Formed in 2013, gekidan takumi, under the writing and direction of Takuya Kato, presents theatre where meticulously composed dialogue and narrative give rise to an unsettling blend of stark violence and pervasive nihilism. Alongside domestic tours, the company pursues performances and collaborative projects internationally.
Born in Osaka in 1993, Takuya Kato is a playwright and director whose primary practice is in contemporary theatre, while also working extensively in film and television. Kato has established himself as a leading voice in Japanese theatre through his original plays and stage productions. His work DODO’s Free Fall received the 67th Kishida Kunio Drama Award, one of Japan’s most prestigious honors for playwriting. In 2022, he was awarded the Outstanding Director Prize at the 30th Yomiuri Theatre Awards for his productions Mohaya Shizuka and The Welkin. His theatre work is known for its psychological intensity and bold directorial approach. Alongside his theatrical career, Kato is active in screenwriting and directing for film and television. His NHK television drama Beautiful World (Kirei no Kuni) won the 10th Ichikawa Morikazu Screenplay Award in 2021. In 2022, he released his debut feature film, Grown-ups (Watashitachi wa Otona). He later wrote and directed the Japan–France co-production Hotsureru, which received the Distribution Support Award at the 45th Nantes Three Continents Festival. In 2023, Kato was selected for Forbes JAPAN 30 Under 30. Expanding his international presence, he premiered a new stage work in London’s Off-West End in 2024.
Ayumi lives quietly in a corner of the city. She does not age; repeats death and rebirth; but she cannot die. She has always avoided love and romance because she knows that her partner would die before her. However, one day, she falls in love with Yoshitsugu and eventually marries him. Yoshitsugu is a doctor and tries to solve the mystery of Ayumi’s condition. Ayumi starts to find happiness little by little as she becomes closer to Yoshitsugu’s brother, his wife and daughter. Ayumi does not lose her youth, however her family members go through the process of life – have babies and get older with each passing day.
Yoshitsugu, who is now old and on his deathbed, takes a pill for euthanasia. Ayumi is devastated that he left without saying goodbye. Yoshitsugu’s nephew has been entrusted with his will, however, he is too adamant to hand it to Ayumi. Although Ayumi cannot die, she repeatedly attempts suicide and her family tries to stop her. Ayumi reads the will. The nephew does not know the fact that Ayumi cannot die and he is unable to find a reason to live, and he gets into a traffic accident.
In order to be with Ayumi, Yoshitsugu repeatedly kills her in order to study her body and find the cause. This work highlights the love Yoshitsugu has for Ayumi, and also looks at the nephew who struggles with the stress of being a youth.
Written and Directed by Takuya Kato
Music Composed and Performed by Masanori Tanigawa (UNCHAIN)
Cast:
Eri Murakawa / Tetsu Hirahara (hi-bye)
Yumi Adachi / Hiroyuki Onoue / Hiroyuki Toritani / Kisetsu Fujiwara / Risako Ito / Toru Yamaki / Kanon Kimoto / Tomoko Nakajima
The Onishi family lives with the couple, Megumi and Kazushi, and their daughter Hina, who is in the second year of junior high school and plays in the softball club. Megumi gives money to her father, Ichiro Ioka, every month, and so does Kazushi to a girl called Yoshida whom he met at a dating cafe.
One day, after lunch with her friends from her part-time job, Megumi realises she cannot remember the way back home. She has developed a memory disorder where, interestingly, she only forgets where her “home” is.Kazushi breaks up with Yoshida and devotes to taking care of Megumi. Believing that Megumi will return to normal, they start the treatment without telling Hina. Meanwhile, Yoshida finds herself falling deeper in love with Kazushi. She is unable to forget him and she starts following him around.
Hina senses that something is not right at home, but is too preoccupied with her own problems. She is contemplating quitting the softball team because they do not let her play pitcher. To make matters worse, her crush teases her for being like a boy because she plays softball. She starts resenting Megumi for making her play softball in the first place.
On the day of the parent-teacher-student meeting, Megumi forgets that she must not leave home alone again and shows Hina, for the first time, that she has a memory issue. Hina does not understand the situation and blames Megumi. Megumi eventually forgets Hina’s name and about making her play softball. After a heated argument, Megumi runs away from home.
Kazushi explains to Hina about Megumi’s memory disorder and they go in search of her. Hina eventually finds Megumi and they both reconcile their differences. The trio start to rebuild their family life once again.
Ioka, Megumi’s father, comes to visit and he brings up a dark memory: they have buried Megumi’s cognitively impaired mother. Kazushi is unable to tell if this is a lie; Megumi has not forgotten this incident. Out of fear that Ioka would bury Megumi too, Hina suggests that they bury him instead before it is too late. The three of them finally kill Ioka and bury him.
Written and Directed by Takuya Kato
Music Composed and Performed by Masanori Tanigawa (UNCHAIN)
Cast:
Yuhi Ozora / Kosuke Suzuki
Akana Ikeda / Kasumi Yamaya / Sanae Miyata / Kouji Futou (Matsubara Futou) / Kosaku Isahaya / Ryutaro Akimoto
Kazuyoshi Kushida
