Songs of Lear

“Songs Of Lear is not only the most deeply affecting show I have seen in Edinburgh, it is also one of the most profoundly moving theatre productions I have ever experienced.”

“Songs of Lear seems to have already passed into legend even though it’s only a work in progress.”

“ My five stars were laid bare on outstretched palms, offered in reverence. The director conducts his company like a classical orchestra. They outperform, reinventing conventional forms of character and plot, and theatre altogether. Though fresh, it is fearlessly archaic in its grandeur.”

“Transcendent... For the half hour that followed, I was static electricity, too knock-kneed to stand. This is the essence of Lear, sensed rather than watched and absorbed until it hasn’t just got under your skin, but right into your bone marrow.”

“Extraordinary...masters of their craft. Going beyond music that is a joy to listen to, this is a collection of highly evocative and emotionally stirring works and a magical piece of theatre.”

“Without a doubt, this is the best thing I’ve seen at the Fringe. Songs of Lear is a dramatic retelling of King Lear using song, and Song Of The Goat Theatre use this method to capture the essence of Shakespeare’s play perfectly.”

“It is a powerful, arresting approach to theatrical storytelling and it perfectly adumbrates the complexity of Lear. Yet the performance’s formidable power resides largely in the intensity of the music itself.”

“Raw and highly sophisticated... an impressive piece that lingers after the performers have bowed (to standing ovations) and the sweltering space has cleared, so that Songs of Lear continue to reverberate within you.”

“This is a very special piece of theatre that carried me away emotionally with the beauty of its sound. I can’t really do it justice – just go see it, hear it, feel it.”

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