Interactive Theater Experience from Tokyo Festival to Stream
A hybrid theater performance featured in the Tokyo Arts Festival will be streaming online.
The piece is called “フレフレ [fure fure] Ostrich!! Hayupang Die-Bow-Ken! ” and it is an allegorical tale inspired by realities across Asia and with influences from folklore, politics, and pop culture. It was created by a team from different countries who developed the material during the Asian Performing Arts Farm 2020. The directorial team members are James Harvey Estrada (The Philippines), Aokid (Japan), and Masashi Nukata (Japan). The cast features Bunny Cadag (The Philippines), Robi Rusdiana (Indonesia), and Mei Yamanaka (Japan).
According to the official press release, the story is set in the “Bayan ng Damo, a paradise ruled by A-mat, who uses his dreams to lead his people. His dreams are summoned by the mysterious Ante’s powers. But one day, Ante passes away, leaving a prophecy behind: “A one-eyed goat shall be born, bringing great misfortune to this land.” No longer able to dream, A-mat follows the words of Ante and orders his guards to find and kill every last pregnant goat. Ygme, a goat keeper, and Yna, a pregnant goat Ygme regards as family, flee across town to escape A-mat and his men. While on the run, Yna gives birth to Tartaros—a baby goat with one eye—just as Ante predicted.”
The title is a combination of puns from Japanese, Tagalog, and English: (fure fure) is a shout of encouragement originating in the English “hurray!”, conveying the idea of cheering on as the audience joins forces with the ostriches to search for eggs. “Hayupang” is a Tagalog word meaning “animal-like.” “Die-Bow Ken” is made to sound like the Japanese word for “great adventure,” but also incorporates the meaning of the key words that symbolize the story: Die= death, Bow=a bow,and Ken=knowledge.
The virtual theater experience allows audience members to actively participate in the story, traveling back and forth between fiction and reality. The performance will be streamed via Zoom and there will be some instances where audience members will be asked to switch on their cameras to perform simple tasks or actions for a more interactive experience.
The piece will be streaming from October 6 to 8.
For more details click HERE.
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