Basement, 2013
Photo: Tsukasa Aoki
A revival of the excellent play Shift (2007), which satirized the Japanese tendency to find “gods” in any and all fields, including fortune-telling, psychology, and even health. After first being performed by Sample, the play was also performed at the actOral.6 (Festival actoral) in Marseille, France. The play’s stage art and lighting are being remade by a new group of creators.
Summary: A young man from a city marries into a family that lives in the countryside, in a village that’s gradually growing emptier thanks to the arrival of a huge new supermarket. He’s looking forward to his new life with his beautiful young wife, but his relatives demand that he do something. They want him to summon a “god”…
Writing/Directing: Shu Matsui
Starring: Ryuuta Furuya and Yohei Okuda (Sample, Theatre Company Seinendan) / Aoi Nozu (Sample) / Kumi Hyodo (Seinendan) / Mari Kuromiya (Shounenoujakan) / Kimio Taketani / Satoko Ichihara (Q)
Sample
A troupe led by Shu Matsui (Playwright, Director, Actor.) After completing a performance in the Seinendan, he founded this company in 2007. Fragments of Shu Matsui’s confused and mystical worlds are shared with the audience by the actors and staff, creating works that are popular across generations. His Proud Son (2010) won the 55th Kishida Kunio Drama Award. His works have been translated overseas, and Proud Son was performed by local staff and cast at Ohio Northern University in 2013.
Naoko Tominaga
Production Manager
Sample
3-54-7-307 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-0053
Tel: +81-90-2903-8363
E-mail: samplenet◆gmail.com
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Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre, Theatre East (Toshima City, Tokyo)
