With William Shakespeare's iconic use of English lost in translation, bold and reimagined versions of his works have long blossomed in Japan, as dramatists have mainly taken inspiration from the storylines instead.
For example, two highlights from the past 20 years would surely be "The Kyogen of Errors," a 2001 take on "The Comedy of Errors" in traditional comic kyogen style by Mansai Nomura, and Hideki Noda's 2019 production "Q: A Night at the Kabuki," a "Romeo and Juliet" story set in medieval Japan, with a soundtrack taken from Queen's classic 1975 album, "A Night at the Opera."
Now, a likely new addition to those highlights, an all-male production titled "Crying Romeo and Angry Juliet," is set to start an almost month-long season at Bunkamura Theatre Cocoon in Tokyo, ahead of a run in Osaka.