by Dillon Font

What with all the brilliant cable and satellite television, the Tsutayas, the plush movie theater complexes sprouting around the city – not to mention the ease of illegally downloading TV and movies – expats here have little trouble finding entertainment in their mother tongue. However, in the century preceding such blessed electronic ease, plenty of bored Tokyoites came together to put on live entertainment for our communities. And they’re still going. And they are forming more theater companies. In fact, theater in Tokyo is getting very exciting lately. So here’s a breakdown of the many groups now operating in the Kanto plains. Take note, wannabe actors and backstage techs: they are always looking for new faces.

Tokyo International Players

This year marks the 112th season of the Tokyo International Players (TIP), the longest-running English-language community theater group operating in a foreign country. (Sadly, this is too much of a mouthful to get put into the Guiness Book of World Records.)

With the closing and renovations planned for TIP’s long-time home, the way-too-stuffy Tokyo American Club, TIP has been branching out into better theater spaces. This move is turning this community theatre group into an increasingly professional outfit, producing shows worthy to be put up on Broadway.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, from the demented mind of Stephen Sondheim, takes place at the Shinjuku Sun Mall Theatre.

More information on upcoming productions can be found at: www.tokyoplayers.org

Tokyo Theater for Children

Listen: your kid, who you love to death, has probably been watching that damned SpongeBob Squarepants DVD over and over. And over. And yeah, you thought it was cute the first few times you had to sit through it, too. You can now quote the entire movie at length, and you slowly feel yourself dying inside.

So, not only to expand your child’s entertainment horizons but for your sanity as well, bring him/her/them down to one of the shows that Tokyo Theater for Children puts up. Live theater at 2,000 yen a pop? That’s the same amount you’d pay to see a movie in Japan, except the stars come down and hang out with your kids afterwards. Kewl!

Each spring the group puts on a touring show that hits all the good international schools in Tokyo and Yokohama. Relying heavily on audience participation, you’ll find your kids laughing and dancing along with the actors on stage. That’s an extra feature not included in any Disney DVD.

More information on upcoming productions can be found at:
tokyotheatreforchildren.blogspot.com

Yokohama Theater Group

Based out of the Yokohama Country and Athletic Club (the low rent version of the Tokyo American Club, although apparently its just as outrageously expensive as its hoity-toity cousin in Tokyo), the Yokohama Theatre Group is dedicated to bringing world-class English theatre to the people of Yokohama and Tokyo. Focusing on smaller shows with an emphasis on local playwrights, YTG shows are quirky and incredibly accessible.

The Yokohama Theatre Group also runs workshops, including an ongoing Playwriting Workshop for aspiring Stoppards. At 1,000 yen per session, it’s a great, cheap way to get your work read and seen by a rising theatre scene.

More information on upcoming productions can be found at:
www.yokohama-theatre.com

New Worlds Theatre

As the new kid on the block, Alec Harris and his company are gearing up for an exciting year of plays. New Worlds Theatre was created in 2006 as a production vehicle for stage plays in and around central Tokyo. Designed to provide a new voice in the capital, its sole aim is to bring together people interested in and committed to creating new theater, no matter what the language.

More information on upcoming productions can be found at:
www.newworldstheatre.com

Tokyo Comedy Store

12 years and going strong, the Tokyo Comedy Store now gives Tokyo three comedy shows a month, two of which are at the beautiful entry price of F-R-E-E.

The centerpiece of the group is their monthly Main Show, located at the Crocodile on Meiji-Dori, right between Shibuya and Harajuku stations. For 2,000 yen, you get the best the Tokyo Comedy Store has to offer, with its strongest stand-ups, tightest sketch teams, and the best improv team in town, Spontaneous Confusion. The Main Show takes place every 4th Friday of the month.

For those looking for a free stand-up fix, Tokyo Cynics, the stand-up arm of the Tokyo Comedy Store, has a free show at The Baron in Nishi-Azabu every 2nd Friday of the month. Starts at 9PM, so get there early to get as drunk as possible to maximize the entertainment.

For sketch comedy and improv, the Pink Cow in Shibuya hosts Improv-A-Go-GO!, yet another free showcase of comedy gold. It’s on every 3rd Wednesday of the month, starting at 8PM. The Californian cuisine of the Pink Cow goes great with a girl pretending to be a talking tree onstage.

For show information and maps, log onto their website at: www.tokyocomedy.com

About the Writer:
Dillon Font is a comedian and writer. You can see lots of sketch comedy he’s written right here on Spinshell.TV, as well as on www.youtube.com/dillonfont

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Tags: acting, children, comedy, live, performance, plays, spinshell, theater, theatre, Tokyo, you should know

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