Theater Collective HANCHU-YUEI is a theater group founded by playwright/director YAMAMOTO Suguru in 2007. The other company members are TAKAKURA Kazuki (art director), NOMOTO Sachiro and FUKUHARA Kan (actors), KAWAGUCHI Satoshi (writer), and SAKAMOTO Momo (producer). Its productions are noted for their brilliant visual imagery, featuring projections of words and letters onto the stage and melding the performers’ bodies with color, light and shadow. Its dramatic content challenges our traditional set of values and ethics and poses fundamental questions about how we live. The group has branched out beyond Japan with performances and co-productions in Malaysia, Thailand, India, China, Singapore and New York. Its piece Girl X earned awards for Best Play and Best Original Script at the Bangkok Theatre Festival 2014.

I can’t die without being born
A green light burst in the sky one night for an instant, after which strange things began happening on earth. Residents of a Tokyo apartment greet each other for the first time since the incident and interact as they head toward the shelter. Even amid the cascade of unexplainable occurrences, people became hungry for food and the comfort of others. Though the situation does not appear on the surface to be a catastrophic event like a mega-earthquake, the world may be reaching an end. Some things have changed, others have not. Everyone tries to survive the cataclysm, but their methods are diverse and unique. Will new lives be born as the world dies?

This video is from the debut run of this piece in 2014.

2014
Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre : Theatre East

Presented by: The Japan Foundation (JF) (https://www.jpf.go.jp/e/)
In cooperation with EPAD (https://epad.terrada.co.jp/)

＜Performance Credits＞
Written and Directed by: YAMAMOTO Suguru
Performers: OHASHI Kazuki, KUMAKAWA Fumi, NOMOTO Sachiro, ITO Saho, OISHI Masahiro, SHIIBASHI Ayana, TANAKA Mikie, NAGOYA Yuri, HASATANI Satoshi, FUKUHARA Kan
Music by: CHIBA Hiroki
Art Director: TAKAKURA Kazuki
Scenic Design by: NAKAMURA Tomomi
Lighting Design by: YAMAUCHI Yuta
Sound Design by: TAKAHASHI Mai
Costume Design by: FUJITANI Kyoko（FAI FAI）
Stage Manager: SAKURAI Kentaro
Associate Director: KIMURA Kazuhiro
Video Documentation and Editing: ITO Daichi
Promotional Photo by: SAITO Shohei
Assistant Associate Producer: KAKINOKI Hatsumi, TSUKUNI Ulala（KAMIGUSE）, KAWAGUCHI Satoshi
Associate Producer (Guest): MIYANAGA Takuo（mamagoto）
Associate Producer: SAKAMOTO Momo
Special Thanks to: GIFT, mamagoto, PURISSIMA, FAI FAI, Okazaki Art Theatre, ikizuri, KAMIGUSE, LOLO, shibai-engine, SUITENGU PIT
Supported by: ARTS COUNCIL TOKYO（Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture）
In cooperation with: Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre（Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture）
Planning and Production: Theater Collective HANCHU-YUEI, SANKAKUNOMADO

＜Subtitling Credits＞
Chinese Translation (Simplified): Zhenzhen WU
Chinese Translation (Traditional): NITTA Yukio
English Translation: YAMAGATA Mirei
French Translation: Edouard L’HERISSON
Russian Translation: Ekaterina TARASOVA
Spanish Translation: Karla TOLEDO VELARDE

＜Promotional Text＞
YONEYA Naoko