Theater groups from all over Japan and overseas gather together to create short plays that will take flight from Yokohama to the world! Report on the "2nd Kanagawa Kamome Short Theater Festival"

全国＆海外から演劇集団が集結！横浜から世界に羽ばたく短編演劇を！「第2回神奈川かもめ短編演劇祭」レポート

What makes the Kanagawa Kamome Short Play Festival unique from other festivals is that all 12 participating groups are divided into Block A and Block B, with six groups each performing three shows over four days, and each group is voted for by the audience, and the final day is a public judging session where the winner is decided by the votes of the six judges, in a battle format. This is almost the same as the " Gekiou Kanagawa V " held in Kanagawa Prefecture last October, where the winner is decided by votes from the audience and the judges.
This voting system gives each group three chances to perform, so the performers have the advantage of being able to refine their content each time while checking the reactions of a wide range of audiences, since it's not a one-time deal. At the same time, they are also required to have the basic ability to consistently demonstrate their skills in all three performances. Since the evaluations of the professional judges and the general audience are mixed, it is difficult to decide which points to appeal, and the differences in the views of theater between the performers and the audience are also revealed. It is a drama contest that is not as easy as one might think.

The 2nd Kanagawa Kamome Short Play Festival

On the final day, March 5th, after the performances of Blocks A and B were finished, a public judging and awards ceremony was held on stage. The six judges gave their comments on each work and their scores to the public, and the best work was decided. From here, we will introduce the performances on the final day in order of appearance.

[Block A]

Shikoku Region Representative/Shakaryoku "The Wolf Boy"

With the dramatic line "Don't lie" repeated over and over as a keyword, the play unfolds one absurd scene after another that is neither past, future, nor present, delusion nor reality, as the boy blindly loves his abusive father and his mother who brings him hamburgers once a week, even as he scolds him for lying. The lines pile up along with wordplay, sometimes generating laughs, but also creating a thrilling theatrical space where you never know what will happen next.

Taiwan representative / Asuwago Seisakusho Co-coism “Concrete Jungle” (with subtitles)

A story of love, conflict, suffering, and separation between a homosexual couple unfolds in a room in a cluttered urban building where you can even feel the stale air. The story naturally shifts its focus from a conversation between the couple and a young man who visits the doctor to the couple's life as a couple. The happy conversation between the two gradually grows more tense, and "he" tells "him" that he will "marry (the woman) for his parents' sake." The scene where he strangles his lover in a fit of passion creates tension, and at the end, the sadness of "him" left alone in his room is heartbreaking.

Tomorrow's Wago Co-coism "Concrete Jungle"

Representative of the Play Selection Team/Selected Play Team "Tomorrow's Things"

A play selected from 108 public entries was performed by a special team formed for this festival. One day, a friend returning from overseas visits the man's room with a gift. On the same day, a terrorist attack breaks out in the country. "That's crazy," he says as he watches the news. The friend hands him a strange gift. The friend tells him that he has shot someone, and the man has a bad feeling about the shocking story. Then something falls out of his bag... This socially conscious dialogue drama unfolds against a stylish all-white background, and is filled with a shocking eeriness that threatens the peacefulness of everyday life.

Hokkaido Region Representative/Wanwans "Love is always a layup?"

Due to a "no romance" rule, only one member remains on the basketball team at a certain high school. That member finally falls in love. As the member is tormented and decides to give up his first love in order to continue playing basketball, the advisor, who was also supposed to have adhered to the "no romance" rule, makes a shocking confession: "In fact, he has a girlfriend!" In a complete change from the serious plays of the previous two groups, the two teams engage in a comical exchange on stage as they punch each other, causing laughter. At the end, an actor playing the ball appears! The comedic performance, in which the basketball goal is lowered and the team scores a shot, is met with thunderous applause.

Kansai Region Representative/ThE 2VS2 "Contradiction/National High School Girls Championship"

"Contradiction" is a fierce battle between a man who boasts of his groping techniques that never fail to get him caught and a woman who makes false accusations of groping by having butts that he can't help but touch, on the Saikyo Line during rush hour. "National High School Girls Championship" is a double feature in which a live announcer and commentator enthusiastically broadcast a fictional competitive battle in which two high school girls use various tactics to capture the hearts of men. The passionate dialogue exchanges and flashy action are just what you'd expect from a Kansai theater company. It was a sharp and hilarious comedy full of a spirit of service to make people laugh, and we enjoyed it.

Tokyo Region Representative/Nichio −bion− “Ferris Wheel”

A woman with a fear of heights, who makes it her duty to ride the Ferris wheel on her birthday every year, and a man who is a heavy smoker, accidentally board the same Ferris wheel at an amusement park. Despite their wariness, the two begin to talk, and as the wheel suddenly stops in the air, they begin to talk about their lives... The awkward way the two men and women live their lives is revealed through a series of quiet, polite lines, making it endearing. This casual comedy drama that takes place in the midst of everyday life is soul-cleansing, and the nostalgic stage design also caught my eye.

[Block B]

Tohoku Region Representative/Gin's Bar "Ihatov no Yuki"

A port town in Iwate Prefecture just after the Great East Japan Earthquake. A man searching for his family arrives at a school gymnasium that has been turned into a morgue. He is a funeral director, and while he carefully mourns the bodies whose families have yet to come to claim them, he continues to speak to them quietly as if they were still alive... From the moment this one-man play on the theme of the Great East Japan Earthquake begins, you are drawn in by his smooth narration. We must never let the events of that day fade away. Ibuse Gintaro, who lives in the disaster area, has a variety of thoughts that touch my heart.

Representative from Korea / Theater Company Masterpiece Cornfield "Where the Clock Was" (with subtitles)

This new work by the Korean representative won both the Kamome Award and the Drama Award at the 1st Kanagawa Kamome Theater Festival. A father who ran a watch shop and died after a long illness appears in a younger form to his daughter, and the two talk excitedly about various memories... It was unfortunate that the actor playing the father was unable to appear in the third performance due to family circumstances, and a substitute was quickly found, but the stage design, with sunflowers in full bloom to represent the father's favorite season of summer, was beautiful, and the music played on the stage by saxophone and guitar skillfully created a sad and warm scene.

Theater masterpiece cornfield "Where the clock was"

Kyushu Region Representative/Blue Egonak "Aruhanashi"

The story is about two men who form a comedy duo and a childhood friend who marries one of them. The story begins with the duo performing a comedy routine at a nursing home as elderly people, then goes back in time to their younger days, weaving together heartbreaking stories of friendship and the lives of the three men, who sometimes miss each other and then reconnect. It was a challenging work that made a complex script that goes backwards in time and finally returns to the present look simple.

Tokai Region Representative/Tokai Union "And Then, She"

This is a unique piece in which a young library committee member talks in a comical way all by herself about her feelings and fantasies about her beloved senior who comes to the library to borrow books. The actors other than the protagonist, including the senior, mime on stage but do not speak a single word, which is an impressive innovative production. The actress's ability to talk nonstop for 20 minutes describing the scenes and feelings of the girl and her senior, and the intricate script that reads like a novel are also impressive. The big twist when the senior, who the audience had imagined to be a very cool guy, turns up also drew laughs.

China Region Representative / Kom Tan Tan "A Mole on the Moon"

A woman working in the nightlife industry and her customer, who met outside the club for the first time today. The woman tries to change her unhappy life by using a fake mole, but the man tells her that even the moon has a mole, and the two begin a mysterious spell ritual that is said to make wishes come true... The woman lies to extract money from the man, and the man gives her money, knowing it's a lie. The woman, drowning in debt, rejects the man who says he loves her. The stage is filled with the loneliness and sadness of two people hoping for happiness.

Kanagawa Region Representative/Chiracters "Unknown"

This work was awarded the honor of "Theater King" at "Theater King Kanagawa V" in October last year. The hilarious dialogue between the mother-complex young man who neglects "Oyashirazu" and "Oyashirazu" himself who urges him to "get out of here before you get cavities" is still going strong. The direction has been brushed up for the large KAAT studio, making it an impressive piece that is easier to understand and more straightforward to enjoy. The ability of the three actors who perform rhythmically with a good tempo (the singing ability that appears in the performance is also considerable!) shone even more brightly than in "Theater King V".

Public judging and awards ceremony

After the final performances of Blocks A and B, the six judges gathered at the public judging and awards ceremony, which began at around 5:30 p.m. The 12 works were first reviewed by stage designer Rei Koike, playwright/director Yutaka Narii, representative of the theater group Caramel Box, scriptwriter Kazuhiko Ban, Nibroll's playwright/director/choreographer/dancer Mikuni Yanaihara, Magcal Table member and Tobiraza's playwright/director Kensuke Yokouchi, and director/actor LaSalle Ishii.

This festival brought together a diverse range of works, and it was impressive to see each judge offer multifaceted critiques from their own area of expertise. Narii, Ban, and Yokouchi made detailed requests regarding how to polish the script and direct, offering hints on how to improve the works. LaSalle Ishii explained the mechanisms that create laughter, focusing on comedy works, while Yanaihara spoke about how actors should use their bodies. Koike also shared advice on how to create effective stage art and directing methods, something that is not often discussed in everyday life. The unique theatrical perspective provided not only the performers, but also the audience with a glimpse into how to look at things from a different perspective.

Before deciding on the Kamome Award, the other award winners were announced. The Best Drama Award, which was apparently the subject of fierce debate among the judges, went to Ferris Wheel by Nitto −bion−. The Best Direction Award went to Concrete Jungle by Co-coism, representing Taiwan. The Best Actor Award went to Iwase Akiko, the writer, director and lead actress of Ferris Wheel by Nitto −bion−, who also won the Best Drama Award, and she received a thunderous round of applause from the audience.

The next announcement was the Audience Award, which was decided by tallying up the audience votes from the first day, March 2, to today, the final day. The results were displayed on the screen, and the Audience Award went to Chi Reactors' "Shirazu no Uchi ni" with 104 votes, followed by Nihon Bion's "Kanransha" in second place and Wanwanz's "Koi wa Itsudo, Lay Up?" in third place.

And finally, the "Kamome Award" was announced, which was given to the best work and team. The audience was thrilled by the thrilling presentation format in which the judges' points were allocated to each group and added up right in front of their eyes based on the results of the audience vote. A roar erupted as each judge's vote was received, and the winner of the prestigious "Kamome Award" was... the Chiriactors, the representative of the Kanagawa region, who had shown great strength in the audience vote!

Writer/director Oshima Hiroshi, who played the role of "Oyashirazu", took the microphone with an excited look on his face, hugged the other members of the troupe and expressed his joy, saying, "I'm surprised. I'm shocked at the disappointing result of our local representative winning, and I don't know how we should approach this from now on (laughs), but I want this competition to get even more popular, and it's so much fun to see all the silly people from all over the country who are passionate about short plays gather and interact with each other. The Chili Reactors will continue to be based in Kanagawa, so please at least remember our name!" LaSalle Ishii also commented, "The tempo was good, the diction was good, and the setting of Oyashirazu's appearance alone was deep and interesting, so I think it was a work worthy of the Kamome Award."

Finally, the participating groups in the audience came onto the stage and, united with the MCs from the regional competition, Nakayama Tomofumi (theater 045 syndicate), Mashima Kazuka (Rijitter Kikaku), festival executive committee chairman Maruo Satoshi, the judges, and the audience, they concluded the four-day heated battle with calls of "Seagulls!" and "They flew!"

In the second part, we will bring you an interview with the Kamome Award-winning theater company Chiriactors and judge LaSalle Ishii. Please enjoy both!