IHI Stage Around Tokyo

A new theatre opened at Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo on 30th March, 2017. The unique mechanisms inside the theatre set it apart as most innovative design in the theatre architectures in Asia – the new unheard-of stage around the rotating seating floor.

An opening performance is “Seven Souls In The Skull Castle” (30/March – 12/June) as series one out of four (each performance with new casting of artists), with leading roles by Messrs. Shun Oguri and Koji Yamamoto, both of them are most rightly matured actor in their career.  

Date goes back to after a decade or so of The Civil War Age (1467～1573 in Japan) when numerous young commanders of Samurai army with ambition to establish his regime fought each other or overthrown their superiors until nearly whole country laid waste.  

The eastern plain villages far away from the Capital were the only places left intact.  Now the villages were raided by Eastern Plain Demon Skull Corps, lead by Tenmao.

A wandering Samurai without lord (Sutenosuke) and an owner of red-light district in the villages (Ranbei) fight against Tenmao. 

In fact, the three of them (all under the false names) spent time together in the past.  They were some of the defeated warriors on the run who lost their military commander during the Civil War Age – escaped, hidden and managed to live to the present day.  

Ranbei, in particular, was the late commander’s military aides who supposed to fight to the death (according to the traditional code of ethics and behavior of Samurai warriors in the feudal society.)  

The three of them struggle for restoration of their lives again, each one with hopes being distorted, shattered or even severed.

(I cannot wait to see the performance for the 2nd time in June!)

(by Kyoko)

For more information, please visit here.