Yukichi Matsumoto
Yukichi Matsumoto
In university, Matsumoto majored in fine arts. He formed the Nippon Ishinha troupe (renamed the Ishinha in 1987) in Osaka in 1970, and has handled the playbooks and directing for all its works since 1974. Centered on Matsumoto as its leader, the Ishinha is known for continuing a kind of theatrical activity that cannot be fully accounted for by the framework of drama. Matsumoto presents performances that are comprehensive works of avant-garde art, with every element under his direction, including an outdoor theater the troupe built with their own hands; the formidable artwork of Yuji Hayashida, who is known as the art director on several films; lines making use of the Kansai dialect intonation, similar to Balinese Kecak music, that they call a Jan-Jan Opera; and music by Kazuhisa Uchihashi, who has received acclaim around the world for “Altered States,” the improvisation unit he leads. In recent years, he has produced the “Hyoryu series,” in which the audience travels around with the troupe. Their performances at such locations as Murouji Temple in Nara and on outlying islands have attracted attention. Matsumoto received the Asahi Performing Arts Award for Kankara, an outdoor drama performed at the site of a former copper refinery on the island of Inujima.