifts its tempo and mood into the later stages of the relationship, and the exploration of birth, as Hodgson hangs and thrashes in a water-filled clear plastic bag, is both startling and strangely beautiful. The simple premise of this piece belies its subtle power, and although the tragic ending presents a tale which has been told a hundred times, sensitive performances and an instinct for the shape of a story stop it from sliding into cliché.

Lucy Ribchester

The British Theatre Guide.