There's a new wind blowing through the performing arts this month, with two companies showing the fruits of "works in progress" instead of finished productions, although any difference in quality seems to be marginal.
Dumb Type, the all-inclusive performing/visual arts company from Kyoto, first introduced the concept of showing an almost-finished piece here, taking its cue from trends overseas to present the progress made on a piece by a deadline dictated by grants, commissions, sponsorships and the like.
Works in progress are assumed to lack the necessary finishing touches, and critics customarily go easier in the rare summaries they make of them.