In a residential area close to the bright lights and buzz of Shibuya, a fascinating theatrical experiment is taking place at the Agora Theater in Tokyo.
Not only an experiment in contemporary drama, but also one in cultural exchange, "Eclipse" is further evidence of Japanese companies' growing interaction with the foreign drama world. This interchange is not only producing large-scale, 1,000-capacity ballet, opera and drama programs, but is also functioning at a more individual level between young dramatists.
This project, for example, grew out of a meeting in Paris in 1998 between the New York-based American dramatist Barry Hall and Oriza Hirata, the producer of "Eclipse" who is also general manager of the Agora Theater and a leader of the Seinendan Theater Company. Both were among the leading contemporary dramatists invited to France from all the countries competing in that year's soccer World Cup. (What a brilliant idea to use a worldwide sports event to expand cultural/arts exchange -- and what a shame Japan and Korea didn't follow the French example this year.)