Tomohiro Maekawa À la marge

[Theatre]

The Japanese artist, Tomohiro Maekawa’s piece focuses on the encounter between two characters confronted with supernatural phenomena. This metaphysical work, written during the pandemic, investigates society’s reaction in the face of inexplicable events.

Aged forty-eight years old, Tomohiro Maekawa has become one of the major figures in the Japanese theatre of today. Up until now, however, none of his works has ever been performed outside of his native Japan. A graduate in Western philosophy and strongly influenced by Buddhism, the artist has a passion for supernatural phenomena. À la marge brings to the stage the reunion of a man and a woman in a café. Over the course of their discussion, these former classmates notice that they have lived through strange experiences. In a perfectly orchestrated ballet, the nearby clients embody their loved ones and a ghostly choir. Outside, a black mass appears hovers over the city. Oblivious to these warning signs, the protagonists are subject to revelations. In response to the Covid and the earthquake in 2011, Tomohiro Maekawa sees Japanese society as being incapable of dealing with the unexpected. In the face of the normative straightjacket in which it often finds itself, the artist pays tribute to the unbridled power of the imagination.