Green Tea and Zen Baka @ Dance Base

Dance Base begin the day with David WW Johnstone’s Green Tea and Zen Baka. This free, ticketed event offers the opportunity to relax before a busy day on the Fringe. Johnstone says nothing throughout, but rather conveys everything through his movement and facial expression. Seated on a stool in the Dance Base garden, he sips cautiously at his tea, with the sounds of the Fringe outdoors as his soundtrack – people screaming, birds squawking.

Even though it's only 30 minutes long, Green Tea and Zen Baka makes for a funny, yet moving fusion between a clumsy, silent Mr Bean and the patience-demanding art of Butoh. The latter fits in perfectly with the ideas (and pace) of Zen Buddhism, as it is a Japanese form of dance theatre that tends to – but is not always limited to – involve small, slow, gradual movements, as though the performance is being executed in painstaking slow motion. Butoh isn’t a crowd-pleaser, although the movements tend to be so abstract and the context so vague and minimal – as in this piece – that it allows for an indefinite variety of interpretations.

All in all, Green Tea and Zen Baka is simple and slow, and proves a delightful, pleasing contrast to the frenzy of the Fringe.