Almost as if God himself wanted me to know that Japan was the right decision...The Kennedy Center is hosting a Japan Festival!
Last Saturday, to celebrate my decision to go abroad, I treated myself to an amazing production of Yukio Ninagawa's Shintoku-Maru featuring Tatsuya Fujiwara. This show was a US Premiere and a feature of the festival.
Here's the show synopsis:
"Renowned for his innovative interpretations of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, King Lear, and other classics, award-winning director Yukio Ninagawa has been called "one of the great image-makers of modern theater" (London's The Guardian).
For the festival, Ninagawa brings his tragic fable of love, lust, and revenge based on an ancient Japanese noh play written by Shuji Terayama and adapted by Rio Kishida. Blending drama, music, and spectacle, the production stars Tatsuya Fujiwara, one of Japan's hottest young actors known for movie roles ranging from Death Note to Battle Royale. Reprising his acclaimed, star-making performance from the London staging of Shintoku-Maru, Fujiwara portrays a young man haunted by the memory of his departed mother and strangely drawn to his new stepmother, portrayed by the magnetic Kayoko Shiraishi."
It was phenomenal. While the show was not translated, I still cried, and laughed and sighed, because you don't need words to communicate emotion. The artistry, storytelling and detail that went into this production was extraordinary.
I plan on seeing as much of the festival as I can before I go to Japan myself. Here is more info on the festival if you're so inclined.
About the festival
"In the Land of the Rising Sun, ancient traditions are layered with modern sensibility and technological innovation to create culture… accelerated. This "hyperculture" encompasses a wide range of expression - from the wizardry of robots and the dazzling action of anime to the hypnotic movement of butoh and the propulsive energy of taiko.
Over two weeks, the Kennedy Center brings together more than 450 artists, more than 40 performances, and more than a dozen free events to showcase the best Japanese theater and dance, music and fashion, architecture and sculpture, poetry and literature, photography and film. February 5-17, don't miss this living celebration of the artistic innovator that is Japan… the "floating island" whose modest size belies its stunning global impact."
52 Days and counting....
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