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Asters

OPERA

Asters

SCHEDULE

  • Sun, 17 February 2019, 14:00
    TICKETS
  • Wed, 20 February 2019, 19:00
    TICKETS
  • Sat, 23 February 2019, 14:00
    TICKETS
  • Sun, 24 February 2019, 14:00
    TICKETS
  • Show More

2018/2019 SEASON

Supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs Government of Japan in the fiscal 2018

New Production / Commissioned Work, World Premiere

Music by NISHIMURA Akira
Opera in 2 Acts
Sung in Japanese with ENGLISH and Japanese surtitles
OPERA PALACE

17 Feb - 24 Feb, 2019 ( 4 Performances )

TICKETS

Running time is approx. 2 hours 30 mins including one interval

DETAILS

Since the opening of the New National Theatre Tokyo, it has been our mission as a Japanese opera house to produce operas by Japanese composers. Asters by NISHIMURA Akira is a new commissioned work, and it is the first opera ONO Kazushi will conduct in his inaugural season as Artistic Director. The opera is based on a novella by ISHIKAWA Jun (1899-1987) which depicts the fate and struggles of a Heian period artist in a fantastical world that extends into the underworld. It was ONO who asked the eminent Japanese composer NISHIMURA to set to music this ornate and stylized novella, and the composer has teamed up with librettist and long-time collaborator SASAKI Mikiro to create his first full-length opera. In the pit we have invited the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, of which ONO is Music Director. Leading the creative team is OIDA Yoshi, well known as an actor and long-term collaborator of Peter BROOK, but in Europe he is also acclaimed as an opera director and experienced in directing contemporary works. Join us to witness the birth of a new masterpiece.

NEWS & FEATURES

5TH April, 2019
Opera "Asters" reviews are in!
READ MORE
18TH February, 2019
Dress Rehearsal Movie from "Asters"
READ MORE
18TH February, 2019
Writing Beyond Realism: The Case of Ishikawa Jun
(Original Author of "Asters")
READ MORE

SYNOPSIS

The story begins with the wedding ceremony of a young governor Muneyori to Princess Utsuro, daughter of a powerful family. It's an arranged marriage and there is no love between Muneyori and his sexually uninhibited wife. He was born into a distinguished family of poets, but he has abandoned poetry to pursue archery, much to the rage of his father. His uncle and archery teacher Yumimaro tells him that while he is still under the influence of poetry, he cannot master the skill of the two-arrow technique: the "arrow of knowledge" followed by the "arrow of death". He demonstrates this by killing Princess Utsuro's lover, and Muneyori follows and kills her next lover, but she is unconcerned. Each time he kills, he orders for Asters to planted, a flower associated with never forgetting. Meanwhile, his servant Tonai is plotting to gain power by becoming intimate with Princess Utsuro. One day on a hunt, Muneyori meets a mysterious woman named Chigusa.

Muneyori is seduced by Chigusa, but on a moonlight evening he discovers that she is a fox transformed into a woman. Through her magical powers, he masters the third arrow, the "demon arrow" and uses it to kill his uncle Yumimaro. Tonai is finally united with Princess Utsuro and attempts to overthrow his master and become the governor. Meanwhile, Muneyori goes into the mountain with Chigusa in search of day-lilies, also called "flower of forgetfulness". In the mountains lives the sculptor Heita, who carves the face of the Buddha on the side of the mountain. When Muneyori shoots an arrow into the face of the Buddha, the whole cliff crumbles, and he too is dragged to death.

Read More

VIDEO

CREATIVE TEAM & CAST

CREATIVE TEAM

Original by: ISHIKAWA Jun
Libretto by: SASAKI Mikiro
Music by: NISHIMURA Akira

Conductor: ONO Kazushi
Production: OIDA Yoshi
Set Design: Tom SCHENK
Costume Design: Richard HUDSON
Lighting Design: Lutz DEPPE
Choreographer: MAEDA Kiyomi
Supervisor: CHOKI Seiji

CAST

Muneyori: TAKADA Tomohiro
Heita: ONUMA Toru (2/17, 2/24), MATSUDAIRA Takashi (2/20, 2/23)
Princess Utsuro: SHIMIZU Kasumi
Chigusa: USUKI Ai
Tonai: MURAKAMI Toshiaki
Yumimaro: KONO Katsunori
Father: OYAMA Yojiro

Chorus: New National Theatre Chorus
Orchestra: Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra

  • CREATIVE TEAM
  • CAST
  • NISHIMURA Akira
    Music
    NISHIMURA Akira
    ONO Kazushi
    Conductor
    ONO Kazushi
    OIDA Yoshi
    Production
    OIDA Yoshi
  • TAKADA Tomohiro
    Muneyori
    TAKADA Tomohiro
    ONUMA Toru
    Heita
    ONUMA Toru
    MATSUDAIRA Takashi
    Heita
    MATSUDAIRA Takashi
    SHIMIZU Kasumi
    Princess Utsuro
    SHIMIZU Kasumi
    USUKI Ai
    Chigusa
    USUKI Ai
    MURAKAMI Toshiaki
    Tonai
    MURAKAMI Toshiaki
    KONO Katsunori
    Yumimaro
    KONO Katsunori
    OYAMA Yojiro
    Father
    OYAMA Yojiro

TICKETS

Booking Opens: Sat, 20 Oct 2018, 10:00am

*Booking Z seats (Day tickets) 1,620 yen

  • You are able to purchase Z seat tickets online from 10:00 am to 11:00 am. Click "BUY TICKETS" next to "Z" under each performance information.
  • There is a handling charge of ¥324 (incl. tax).
  • Only when seats allocated as Z seat are still available at 11:00 am, you are able to purchase these tickets at the Box Office of the theatre.
  • Note that all Z seats are on a first come, first served basis and will come with restricted views.

Concession Prices

Under 15s discounts and Z seats (Day Tickets) are available online. Other types of discount tickets are not available online. Please inquire at the Box Office or by telephone.

Please Note

  • No admittance to pre-school children. Each child older than this age requires a ticket for entry, even when accompanied by a parent or guardian.
  • Tickets may not be changed or refunded except in the case of a cancelled performance.
  • A special discount price is available for disabled guests. Please inquire at the Box Office for details.
  • Users of wheelchairs are requested to contact the Box Office.
  • Preferred seats may not be available on the first day of ticket sales.
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