- Shinichi Anasako
Playwright and director. Representative of egonaku.
SAISON Foundation for the Arts SAISON Fellow I.
THEATRE E9 KYOTO 3rd-term Associate Artist.
Local Director at J:COM Kitakyushu Performing Arts Center.Major works include Re: Memories of Kitakyushu (Kitakyushu Performing Arts Center, 2012–), Guiding the Okazaki Area (ROHM Theatre Kyoto, 2020), and Stand by Me (KYOTO EXPERIMENT, 2024).
Official Program
“The Foolish Ones”
JR‐WEST × Professional College of Arts and Tourism ×Shinichi Anasako/egonaku
Area
- Kinosaki
- Kami
Venue
JR San-in Line (Kinosaki onsen Sta, Satsu Sta, Kasumi Sta, Amarube Sta,)
Date and Time
Sep.23 (Wed)
Sep.24 (Thu)
Sep.25 (Fri)
Performance Language
Rocked by a train overlooking the Sea of Japan coastline,
step into the vibrant yet urgent world of Kenji Miyazawa.
Riding on a small train called “Umi-yamasubi,” rather than the Milky Way Railway, characters from Kenji Miyazawa’s stories come aboard. However, they are all somewhat unusual figures.
A spider so concerned with pride that it lets the prey caught in its web rot without eating it. A rabbit who, growing vain from constant praise, ends up committing an irreversible mistake. And the earth god, whose honest heart is consumed by the flames of jealousy. What they all share is a certain “foolishness”—one that, perhaps, also exists within us.
Based loosely on Night on the Galactic Railroad, this work brings together characters (animals) from Miyazawa’s other stories who are already on the path toward death, placing them aboard a train where they humorously recount their own folly. Through a collage of short stories and character references, a journey unfolds that is at once urgent and full of life.
In a time when division and conflict continue to deepen, and people increasingly judge others while confining themselves within their own sense of rightness, this work invites us to reflect on the “foolishness” of ourselves—and, by extension, of human beings as a whole.
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Credits
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Organizer: Toyooka Performing Arts Festival Executive Committee
Planning & Production: General Incorporated Association COs
Cooperation: West Japan Railway Company, Nippon Travel Agency Co., Ltd.
