Kwaidan - Japanese Ghost Stories
Thursday 18 December to Saturday 20 December 8pm
£8/£5
After the runaway success of last years’ Mistletoe and Grime, Contact’s Young Actors Company (CYAC) return with Kwaidan – Japanese Ghost Stories – a winter show with a Brazilian twist.
Kwaidan (or kaidan) is a Japanese word: kai meaning a “strange and mysterious apparition" and dan meaning “story” or "folk tale". Inspired by the Japanese ghost stories compiled in the book Kwaidan - Stories and Studies of Strange Things by Lafcadio Hern, London-Brazilian Dende Collective and CYAC create a world where dark forces and evil spirits interact with humans and change their destinies forever.
Kwaidan - Japanese Ghost Stories uses Dende Collective's trademark mix of styles (masks, puppets and physical theatre) whilst paying homage to the aesthetics of Japanese traditional theatre forms and manga.
In the last couple of years CYAC have worked with an increasingly stellar list of international and UK artists, including, most recently. Forced Entertainment’s Cathy Naden, Belgium’s Victoria, NewYork Theatre Director Baba Israel and London’s People Show. With this kind of input, the work produced by the company has travelled a long way from the usual conventions of young people’s theatre.
By providing intensive training and development opportunities with high calibre industry professionals, CYAC is investing in the next generation of young talent. Graduates from the company have gone on to pursue high profile careers in the arts and, in turn, inform Contact's future development.
Kwaidan illustration by www.guymckinley.com
