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A hot summer of theater, climax! Play school for young people 2019

演劇にかける熱い夏、クライマックス! 青少年のための芝居塾2019

The ``Play School for Youth'' can be said to be a major summer event for the theater world in Kanagawa Prefecture. Rehearsals are in full swing for the main performance in late August.
This year's theater company is Marshmallow Wave, which is known for its style based on improvisational theater. The 12 young people who passed the audition are now taking on the challenge of creating a play that includes both behind-the-scenes and front-of-the-scenes aspects.

It has been about 3 months since the school opened in May. Inviting a variety of guest instructors, including the host Kenzo Kimura, the students have been trained and trained in theatrical expression from a wide range of angles. Students take on the challenge of theater theory, workshops, physical theater using their bodies, stage lighting, and improvisational theater training unique to Marshmallow Wave, experiencing the difficulty and joy of expression.

Stress Free, which participated in the workshop, is a music unit consisting of Hidehiro Kobayashi (harp) and Eriko Yajima (flute). Live music will also be played on stage.
The work performed in this performance, which can be said to be the culmination of this summer, is "Gintetsu." This is a play that Mr. Kimura adapted from Kenji Miyazawa's ``Night on the Galactic Railway'' for a theater school.
Let's create a 3D world from the words of the script. Kimura's voice echoes in the rehearsal room.

What kind of performances will the students show us this year? We visited the Kanagawa Prefectural Youth Center Studio HIKARI, which is both a performance venue and a rehearsal space, to hear about the students' enthusiasm.



Runa Nakagawachi is a university student who studies Japanese literature and aims to become a Japanese language teacher. I thought it would be fun to incorporate theater into my classes in the future, so I enrolled in a drama school to acquire the "techniques" to do so.

``It's fun to work together on one thing.Physical theater, which uses the body to express without words, was a particularly interesting experience.For someone like me who has no dance experience, I was able to express myself with just my body.'' It's a great discovery."


Kanohashi , who plays Giovanni in "Gintetsu", is participating for the second time, following last year.

``Last year was fun, but I also wanted to experience the methods of a different theater company, so I participated for the second year in a row.Mr. Kimura's method is very new to me.I leave it to the actors to think for themselves.'' There are many things that I can do, and I'm glad I was able to experience both.
``Gintetsu'' is based on ``Night on the Galaxy Express,'' which everyone has read at least once, so I think even people who are not familiar with theater will enjoy it. There are 9 performances, so please come and see them! ”


Momone is studying spatial design at an art university. I participated because I wanted to acquire the ability to express myself while learning stage design.

``It was my first experience creating a stage production under the direction of a director, so it was very stimulating. Everyone is working hard to create the piece, so I hope everyone will take their time to think about the meaning of the piece and take home their own ``Gintetsu.'' I think.
This time, I was in charge of advertising art and created flyers and posters. I'm trying to draw what I think of ``Gintetsu'' using various things that appear in the story as motifs. ”


《Production Notes》

Kenzo Kimura (screenplay/direction)

At first, I had no idea what kind of people would be there, but when I opened the door, I saw a talented group of people, including people with no experience in theater, so I was convinced that this would be an interesting event.

At the opening ceremony, there was a message that said, ``Please throw away everything you've ever done and greedily absorb what we're all creating here.'' This is because we want you to experience a variety of things with a clean slate. In fact, I think this is the time when you can absorb anything, so I let them experience everything like a shower (lol).

``Night on the Galactic Railway'', the original work for ``Gintetsu'', was written by Kenji Miyazawa in his later years, and is packed with all the essence of Miyazawa's previous works. It was ahead of its time, and it contains a timeless theme, so it's worth doing now. If you are planning to attend the performance, please take this opportunity to experience Miyazawa's works once again. I think you'll find "Gintetsu" more interesting if you read up on a lot of prior knowledge before watching it.

This year's performance will have nine stages, so it will be a great experience for the students. I think it will be an epoch-making event in terms of his future artistic activities, so I think it will be tough physically, but I hope he does his best and gets through it.

[We bring you the passion of our theater students! 》

Play school for youth 2019 performance
"Gintetsu"
[Date and time] August 23rd (Friday) - August 28th (Wednesday)
8/23 (Friday) 19:00~
8/24 (Sat) 14:00~/19:00~
8/25 (Sun) 14:00~/19:00~
8/26 (Monday) 19:00~
8/27 (Tue) 14:00-/19:00-
8/28 (Wednesday) 14:00~
*Doors open 30 minutes before show time. Reception starts 1 hour before.
[Venue] Kanagawa Prefectural Youth Center 2F Studio HIKARI
[Original work] From Kenji Miyazawa's "Night on the Galactic Railway"
[Screenplay/Direction] Kenzo Kimura
[Cast] Hikari Ichikawa, Rui Ito, Karin Ozeki, Shiori Kato, Kotone Kaneko, Yoko Kojima, Kanohashi, Runa Nakagawachi, Hitomi Fujii, Rika Mizobe, Momo Mimori, Momone, Nozomu Horie, Hidehiro Kobayashi, Yajima Eriko, Yutaka Kobashi
[Price] (All seats are free/advance and on the day) General ¥2,700, Students/under 22 years old ¥1,500, High school students and under ¥1,000
*Proof of identification must be presented to apply each discount.
[Ticket reservation/inquiry]
Kanagawa Theater Federation Ticket Center TEL: 080-5659-2757 (10:00-21:00, closed on Mondays), email: info@kenenren.org
Kanagawa Prefectural Youth Center Hall Management Division TEL: 045-263-4475, email: seishonen.c.kikaku@pref.kanagawa.jp
Marshmallow Wave TEL: 070-5079-1432 (inquiries on the day), email: mwaves.info@gmail.com
[Sponsored by] Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefectural Theater Federation

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