Japan

As part of the TERASIA project, the team in Japan (TERASIA Japan) recreated Tera, which premiered in 2018 at the Jōdo School temple Saihō-ji in Tokyo, into a new piece titled TERA in Kyoto. It was performed in March 2021 at the Rinzai School temple Kōshō-ji in Kyoto. Join us as we travel across two regions and two schools of Buddhism over three years—a journey in which we explore our beliefs and spirituality as it exists in contemporary Japan, from the Pure Land to Hell.

How to Watch

Please purchase a ticket at Peatix (external page). A link to access the ‘Watch Stream’ page will be sent to your registered email address.

Get Tickets

*Tickets sales have ended.

Streaming Schedule

From Friday, November 19 at 12:00 p.m. to Sunday, December 26 at 11:59 p.m.
[Japan Time: GMT+9]

Program Highlights

The protagonist, Mitsuko Kyōgoku, is a daughter of the temple. In the Nirvana Hall, where the Ksitigarbha (“Jizo” in Japanese) is enshrined, she spends her days telling a long, long poem. One day, she ends up journeying through Hell by accident. Starting from Daffodils and Wooden Fish: A Verse Drama (1957) by Jūrō Miyoshi, the play interweaves various Japanese literary works—including the poem “Monks” (1958) by Minoru Yoshioka, the novel Kangaroo Notebook (1991) by Kōbō Abe, and the poem “Monogatari no akuru hi” (“The Day After the Story”) (1961) by Taeko Tomioka—together with sacred texts passed down at the performance venue, Rinzai School Kōshō-ji, along with YouTube sermons by the temple. The story unfolds through this kaleidoscopic imagery in a “spiritual spectacle.”

Perks for Ticket Holders

Two special perks are available for ticket purchasers to further enhance your enjoyment of TERA in Kyoto. Viewing links will be shown on the ‘Watch Stream’ page on Peatix.

１　Live Artists’ Talk-back

A discussion session with the artists was held via Zoom Webinar. In an intimate setting, they shared behind-the-scenes stories and other bits of knowledge that will shed new light on the meaning of the work.

[Date and Time]
11/21 (Sun) 8:00 p.m. – 9:15 p.m. [Japan Time: GMT+9]

[Streaming Period]
11/22 (Mon) 12:00 p.m. – 12/26 (Sun) 11:59 p.m. [Japan Time: GMT+9]

[Artists]
TERASIA Japan
Yukari Sakata (Director), Miho Inatsugu (Performer), Kyojun Tanaka (Music), Maho Watanabe (Dramaturg)

See artist bios

２　Video Recording of the Rehearsal of Tera (Original Production) in Tokyo

A video recording of the full run-through rehearsal of Tera’s premiere performance at Festival/Tokyo 2018 will be made available for your viewing pleasure.
We hope you can experience the origins of TERASIA as well as the dynamic journey through which Tera (about the Pure Land) was reincarnated into TERA in Kyoto (about Hell) by watching the two different works.

[Streaming period]
11/19 (Fri) 12:00 p.m. – 12/26 (Sun) 11:59 p.m. [Japan Time: GMT+9]

(Video provided by: Festival/Tokyo Executive Committee)

Talk

TERASIA Japan Online Roundtable

On September 23, 2021, in advance of the public streaming, we invited the theatre journalist Chiaki Nakamoto to moderate a roundtable discussion with TERASIA Japan. In this session, the artists talked about the creative process and the evolution of Tera into TERA in Kyoto.

Moderator: Chiaki Nakamoto (Theatre Journalist)
Panel: TERASIA Japan
Yukari Sakata (Director), Miho Inatsugu (Performer), Kyojun Tanaka (Music), Maho Watanabe (Dramaturg)