Aya Takaha

Photo: Maiko Miyagawa

Aya Takaha

Aya Takaha is the founder, playwright, and director of Takaha Gekidan. A graduate of Waseda University, she was active in the student theater company Teatro 50’ before establishing her own theater unit, Takaha Gekidan, in 2004, which she leads as playwright and director. Since its formation, the unit has earned critical acclaim for its meticulously crafted narratives and vibrantly relatable yet somehow lyrical linguistic sensibility. Takaha continues to work with her own unit’s productions while writing and directing works produced outside the group. She has delved into drama and animation scripts in recent years, and WOWOW’s 2024 serial drama Tokyo Poverty Girls—for which Takaha worked as screenwriter—was awarded the Grand Prix in the drama category at the Japan Satellite Broadcasting Association’s 14th Original Program Awards. Her work is known for having a trajectory that sprinkles in comedic elements while ending on an almost detached note.