Tokyo may be Japan's performing-arts hub, but a growing number of artists are swapping the strictures of its cultural marketplace for the creative and lifestyle benefits of life outside the capital.
For the Osaka-based Ishinha theater company, however, there's nothing new about that. In fact, since it was founded in 1970 by Yukichi Matsumoto, Ishinha — which loosely translates as "revolutionary or radical change" — has been creating site-specific performances that explore the intersections of urban and rural life and challenge the foundations of theater, art and shared experience.
While Ishinha only produces a few works each year, its large, immersive creations continue to draw new audiences curious to explore spaces transformed through its theater. For instance, its new work, "Twilight," draws on themes of maps, journeys and idiomatic speech — hot topics in a world witnessing mass movements of people.