Review: Mountains and Seas – Song of Today, Omnibus Theatre

Mountains and Seas – Song of Today 山海 · 今日之歌 brings together the impressive talents of performance artist Xie Rong and writer Daniel York Loh. Add Bebei Wang‘s accomplished composition to this mix and it’s a recipe for extraordinary work. The production is admirably provocative, refusing to comply with definition and Western rules even in its form, which crosses genres. Yet ultimately the whole risks overwhelming its audience.

With the ancient Chinese legend of Mountains and Seas at its core, the play is a swirling vortex of ideas about culture, politics, the environment and humanity. We’re drawn into an almost abstract, eternal realm where the thinking and events of all ages are brought together, compared, contrasted and questioned. It’s an intangible, often confusing place to be, but with moments of lucid clarity and humour that are grounding and effective.

With traverse staging, the action is central and the audience lines either side. The space is then packed full of demanding interactions, with musicians at each end, actors and dancers coming in from all directions including through the audience, and boundaries negated, allowing for diversified ways of communication. There are projections overhead, vibrant music, dialogue, poetry and song, and a sense that the unexpected should be expected. It’s a lot, and requires a certain amount of submission from the audience to allow it to wash over and sink in, rather than trying to process it in real time.

Jennifer Lim is the main storyteller, solidly delivering an unremitting stream of dialogue that shifts between time and place; filled with gods and monsters and blending myth and reality across huge numbers of themes. York Loh as actor/musician delivers superb characterisations: he’s a folk activist that John Lennon would have been proud of, an almost Dr Who-style baddie as a politician, and generally a ferocious force on the stage. His writing is fascinatingly textured; at times searing, but also poetic and comedic, while revealing challenging thinking on colonialism and activism. The work ironically describes processes of self-care for activists or David Attenborough as a woke concept, whilst imagery speaks of international borders as illusory lines in the sand, imagined and imposed by a ‘civilised’ world.

Fluid, exciting dance work by Tash Tung and Chen Yu Xiao act, amidst critical reminders of the evils of colonialism and prejudice, as a reminder of the human capability to imagine, reinvent and reshape. Disembodied voiceovers alongside their abstract movement create a sense of an eternal, shifting spiritual existence, but also deliver ironic comedy with a weirdly Douglas Adams feel.

Visually the production is stunning, with costumes culturally linking to the ancient Chinese legend. Deities are placed in the room alongside flawed humans, to question ideas of civilisation and whether it has truly delivered an improvement on a time when there were no political borders – just mountains and seas. A particularly impressive coat of mirrors connects with the stunning, laser-based lighting design to fill the room with light that dazzles and blinds the audience, so that it may then see anew. 

With so much to take in, ultimately the production lacks focus and becomes overwhelming. I really wanted to know more about what was being said, but this complex format subsumes the clarity of the message and even my sensory reflection at the end was one of bewilderment. That said, there’s a huge amount in this play which I found both fascinating and stimulating. Perhaps my next step is to buy the playtext and read that.

Performer & Art Director: Xie Rong
Writer, Musician (guitar, harmonica) & Performer: Daniel York Loh
Percussion / Composer: Beibei Wang
Xun/Xiao (Chinese flutes): Chen Yu Xiao
Beijing Opera vocals, Percussion & Performer: He Song Yuan
Presented by Xie Rong, Daniel York Loh and Beibei Wang
Commissioned and co-produced with Kakilang
Costumes & Jewellery design: Yiran Duan (Yi Craft Studio)
Lighting, Visuals & Set Design: Danni Zheng & Ao Lei

Mountains and Seas – Song of Today has completed its current run at Omnibus Theatre