HENSHIN / METAMORPHOSIS

Mode Theatre Company, Japan
performance length: min
In Japanese with Czech subtitles

Henshin (The Metamorphosis, 2007) is the latest in a series of award winning adaptations of Kafka\'s novels including; Amerika (2001), Shiro (The Castle, 2005) and Shinpan (The Trial, 2007) by Osamu Matsumoto, Japan\'s foremost director of Kafka-based plays. By shifting the focus away from Gregor, the main character, turning into an insect, Matsumoto reveals the more dramatic transformation experienced by the characters surrounding him; his family and his supervisor, bringing out Kafka\'s particular humor and offering a refreshing take on the universal the theme of solitude. The big door at the center of the play is a craftily integrated work of art that has been garnering attention as well. The production received high appraisals for its treatment of modern challenges such as family, care-giving and discrimination, winning the Kinokuniya Performing Arts Award in 2007.

MODE Theater:
Osamu Matsumoto founded the MODE theatre company in 1989 in order to mount his own productions. There he won acclaim for adapting and directing works by foreign playwrights like Chekhov, Wilder and Becket as contemporary Japanese plays. He has also collaborated actively with leading contemporary Japanese playwrights including Miri Yu, Oriza Hirata, and Yoji Sakate. During the late 90’s, Matsumoto began tackling larger projects at the Setagaya Public Theatre, allowing him to present original interpretations of classics written by Japanese drama heavyweights such as Kara Juro, Betsuyaku Minoru and Chikamatsu Monzaemon with his company. Since 2000, MODE has brought texts by Kafka and Chekhov to the stage employing a process he developed at the Setagaya Public Theatre using workshops to create theater productions. His works have received multiple awards including the Agency for Cultural Affairs Drama Festival Award, the Yomiuri Theater Grand Prix and the Kinokuniya Performing Arts Award.