JAPAN: MUSICAL DEPICTING THE JOY, ANGER AND SORROW OF PEOPLE WHO WORK AT SMALL AND MIDDLE-SIZED COMPANIES IN JAPAN TAKES THE CAPITAL BY STORM

Record ID: 387211

  • Title: JAPAN: MUSICAL DEPICTING THE JOY, ANGER AND SORROW OF PEOPLE WHO WORK AT SMALL AND MIDDLE-SIZED COMPANIES IN JAPAN TAKES THE CAPITAL BY STORM
  • Date: 29th September 1996
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE JAPANESE ) ACTOR KENJI OKAYAMA (MANABU SUDA) ASKED IF HIS EXPERIENCE AS A SALARYMAN MADE HIM SYMPATHISE WITH THE MUSICAL SAYING, "SYMPATHISE? IT IS THE WORD I CAN UNDERSTAND. FOR EXAMPLE, PAIN/SORROW OF SALARYMEN IS SOMETHING I UNDERSTAND. WE FEEL COMFORTABLE WHEN WE KNOW THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO UNDERSTAND US. WHEN THERE IS NO-ONE WHO UNDERSTANDS US, THEN THE SOR
  • Embargoed: 14th October 1996 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: TOKYO, JAPAN
  • Country: Japan
  • Topics: Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVA1VMY174RPOIK271LMAF6T51O6
  • Story Text: In a country where hundreds of people die from overwork, a musical about the daily grind seems an unlikely hit.

    Yet in Japan, "salarymen" are flocking to the theatre to see their problems highlighted on stage.

    "Oh My Sun-Shain" soothes stressed workers with the message they are not alone in their suffering -- and that love is all they need to improve morale.

    Actor Kenji Okayama has had first-hand experience of the salaryman life before he entered showbusiness.

    "We feel comfortable when we know there are people who understand us. When there is no-one who understands us, then the sorrow is multiplied. If there is someone who understands, then you can work harder," Okayama said.

    Whilst the majority of theatre-goers in Japan are women, this show seems to be an exception. Many men decided to take the night off to see "Oh, My Sun-Shain" -- with their bosses' blessings.

    A number of companies and unions have even made block bookings for their employees to attend.

    The musical, performed by the Furasato Caravan Theatre Group depicts the joys, anger and sorrows of people who work for small and middle-sized companies.

    The problems portrayed by the cast are realistic and common to most of audience.

    Although the musical touches upon serious problems such as the difficulties posed by business restructuring and office automation, the audience seems to leave the theatre refreshed and uplifted.

    The play's script is sympathetic to the plight of these workers and is intended to encourage them. Despite the serious theme, the script and the performances keep things light-hearted and humorous.

    Over the past 14 years, the Furasato Caravan Theatre Group has performed in 800 local communities from Hokkaido to Okinawa in every possible location from small villages to big cities.

    In the beginning people were sceptical about the success of a musical about work. People warned that the salarymen would much prefer to go out drinking after a day in the office than watch a play about their working conditions. But playwright Katsuhiko Ishizuka wanted to create a musical that was as much fun to watch as an after-work session in a bar.

    His faith in the idea was justified.

    "Oh My Sun-Shain" is the fourth salaryman musical Ishizuka has written. It tells of the hardships endured by workers whose company enters into a merger.

    Before writing the script, Ishizuka interviewed a number of people who worked in big companies and found out many middle-aged staff had difficulties and were intimidated by new technology.

    He talked with people whose companies had been taken over to find out how they felt.

    The negative aspect of such mergers is well documented but Ishizuka learned that there was also a positive side --the 'life goes on' side which sees many people getting on with their new colleagues and working hard in their new environments.

    The story centres around an auto parts maker that is about to merge with a big car manufacturer. It deals with the way salaried workers cope with mergers in a number of scenes featuring a sympathetic middle-management executive and his family.

    Ishizuka also deals with the topic of rejection of the male worker by women. In the play a wedding is cancelled at the last minute. Ishizuka wanted to portray the way in which men deal with such events and how important face-saving becomes to them.

    The performances take place in a large tent close to a central Tokyo gymnasium with a capacity of 1200 people. Small stalls have also been set up to ply the hungry audience with sushi and sake.
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