I paid a visit to the newly opened Parabolica bis, the new base of RT "Tokyo Editors' Diary" contributor Konno Yuichi’s "Yaso" magazine. The opening exhibition, "Yaso Tanbi ten: Sense of beauty", introduces Matsui Fuyuko’s and Maruo Suehiro’s paintings and drawings, as well as Koitsukihime’s newly created doll, and Yato Tamotsu’s photographs of Mishima Yukio’s disembowelment. In the multipurpose hall on the ground floor, Yamaguchi Sayoko presented her new performance piece "A-O-I" (12/16, 17:00). That was in fact the event that interested me most.

 

As a matter of course, not one of the 50 seats in the hall remained vacant. Koitsukihime’s doll was placed in the foreground on the left side of the simply composed, basically white stage. Her face was covered, and in the spotlight her hair seemed silverish, which evoked images of — forgive me the strange expression — some kind of "near-death" experience. As "A-O-I" is based on Mishima Yukio’s "Lady Aoi" (from "Five Modern Noh Plays"), the piece supposedly portrays the newly-wed Aoi, who is possessed by a wraith, with the eery music of Ayuo. The sound somewhere between howling wind and screaming voice was set at a volume that was neither too high nor too low.

 

When the lights were slightly dimmed, the sound of an igil, a two-stringed instrument, began to outstrip the background music. As usual, igil performer Yamakawa Fuyuki had a microphone attached to his naked upper body that recorded his heartbeat. Yamakawa accompanied the amplified sound with his khoomei singing, while the delicate and truly esthetic illustrations of Yamamoto Takato were projcted onto a screen that was installed at an angle on the left side of the stage. Against the backdrop of botanical motifs, the sensuous sight of Yamakawa’s body, and a perilous-looking full moon, all of a sudden Yamaguchi Sayoko’s voice became audible on top of the music: "Why did the Emperor have to become a human being?". There were obviously parts of "The Voices of the Heroic Dead" and other text portions added to the lines of "Aoi no ue".

 

Then Yamaguchi made her much-awaited appearance in a luxurious, definitely self-designed red and black dress. With her black hair and her face painted white, she looked like a cool yet lurid doppelganger of Mrs. Rokujo, the wraith. Since there was only one actress on the stage, the appearance of multiple characters in the recited text gave Yamaguchi’s performance a fantastic spin. The projected images kept transforming, and every once in a while a white ray of light flashed across the stage like a horizontal lightning. When the precisely calculated 5cm band of light hit the actress’s arched eye, the stage got wrapped in a feel of tension. The line of sight emphasized through light resembled the piercing stare of a Muslim women from behind her veil of secrecy.

 

From there the story progressed with Yamaguchi’s mainly sidewards-groveling kind of dance, and lines spoken with a crystal-clear yet seemingly cursing voice. The piece culminated in a scene in which the wraith embraced the silver-haired doll and stripped it of its clothes. Even though (or just because?) it’s an inorganic object, the doll with its upper body undressed created a highly erotic atmosphere, with Yamaguchi being the reigning queen of the spectacle. Under the spell of the lighting, music, images, set and costume, the audience unconditionally cast blessings upon the actress embodying the wraith, the absolute leader of the game…

 

Anyway, this page is not for publishing reviews or theatre criticism… What I wanted to say is that "A-O-I" is an outstanding example of a form of artistic expression beyond categories like theatre, music, imagery or art, that appealed to all five senses; and that Parabolica bis is the space in which such a piece could be shown. That’s of course largely attributable to Yamaguchi Sayoko, formerly a world-renowned fashion model, who with the support of such prominent figures as Miyake Issey, Serge Lutens, Terayama Shuji, Teshigawara Saburo and Amagatsu Ushio is now working in a variety of creative fields. But making a crossover event like "A-O-I" possible in a time when genre-crossing cultural activity is seldom, is an achievement that has to be credited also to Konno Yuichi. Other artists from yet different fields involved in "A-O-I", by the way, include visual artists Kakegawa Yasunori and Ikunishi Yasunori, and programmer Takano Satoshi among others.

 

Konno is knowledgeable about literature, music, cinema, art, theatre (including kabuki), dance, etc., and since he is at once publishing "Yaso" and producing stage performances and exhibitions, his network of personal connections is amazing. Although his taste seems slightly — or better, heavily (especially in "Sense of beauty") — one-sided, in times dominated by smoothness and flatness this rather means playing the devil’s advocate with a distinct individuality. Just like Yamaguchi, Konno has been exposed to the unusual talent of the likes of Terayama Shuji or Joseph Beuys from a young age, and this is certainly the key to his ability to assimilate the contributions of artists from different fields in a natural way, and make a performance like "A-O-I" happen. The feats of this "kabukimono" (which is how punks were called in Japan hundreds of years ago) express themselves also in his unique appearance.

 

I may be repeating myself here, but I believe that there has to be much more interdisciplinary collaboration. Likewise, the number of those visiting and witnessing the results of such work is still very limited. Konno, who rented, refurbished and now operates this new, spatious place, states, "the money is all borrowed, and for a while it doesn't look as if I'll be able to pay it all back", laughing as if it were nothing. The fact that cultural crossbreeding seems to be possible only with such brute courage is in my view an indicator of the severity of the situation. It’s exactly those who make and those who appreciate creative work who threaten with their idleness and indifference the foundation of creating and appreciating. I can only hope that there will be other places like Parabolica bis opening in the future.

"Sense of beauty" open through 1/9 (closed between 12/30 and 1/4). The last performance of "A-O-I" this year takes place on 12/26, 20:00. For more information contact (03-3847-5757).

Ozaki Tetsuya / Editor in chief / REALTOKYO