On October 19 (Sat.) and 20 (Sun.), 2024, "Kamata Koshinkyoku", a masterpiece by Kohei Tsuka, will be performed as a reading at the Kyoto Art Theater Shunjuza. ［Produced by Kyoto Performing Arts Theatre, this is a collaboration project with directors, writers, and actors who are at the forefront of the performing arts, and this year it will be led by Suzuki Matsuo, a writer, director, actor, and leader of Adult Project, who will become a professor at the Performing Arts Research Center in 2023. Matsuo, who has reached the age at which Tsuka passed away, will take up the challenge with a reading of the play, saying, "I was so strongly influenced by Tsuka that I dared to stay away from him, but I want to draw a line in the sand for myself against him.

In September, Matsuo Suzuki, Shusaku Kamikawa, a graduate of [Kyoto University of Arts] who plays Yasu, and Haru Kasamatsu, who plays the heroine Konatsu, held an online press conference.
Matsuo: "I want to bring the world of Tsuka Kohei, which I have always envisioned in my mind, to life in the current era. If I put my body into it, my color would inevitably come out too strongly, so I wanted to compete only with words. I hope to delicately show the emotional state of Yasu, Gin-chan, and Konatsu through the power of their voices. But this is almost my first time doing a public reading, so I'm not sure how it will turn out. That's what makes it such an interesting adventure."

Kamikawa: "The spotlight on Yasu, who lives his life to the fullest, gave me a lot of courage. It seemed to me that even I, who have no name, have moments in my life when I shine. I would be happy if I could show you such a moment this time."

Kasamatsu: "Just as you were shocked by Mr. Matsuo's work, I was shocked by his "Machine Diary" when I was in college. From the script of "Kamata Koshinkyoku" I feel the energetic tempo and the power and charm of the tingling verbal exchanges. I will do my best to accompany Konatsu's sadness."

Kamata Koshinkyoku" is a story set in a movie studio about the strange friendship between the star Gin-chan and the big-room actor Yasu, and the actress Konatsu who vacillates between the two. When I was a student, "Kamata Koshinkyoku" came to Kyushu only once, which I was unable to see, and when I later moved to Tokyo, Tsuka Kohei's office was disbanded. I have always regretted that I missed my last chance to see it," says Matsuo Suzuki, and what kind of direction will he deliver? Students from Kyoto University of Arts, who are taking classes with Matsuo, will join the cast, and the music will be performed by the students, so we hope to enjoy the fresh enthusiasm at the theater.