Experience the unstoppable love for Bowie in this electrifying Japanese production.

Back in 2013, David Bowie met with his friend, the renowned theatre, film, and television producer Robert Fox, and revealed his desire to create a musical based on Thomas Newton, the character he played in the 1976 film The Man Who Fell to Earth. Fox suggested they bring Irish playwright Enda Walsh on board, a genius decision as Walsh’s raw and free-flowing writing style frequently explores themes of identity and isolation in ways that skirt the absurd and lay bare the fragility of the human condition, creating a frisson of tension that’s not unlike the tone of the original film.

The collaboration gave birth to Lazarus, a jukebox musical that weaves Bowie’s songs into a dreamlike world set in New York, where Newton, a humanoid alien, now lives decades after the events of the film, alone in his apartment… and in his head. Cultural influences from Japan, a country that Bowie long held an affection for, serve to colour the narrative, so it’s fitting that now, nearly 10 years after the musical debuted in New York City on 18 November 2015, Japan is able to return the love for the rock legend, with Lazarus opening at the Kanagawa Arts Theatre (KAAT) on 31 May.

▼ The main cast, with director Akira Shirai (left), who has directed all of the Japanese versions of Walsh’s plays, including Ballyturk and Medicine.

At a press conference held ahead of opening night, Shirai said it was a great honour to present Bowie and Walsh’s work for the first time in Japan. In describing what audiences can expect to see from the Japanese production, he said:

“While it is billed as a musical, it is a piece that cannot really be defined within the usual boundaries of a musical — it is outside the standard, or perhaps without any standard at all. It doesn’t fit neatly into the categories of drama, musical, or concert”.

Fitting neatly into norms is something neither Bowie nor Walsh would ever likely want to do, and this work presents itself as a thrilling theatrical journey that pushes against ordinary restraints, much like the characters on stage. Over the course of roughly two hours, every character is pushed to their limit, teetering on the edge of love, life, grief, death, and insanity in ways that highlight the frailty and strength of the human spirit, inspiring the audience to think beyond ordinary realms of possibility. It’s a roller-coaster of a journey you won’t want to miss, and it’s helmed by Mitsuru Matsuoka, who’s been fronting the band SOPHIA for 30 years.

Playing the main role of Newton, Matsuoka brings his rock star energy to the stage, pouring out vulnerability and rage in equal measures that make him seem at once like a frail bird with a broken wing and a lion about to break free from a cage. It’s a role he feels he was destined to play, saying, “If I hadn’t encountered David Bowie when I was 14, I probably wouldn’t have become a band member, SOPHIA wouldn’t exist, and I wouldn’t be where I am today.” Matsuoka believes he’s been guided by Bowie, and has a deep respect for him, seeing himself as “a messenger tasked with delivering Bowie’s last message, his will”.

Matsuoka certainly gives his all to the role, belting out songs like “Lazarus” and “Where Are We Now?” with an ease that draws from a life lived drinking at Bowie’s creative well. His presence on stage is matched, and quite nearly eclipsed, by Rio Uehara, a classically trained vocalist who harnesses both baritone and tenor ranges to bring light and shade to the menacing character of Valentine, making us feel both attracted and repulsed by him.

During one memorable moment, Valentine appears in a cloak of black feathers, a clever costuming choice that visually connects the character to Ryuk, the black feather-shouldered shinigami (“god of death”) from the hugely popular Japanese manga and anime series Death Note. There are striking parallels between Ryuk and Valentine, who both find pleasure in provoking people for their own entertainment while disrupting the protagonist’s journey with a disregard for human life and morality. The power to inflict death fizzes in their fingers like an ever-enticing itch that needs scratching.

In stark contrast, Erika Toyohara brings light to the stage in the role of Girl, with an innocence that’s strong and unyielding. The brightness of her character is matched by the brightness of her voice, which brings newfound poignancy to the opening lyrics when she sings “Life on Mars”.

“It’s a god-awful small affair / To the girl with the mousy hair / But her mummy is yelling, ‘No’ / And her daddy has told her to go”

Emiko Suzuki, in the role of Elly, does an equally beautiful job with “Changes”, which sees her bounding about the stage and masterfully handling outfit changes, all while hitting her notes flawlessly.

Every member of the cast — including the ensemble — delivers strong performances, with Goto Watabe as Zach (above), Yusuke Toyama as Michael (below)…

▼ …and Tsubasa Sakiyama in the role of Ben.

Mayuko Kominami draws upon her classical dance and voice training to play the role of both Maemi (above) and Japanese Woman (below) with remarkable poise.

The set is like a character all of its own, with a stack of television boxes centre stage acting as a nod to the old sets that Newton watches in The Man Who Fell to Earth. The images that appear on the TVs provide a sense of the wider world outside the confines of the small set, while bursts of white noise serve to connect the audience with the action on stage, tuning us into the same frequency as the characters’ distress.

Images are also projected onto the scrim, a large background screen that appears opaque when lit from the front but becomes transparent when lit from behind, helping to create dramatic visual effects. Not only does it allow for massive projections to enhance the narrative, it also lets us see the live band on stage at select moments and creates space for the Japanese surtitles to be creatively placed, with words tumbling down the screen at one point to match Newton’s frenetic, descent-into-madness energy.

Only at the very end, when the ceiling of Newton’s room lifts and the set opens up to reveal the full space of the stage, are we able to catch our breath and feel a sense of release from the tension. It’s confronting and thrilling in the way you expect from good theatre, and to see it in Japan, a place that inspired Bowie’s creativity, is a very special thing indeed.

While the actors speak Japanese on stage, all songs are sung in English, as was Bowie’s wish for overseas productions, so even if you don’t understand Japanese, the show will give you goosebumps. Lazarus will be performed at the Kanagawa Arts Theatre until 14 June, before moving to Festival Hall in Osaka for two matinee shows on 28 and 29 June. Tickets can be purchased at the links below.

Tickets for Kanagawa Arts Theatre:
Kyodo Tokyo (official ticket site in English), e+, Ticket Pia (P-code: 533418), Lawson Ticket (L-code: 31548), Rakuten Ticket

Tickets for Festival Hall in Osaka:
Festival Hall, CN Playguide, e+, Ticket Pia (P-code: 533‐620), Lawson Ticket (L-code: 52387), Rakuten Ticket

Related: Lazarus Japan
Images: Press release
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