“What to make of the strange, feral dances the schoolgirls engage in, while singing their wordless songs? What of the playwright and the producers, riotously alive and bursting with their own stories and concerns? Both make for great theater.”  Read the original article here.

“…an analysis of humanity through communication and language… This is a smart, beautiful, and touching production that is unpretentious and fun. I left feeling humbled and inspired, reminded why I love theatre the way I do. Do not miss this show, and once you see it, tell everyone you know.”  Read the original article here.

“Airy… lovely… graceful… like a dream… must not unwatch’d go” Read original article here.

Check it out.

“…a brilliant exploration of suspension–in time, in space, between words, and between bodies.  So much so that walking out of the theatre last Thursday night I was rendered, much like the first Ophelia in this Murakami-esque work, silent. ” Read the whole article here.

“On her own terms, Ogawa has successfully crafted a riveting experience that succeeds because of its incredible imagery and its ability to access raw emotional territory.” Check out the full article here.

It was a grueling but rewarding week. Opening was Wednesday June 11, but the official “press” opening was Thursday (confusing). Despite the heart-stopping technical snafus (the most nerve-wracking one being the death of the DVD player in the middle of Thursday’s show, rendering 2 out of 3 of Ikuko & Mark’s scenes sans subtitles and therefore non-intelligible to those who do not speak Japanese), the cast has made leaps and bounds towards making the show cohesive and fulfilling.

I was reminded of the Borges’ story The Circular Ruins in which a man attempts to create another man through the process of dreaming — but fails to breathe life into his creation. I felt that was an apt analogy for this process. No matter how intricately I dream the details of each moment in the play, it all falls as flat as a dead Frankenstein unless the actors can inhabit and play in the structure given them. But I am happy to find that they have been finding their path to the be beating play-heart, with great courage and passion.

For me it has also been helpful to embrace the fact that this and all plays will be imperfect, and that the imperfection is where the opportunity for surprise lies. I start seeing my own tendencies as a writer, and how I compensate for that as a director, as much as my resistance to the literal as a director keeps me running around as a writer. Self-deprecating or self-effacing impulses aside, I feel good about the show and good about the responses we’ve been getting. Looking forward to the next three weeks!

more great photos by Cark Skutsch:

The opening of a show is such a stressful momentous event, and like all momentous events, makes one question all sorts of things. Like why am I doing this anyway? How can I do it better? How can I balance my vision and yet allow the performers full freedom to seize the play with their own hands? Tech is definitely a process that shakes things up, and in many ways, keeps these questions at bay — because everyone is just struggling to solve the issues at hand.

Now that we’ve opened (although tonight is the official “press” opening) we’ve got a beautiful ugly bloody slimy puking shitting gurgling laughing screaming baby on our hands. It feels scary and great. The audiences will be different every night, the play will be different every night. I’m excited (for me and for the cast) to live through the next 4 weeks…

(these beautiful photos taken by Carl Skutsch)

Looking good.

Again, mad props to the design team and stage management and Production Manager Juliet Chia. Respect.

i can’t sleep.

I cannot reiterate what an amazing job all the designers have done, and also and especially Juliet Chia my production manager, in getting the space ready in a few days. These photos are from the first day of actors in the theater.  Thrilling and scary.  Thrilling because things are becoming very real very quickly.  Scary because, well in many ways this is the beginning of the process of the play leaving me — which is great and wonderful and sad and amazing. We go into two days of heavy tech starting tomorrow.

this is what happens when you turn the lights on…