[Lawson Entertainment Co., Ltd.]
The Tokyo performance of the play “The Case of My Wife Shrunk During a Bank Robbery” opens on April 1st (Monday)! The press conference held just before the opening and the public general event are revealed for the first time!
*View in browser* *Lawson Entertainment Co., Ltd.*
Press release: April 2, 2024
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The Tokyo performance of the play “The Case of My Wife Shrunk During a Bank Robbery” opens on April 1st (Monday)! The press conference held just before the opening and the public general event are revealed for the first time!
▶ Stage play “The incident where the wife shrunk due to a bank robbery” Official website: https://thetinywife.com/
The stage play “The Case of My Wife Shrinking Due to a Bank Robbery” opened on April 1, 2024 (Monday) at the Nippon Seinenkan Hall in Tokyo.
This time, we will be showing you for the first time the opening day press conference and public general production of the Tokyo
performance, which will continue until April 14th (Sunday)!
Mari Hanaso, who plays the wife, has shrunk to 61mm, and how will her relationship with Shosuke Tanihara, who plays the husband, change as a result? Don’t miss this opportunity to see the mysterious story of “The case where my wife shrunk during a bank robbery”!
Report on the first day’s press conference and public general event! From this strange and impactful title, many people may have wondered, “What kind of setting is this?” “The Case of a Wife Shrunk During a Bank Robbery.” Based on the novel of the same name by Canadian author Andrew Kaufman, which was said to be impossible to adapt to the stage, G2 has written a new script and is in charge of the direction, taking on the world’s first stage adaptation! The first day of the event finally opened on April 1st (Monday) at the Nippon Seinenkan Hall in Tokyo, and the full story was revealed before the audience’s eyes. Here, we will introduce the first day’s press conference and the public general event held just before the curtain rose.
■First day press conference
First of all, the opening day press conference was attended by the lead actors Mari Hanaso and Shosuke Tanihara, who were dressed in colorful stage costumes, and each started with enthusiastic comments. Mari Hanaso (hereinafter referred to as Ms. Hanaso): I’m Mari Hanaso, who plays the role of Stacey. We had a lot of stage rehearsals yesterday and the day before yesterday, and today is our first rehearsal. Now, I have to overcome this mountain of “through” before the first day! My heart is pounding with excitement.
Mr. Shosuke Tanihara (hereinafter referred to as Mr. Tanihara): Actually, I don’t have a name for my role this time, but my role is “I.” This is the only role I play that is not a party to the bank robbery, and this stage play is also rewarding as I am replaying what I am hearing from Stacey in my head. At the same time, I spent five weeks rehearsing, wondering how I should approach it. Five weeks is quite a long time for a straight play, but it feels like it went by in the blink of an eye. Even though Hanaso-san and I are acting together, we don’t have many direct exchanges of lines, but I think we’re doing well as a couple. Also, there is a scene in the movie where Stacey sings a melody in her beautiful voice, which I love!
In response to Mr. Tanihara’s words, Mr. Hanaso immediately replied, “Please don’t raise the bar like that!” Mr. Tanihara smiled kindly and said, “No, no, you’re really nice, so please do it!” They played the roles of a husband and wife, and they seemed to work perfectly together.
The next question is regarding the reaction to the G2 production. Mr. Hanaso: This is the second time I have appeared in a production directed by G2. The last stage play was a truly mysterious work, so my image of G2 is that he is the number one director when it comes to mysterious works (lol). This work was also said to be impossible to adapt to the stage, so to be honest, at first I was worried about how G2 would portray it on stage, but they did it beautifully and even slightly He directed it with a sense of humor. It’s in a format that’s very easy to understand and easy to deliver to everyone, so as expected of G2! We think.
Mr. Tanihara: I mentioned earlier that it was a rebirth in “my” brain, but the point is that this work is also the stage for G2’s brain regeneration. G2’s stage production has a lot of blank space, so I think the key is how much the audience can expand their image from what is presented there. In other words, it’s a stage that you can imagine in a very deep way, and not only the actors but also staff from various fields work together to create a single stage, so I hope everyone will enjoy that as well. think.
When asked about her “favorite scene,” Hanaso said, “The scene where the couple goes shopping.”
Hanaso-san: When I first heard about G2’s concept, I was like, “Really?” That’s what I thought, and I think it’s a very interesting scene. It looks like it’s going to be a rare sight, so I’d like you to burn it into your eyes.
On the other hand, Tanihara selected scenes in which he did not appear.
Mr. Tanihara: There is a scene in which the character Sam (one of the victims of the robbery) ends up floating in the water, and the image of Yuichiro Nakayama lying in the background shouting Sam’s name makes me laugh. I love it (lol). As expected, Yuichiro is the best! I think about this as I look at it every time.
Lastly, we received a message from the audience who are looking forward to the performance.
Hanaso: Today is finally the first day. Isn’t it impossible for everyone to adapt it to the stage? Today, we are able to bring this story to you on stage. Not only the cast but also the staff are all mobilized, and every single one of them works hard to create this stage throughout the performance, so we hope to deliver the power of this work and the energy of our company to a large number of people. I would like to. Everyone, please come and look forward to it. Mr. Tanihara: This work is of course about the acting performed by the actors, but I also want people to pay attention to the dance, visuals, music, and even the scene changes. Personally, I would really like to watch it from the audience seats without actually being on stage, so I hope everyone will come to the theater to see it! In this story, the incidents that appear in the mysterious world are just metaphors, and among the 13 cases that appear, some are saved and others are not. G2 said that although this play may seem like a dark and serious story, it is actually a comedy. If you can see in the play that this person succeeded because they were able to change their way of thinking, I would be happy if you could use this as a hint in your own life. There’s a part of me that feels like life itself is a comedy in some way. So, there are many things that can happen in life, but I hope that this stage can be used as an opportunity to laugh about them all!
And concluded the press conference.
■Report on the public general event!
At the general production that followed, the opening stage set was simple at first glance, but the wall that served as the background moved freely to create a different space for each scene, and on that wall there was a live performance that Tanihara and others were holding on the spot. By showing footage, including camera footage, a lot of information is conveyed to the audience surprisingly smoothly, such as the sudden bank robbery and the strange interactions between the robber and the victim.
Stylish and diverse productions, exemplified by the opening, are truly the hallmark of the well-crafted G2. The actors move in a coordinated manner that resembles dance choreography, and are always able to express themselves even during scene changes.Of course, this is a straight play, but it also becomes a stage where you can enjoy a kind of contemporary dance-like fun. was.
The story begins one day when 13 people at a bank are threatened by a robber wearing all red clothes and hats, telling them to “give them the thing they love the most among their possessions.” When each person handed over their mementos, the robber declared, “I have received 51% of your souls. Strange things will happen from now on, but unless you restore your souls yourself, you will die.” Disappear. Then, unbelievable things begin to happen to the 13 victims one after another. Stacey notices that she is starting to shrink little by little, and complains to her husband about it…
Mari Hanaso portrays a wife who is troubled (her worries seem to be caused by the couple’s daily lives rather than about her shrinking height), and Shosuke Tanihara portrays her in a lovely and sad way. He plays the husband, who seems to be worried about his wife but ultimately doesn’t seem to care about her at all, in a calm and realistic manner (and even while acting as a “kyogen performer”), he does a good job. In addition, the melancholy singing voice that Hanaso sings towards the end of the story is beautiful and magnificent, and it further enhances the fantasy level of this story.
Seiji Hirano, who plays the role of a robber, shows a glimpse of his high physical ability, and Noriko Iriyama, who stands out for her beautiful movements when being chased by a lion, despite facing the outrageous experience of being “crushed by her family’s history.” Hideo Kurihara demonstrated overwhelming persuasive power, as well as Yuichiro Nakayama and Nahoko Yoshimoto, who took turns to play a number of different characters.Each talented performer brought the story to life with their own splendid acting techniques. inflate it. In addition, it’s fun to watch the fantasy world created by making full use of dynamic props and equipment, such as tall sets and giant stairs and chairs. Strange incidents and events that appear in the case of 13 people and 13 people, such as the mother splitting into 98 people, the lion tattooed on her ankle materializing and chasing after her, and her husband suddenly turning into a snowman. ……. How much of this really happened, or is it all just a story in Stacey’s brain…?
It seems like “family” and “love” are the keys, but no matter how much you think about it, you can’t find an easy answer, so it can be said that this is a work that will test your imagination as a viewer. I hope you will enjoy this rare world of work while looking for parts that overlap with your past life and letting your imagination fly as freely as you like.
(Interview and text by Ritsuko Tanaka)
Copyright (C)2010 by Andrew KaufmanUsed by permission of The Rights Factory Inc. through Japan UNI Agency, Inc., Tokyo
* Stage play “The Case of My Wife Shrinking in a Bank Robbery” Tokyo performance*
Original work: Andrew Kaufman
Screenplay/Direction: G2
Starring: Mari Hanaso, Shosuke Tanihara, Seiyou Hirano, Noriko Iriyama, Hideo Kurihara, and others
Venue: Tokyo, Nippon Seinenkan Hall
Date: April 1st (Monday) to April 14th (Sunday), 2024
Ticket price: S seat ¥11,800, A seat ¥9,800, U-25 same-day exchange ticket ¥5,000
Purchase tickets here
Sponsored by: TBS Radio
Sponsor: TBS / Lawson Entertainment
▶ Stage play “The incident where the wife shrunk due to a bank robbery” Official website: https://thetinywife.com/
*About details about this release*
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000422.000034304.html