CHELFTISCH THEATRE COMPANY
Presented with Japan Society
"By juxtaposing global events and personal revelations [Okada] beautifully captures the distance and conflict between them." -
Yomiuri NewspaperJan 21 - Jan 24, 2009 9pmPerformance WorksPost-show Talkback
Jan 22Writer & Director
Toshiki Okada Performers
Taichi Yamagata, Luchino Yamazaki, Hiromasa Shimonishi, Kohei Matsueda, Tomomitsu Adachi, Riki Takeda, Izumi Aoyagi Stage Manager
So Ozaki Sound Technician
Norimasa Ushikawa Lighting Technician
Tomomi Ohira Producer
Akane Nakamura Company Tour Manager
Fumiko TodaIn Japanese with English Surtitles
In March 2003, in the days before the US war against Iraq, two Japanese urban hipsters meet at a post-rock show and are swept into a one-night stand that turns into five days’ continuous sex. Such is the anticlimactic story in Five Days in March, the prestigious Kishida Kunio Drama Award-winning play by Toshiki Okada. The story unfolds through actors who slip in and out of character while casually narrating and playing out scenes. Oblivious to the imminent invasion of Iraq, the slackers obsess over the details of a love affair, perfectly capturing the irony and impotence of Generation Y in Japan today.
Characterized by seemingly insubstantial narrative accompanied by exaggerated fidgeting gestures-turned-choreography, the ground-breaking and modern works of chelfitsch Theatre Company have made them the most talked-about theatre company in Japan. The company's name, “chelfitsch,” is Okada's coinage. It represents a baby-like disarticulation of the English word selfish, evoking the social and cultural characteristics of today's urban Japan.
Visit the chelfitsch site | YouTube video of Five Days in March
The seven-city North American tour is organized and produced by the Japan Society and is supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan; The Japan Foundation through the Performing Arts JAPAN Program; and The Saison Foundation for the Japan Society’s Japanese Theater NOW initiative.
