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Wrtten by Carlo Gozzi (Italy)
Period: April-May 2001
Venue: Mojiko Hotel Seaside Terrace, Mojiko-ku, Kitakyushu City
Author: Tomo Fujisawa
Writing date: October 2016.

 

After all, just before that was “Paper Balloon” (Kunio Kishida), who won the Toga Director Competition. Not only the audience, but also the members of the company were upset by the drastic gap between the two productions.
Until just before, we staged Kobo Abe and Minoru Betsuyaku’play , and Next was Kunio Kishida. And because we received the award Tadashi Suzuki’s award, anyone feel that such is the color of the Uzume, and most people try to imagine their next work to some extent. It never occurred to me that it would be a classic Italian masked comedy, a goofy comedy with grandiose gestures and blatant comedy that would make you laugh.
Carlo Gozzi ,who the hell is he? , a wrestling god? I thought so too.

From this point onwards, he would do whatever he could come up with: “astringent tastes”, “Family-friendly”, “Greek tragedy”, “Kara Juro”, “fairy tale,” “bondage artist,” “Yukio Mishima”, “black humor,” “all naked”, “comedy of husband and wife,” and so on.

Because I joined the theater company shortly after “Paper Balloon”, I was at a loss as well. But I now understand that Goessner’s view of the theater (his view of art) is so broad that it is not meant to be delimited. To use a metaphor, professional baseball, grassroots baseball, sumo wrestling, golf, hockey, and jogging are all “sports,” and he is carrying the “sport” on his back. The only thing that matters is the essence in the middle. This was a good lesson for those who follow him, but it’s also an obvious factor that makes it difficult for the cult of the theater company, so to speak, to attract a fixed fan base. I went to …… to see the next one because the last one was to my liking, but what they do is completely different.

No, it’s not really different.

It is about drawing out the humanity of the actors to the utmost limit, trusting in the power of the theater, finding the connection between the old and the new expressions, and pursuing a theater that is purely theatrical.
In this respect, Goessner’s direction does not waver in the slightest.
That’s why we can choose to produce any kind of play in any style.
If Uzume Theater has a brand color, that is all that matters. The problem is that it is difficult to become what we call our “color”.

 

Looking back on the two things, I really feel like I’m doing something that’s not right for “Ichigen-san”. This is both for the viewer and the doer.

No one can accept the idea that lines change as you practice, or that you practice for the sake of changing lines. Generally speaking, it is difficult to understand what Goessner is trying to say without stepping over the wall a bit.

What he does is (or seems to be) different every time.

I think that’s what it meant for Peter Goessner to be not just a director, but as Uzume Theatre. It was necessary for him to have friends who shared his ideas, who could sympathize and forgive each other, and who trusted each other. And the support of the local people who came to see us because they liked Peter, for whatever reason, nurtured each other.

One time, our touring performances were covered by the NHK TV and introdused into a TV program of Performing Arts . The commentator, Kisei Ei, said memorably, “When you go on a journey like this, human beings are exposed and the group is put to the test. As a group that seems to be testing each other, Goessner and its environs have been fostering a relationship of trust and trust while grinding each other to create a theater and a stage.