A juggling monster appears at KAAT?! A Franco-Japanese hybrid work, world premiere!

Go, see, and experience the world of art
File.19 Head and Mouth × Defracto "Yokai Kemame"
Miyuki Inoue (Magcal Editorial Department)

The play "Yokai Kemame" will soon open at KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre.
Juggling x Contemporary Dance x Circus.
It sounds interesting, but somehow it seems a bit suspicious.
The illustrations by Koji Suzuki used on the flyer are also wonderfully mysterious and in full bloom.
What exactly are they trying to do?
I took advantage of my privilege as an editor and went to peek into the rehearsal space.

From the very beginning, I was overwhelmed by their high level of physical ability and excellent teamwork.
This is just a light warm-up before the actual rehearsal begins, so it's impossible to predict what kind of performance will unfold on the real stage.
Reflecting on my own shallow understanding of "juggling," I spoke with Takashi Watanabe of {Head and Mouth}.

Watanabe first encountered juggling when he was 20 years old and a first-year art student.
"When I went to a friend's house, I saw the whole family juggling together around a kotatsu (heated table). I thought, 'This is fun!' and a week later I bought some balls and started juggling myself."

A family juggling oranges around the four sides of a kotatsu (heated table)? It sounds suspicious, but apparently it's true.
Having become hooked on juggling, Watanabe realized that physicality was essential to deepening his juggling skills, and began taking up ballet and breakdancing. After performing both domestically and internationally as a member of a contemporary dance company, he founded the juggling company {Head and Mouth} in 2015.

"I work within the context of contemporary art. But this time, I challenged myself to break away from the 'difficult to understand' atmosphere of contemporary art and create a work that everyone can enjoy."

The venue is the large studio on the 8th floor of the KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre. A 360-degree stage is set up, with the audience surrounding the acting area in the center.

"We travel all over the world and perform in various places, so it's important that our work can adapt to any environment. This time, after touring Yokohama, Shizuoka, and Nagoya, we're also planning a European tour."

Indeed, juggling and dancing are language-independent, so perhaps they allow for free communication with people all over the world.

In a corner of the studio, {Head and Mouth} member Sakurako Gibo is busy making balls for juggling. The hand-knitted balls are cute and round, yet their ever-changing nature makes them look like works of modern art.
The rattling sound you hear each time the ball is caught might also be part of the art.
This is a robot that plays music, created by musician Sylvain Kémon. It will be performing slightly unusual music live in various locations around the venue...or so it seems.

Apparently, roof tiles can also be used as musical instruments. If you line up new and used tiles of various shapes and hit them with a golf ball, each tile produces a different sound, and it's even possible to play a musical scale.

They don't use "ordinary" things, not even the juggling balls or the music. Yet, they don't fall into the trap of being "difficult to understand" that is often found in contemporary dance. You never know what's going to happen, but it looks like we can expect a very free and interesting performance.

Guillaume Martinet, who will be performing with Watanabe, also discovered juggling at the age of 20, just like Watanabe, and is currently active in the popular French juggling company {Defracto}.

"I met {Atama and Kuchi} through a mutual friend. When they came to Paris, I heard they were looking for a place to stay, so I invited them to my place. It was supposed to be for two or three days, but we ended up living together for about a month (laughs). We talked a lot about juggling and really hit it off."

I've collaborated with Watanabe on creative projects before, but this is the first time we've performed together on stage. In other words, this will be the "world premiere" of a work by our unit. For this project, I visited Kyoto and Okinawa with Watanabe and also did some residency work there.

Since her Japanese is improving rapidly, we asked her to write a message for Magcal readers.
The blue letters below are Guillaume's handwriting.
*The above text is an example used by our staff.

"We want to meet all kinds of audiences, so please come and see us. There's nothing complicated about it. We just want you to have fun and to receive the message we're trying to convey in your own way."

This event has ended.
KAAT DANCE SERIES 2019
Yokai Kemame L'esprit des haricots poilus
[Date and Time] October 5th (Sat) and 6th (Sun)
October 5th (Sat) 12:00 PM - / 5:00 PM -
Sunday, October 6th, 12:00 PM - / 3:00 PM -
*Doors open 30 minutes before the performance begins.
Childcare services are available. Reservations must be made at least one week before the performance; a fee applies (Mothers TEL. 0120-788-222).
[Venue] KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre, Main Studio
[Cast] Takashi Watanabe, Guillaume Martinet
[Music - Special Appearance] Makoto Nomura
[Prices] (All seats unreserved) General admission: ¥3,000, Pair ticket: ¥5,000, Same-day ticket: ¥3,500, Under 24: ¥1,500, High school students and younger: ¥1,000, Seniors (65 years and older): ¥2,500
*Pair tickets are available through Ticket Kanagawa (advance purchase only).
*Discounts for those under 24, high school students and younger, and senior citizens are available through Ticket Kanagawa (advance purchase only, limited number of tickets, ID required).
[Organizer] KAAT Kanagawa Arts Theatre
[Inquiries] 0570-015-415 (Ticket Kanagawa / 10:00-18:00)
*Please refrain from bringing preschool-aged children.
*If you require wheelchair access, please contact Ticket Kanagawa in advance.
*Resale for profit is prohibited.