Hip, hectic and hilarious, 'Break Out' is where you land after you 'Jump'

K-Fever strikes Bangkok again next week. And this epidemic goes beyond the music, television dramas and films with which we're so familiar.

Back in 1997 a new trend of non-verbal comic stage performance started with "Nanta" ("Cookin'"), which spiced up choreographed cooking routines with simple plot, recognisable miming characters and the universal sense of humour.

Its success sparked the creation of "Jump", which had us howling a couple of months ago, and next week it's time for South Korea's latest creation, "Break Out", a blend of B-Boy dance moves, gymnastics, martial arts and hilarious visual comedy.

Again, the story is simple: A mysterious, ancient sacred text drops into a prison and inspires five desperate convicts to plan a daring escape so they can enjoy a moment of freedom - no matter how brief.

From nurses to nuns

The characters include Gray, who's been locked up longest; Joker, simple-minded but with a heart of gold; and three women who swiftly switch roles from nurses to cops to nuns.

The show, says Britain's The Stage magazine, "incorporates a filmic backdrop - Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man in a one-handstand split, breaking gladiators in sepia tone spinning at the Colosseum, Hitler telling his party people to put their hands in the air, and a levitating B-Boxing monk".

The Guardian found it "fun to watch", and the Herald hailed "a sweet and sweaty performance, featuring the best-choreographed car scene since 'Grease', utterly brilliant beat-boxing and well-judged comedic slapstick routines".

Kudos to BEC Tero for giving us a show that's wowed London, Edinbugh and New York.