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2008/2009 Season Series "Our Contemporary" Vol.3 Tatowierung
Reviews
Written by Satoshi KOGANEZAWA   
Published: June 04 2009

Courtesy of NEW NATIONAL THEATRE, photo by Masahiko Yako

Courtesy of NEW NATIONAL THEATRE, photo by Masahiko Yako

Courtesy of NEW NATIONAL THEATRE, photo by Masahiko Yako

Courtesy of NEW NATIONAL THEATRE, photo by Masahiko Yako

    There are a vast number of window frames, the basic color of which is white, trailing down from the ceiling of the theater, held by a cord. These frames, which are of various sizes and conditions, are said to have been collected by Chiharu Shiota from many different places, including abandoned houses in Berlin. There are various things hanging down from the ceiling, such as a work table, a dining table, a chair, a television set, a flower, a mirror, a bed and a piano, which presents us with a noble image, not in spite of, but because of the mood of ruin. It reminds me of the exhibition entitled “From Silence - Chiharu Shiota Exhibition” which was held at Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery (19/Oct/2007-24/Nov/2007). In that exhibition, which was on the basement level, I found a number of installations that had been created by using window frames piled up high almost to the ceiling, and a burned piano was set on the floor, covered by black threads. The staging of "Our Contemporary" reminds me of Shiota’s old works such as this and convinces me that this style is very appropriate for her.. Shiota, as a theatrical designer, participated in “Season Series ‘Our Contemporary’ Vol.3 Tatowierung” (15/May/2009-31/May/2009), which was performed at the New National Theatre, Tokyo.

    “Tatowierung” was written by Dea Loher, a German woman author. To perform it in Japan, Reiko Miwa translated it into Japanese and Toshiki Okada produced it. It has the following five performers: Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Yuki Shibamoto, Kosuke Suzuki, Chika Uchida and 
Yuriko Hirooka. This is a story of love and hate among families, including incest between a father and his daughter, the daughter’s pregnancy, and the birth of the baby. Aside from the shocking content of the story, I would like to consider Shiota’s works created for this stage. On the request of the producer, Okada, she created so-called installations, which were made by using window frames as the main materials. She planned to move these installations up and down as the story progressed. I understand that Okada did not tell Shiota exactly what to do and left the design entirely up to her. He produced the whole stage after her plans had been completed.

    What is interesting about the stage set-up is that there is no need to darken the stage even when the scene is to be changed. Scene transitions are made effortlessly in spite of the large size of the scenic art. This is achieved by using strings going up and down, though the transition is made under bright lights so that viewers can observe what is going on. This stage set-up is interesting in that it makes us, the viewers, feel as if a few months have passed. Okada, who hosts a stage company called “Chelfitsch”, is known for his characteristic stage productions in which actors perform in a unique fashion, using language spoken by young people today in Japan, which gives viewers a peculiar image of the whole stage. In this production, Shiota’s works contribute significantly to Okada’s stage image.

    Therefore, regarding this stage, it can be said that both the stage managed by Okada and the scenic art created by Shiota have the effect of making certain elements of the stage, whether they are humans or spaces, appear unusual. This may make viewers feel uncomfortable, and this discomfort may be caused by the fact that a drama set in Germany is produced and performed by Japanese. Okada is interested in how he can use the stage to make viewers to feel uncomfortable rather than trying to create such a feeling directly. Since the story is a family drama which deals with complicated sexual issues, I felt at first that Shiota had been chosen as a theatrical designer from a gender perspective. However, I now think that she might have been chosen because of the nature of her works, as they seem to have something in common with this stage in terms of the large scale of their themes and because the themes of her own creations include loss and memories of loss Okada produced this stage so peculiarly that, as well as presenting a serious image, it allows viewers to have various other impressions of Shiota’s scenic art, and this is the most innovative aspect of the stage.
(Translated by Nozomi Nakayama)

Related Exhibition

2008/2009 Season Series "Our Contemporary" Vol.3 Tatowierung
May 15 - 31, 2009
Venue: New National Theatre, Tokyo

Last Updated on July 05 2010
 

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