Life in Tokyo is busy and routine, and it often seems that the chances of having a truly "new" experience become fewer as we get older. Similarly with the stage. If you've assiduously been going to the theater for more than 20 years, the freshness of the experience tends to fade. Regrettably, it is often all too easy to categorize productions into certain patterns -- and it becomes increasingly unlikely that you will encounter one that is not only exciting but also truly original.
However, even seasoned theater-goers will surely experience great surprise and even greater pleasure on watching "The Far Side of the Moon," a new production by dramatist Robert Lepage. This creative and magical world, sprung from the imagination of the 44-year-old Canadian, is now at the outstanding Setagaya Public Theater -- an appropriate venue given that SPT's artistic director, Mansai Nomura, is at the vanguard of contemporary theater.
Born in Quebec City in 1957, Lepage first attracted critical attention with his solo performance "Needles and Opium" in 1991, and then his French-language "Shakespeare Trilogy" of "Macbeth," "Coriolanus" and "The Tempest" the following year.