Electric Japan - 1 to 7 August - a free online festival celebrating work by Japanese artists

Electric Japan is a free online festival celebrating work by a range of Japanese artists in dance, theatre, fashion, film and photography. Taking place from 1 – 7 August,  it is a rare glimpse into Japan’s burgeoning new arts scene.

The festival is curated by The Coronet Theatre’s Artistic Director Anda Winters, who said “We were inspired by the plans for the Tokyo Olympics to take a look at the current arts scene in Japan, which we rarely have a chance to see in Europe, especially now when travel is so limited. This is just a taster. But I hope it will open up new opportunities both for these talented artists and for audiences, eager to see what is going on internationally.”

The artists taking part in Electric Japan – part of Coronet Inside Out – are listed below:

Theatre director Tomoco Kawaguchi will direct Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis in a new Japanese language punk opera production.

Barabbas Okuyama, a performer at the at the forefront of contemporary exploration of  Butoh dance, will perform his mesmeric solo Trigger Point.

Choreographer, director and performer Ney Hasegawa and his collective FujiyamaAnnette will share an excerpt of their piece United Me.

Cult comedian Kentaro Kobayashi reprises his most celebrated role in Mr Potsunen’s Peculiar Slice of Life – a trailer can be seen here.

Boundary and genre breaking hip hop star, KENTARO!! with his new company Dayonashiik will bring a specially created performance for Electric Japan. Well-known in Japan for his extraordinary choreography and performances,  he and his dancers will present their own brand of Japanese hip-hop, incorporating contemporary Japanese dance and their own original music.

Experimental choreographer and performer, Koichiro Tamura and his company DANCE PJ REVO will present their blend of contemporary and hip hop dance.

The festival will feature an exclusive interview with radical fashion and shoe designer, Kei Kagami. After graduating from Central Saint Martins, she went on to work with John Galliano.

London based photographer, Mayumi Hirata will show her latest series Jump, defying the depression of lock down by inviting her subjects to literally jump for joy.

Takashi Masuyama is playwright, director, actor and Artistic Director of Osaka’s Kodomo Kyojin Theatre Company. His most celebrated production, the Samurai-costumed musical Bakamatsu Suplex was recently presented at Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre. The company will perform a new play for The Coronet Theatre.

General Artistic Director of the Shizuoka Performing Arts Center Satoshi Miyagi, known for fusing contemporary interpretations of major classical texts such as Medea, Mahabharata and Antigone, with the physical techniques and stylisation of Asian plays – is a key figure in Japan’s theatre scene. Here you can get a taste of Mahabharata.

The extraordinary performer, New York-born Japanese dancer/choreographer Fukiko Takase was a member of Company Wayne McGregor until 2018,  and has worked with film-makers, photographers and designers including Nick Knight, Gareth Pugh, Ruth Hogben among others.

The Coronet Inside Out series is supported by the London Community Response Fund.

The Coronet Theatre wishes to thank the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation and the Great-Britain Sasakawa Foundation for their valued support for the Electric Japan programme.

A review in Metal Magazine can be viewed here.

Media Enquiries:

Jane Quinn, Bolton & Quinn

jq@boltonquinn.com

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