The 383-year-old Public-interest incorporated foundation
Edo Marionette Theatre YOUKIZA, designated a Tokyo Municipal Intangible Cultural Property and an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Properties of Japan, performed a newly-written work with scriptwriting and direction by two avant-garde young rising stars of theater from China, who are making a name for themselves on the global stage. Artists in not only Japan, but also China and the world are taking up the aging population issue confronting us. Raising social issues through theater, this work honed in on the abyss of human life, questioning what it is to live, to die, and to get old. Adopting a multimedia theater approach that incorporated live images, this unique collaboration between puppets, video images and humans was an attempt to create a new form of expression with Edo marionettes. Prior to the performance, the troupe held a lecture at a university in the city to aid understanding of the performance, as well as a hands-on workshop, as a way of encouraging understanding of and promoting the production.

Program: Chechydonrai (As the Sparrows Wended in a Windless Winter)
Performers: Magosaburo Youki XII and other YOUKIZA puppeteers
Guest performer: Atsushi Sakamoto
Staff members:
Script: Zhao Binghao
Concept/direction: Wang Chong
Puppet design: Kazuyoshi Kushida, others