［Announcement］“Dionysus” by SCOT to be Staged in Indonesia: A Celebration of 50 Years of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation and 65 Years of Indonesia-Japan Diplomatic Relations

September 22 2023

The Japan Foundation (JF) is proud to announce the staging of Dionysus by SCOT（Suzuki Company of Toga）, led by SUZUKI Tadashi, in Indonesia this October 2023. This production celebrates the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan friendship and cooperation and the 65th year of diplomatic ties between Japan and Indonesia. This will be the play’s first performance in Jakarta, the Indonesian capital.

This particular version of “Dionysus” was developed over three years, starting in 2015, as part of a Japan Foundation Asia Center project, through an international co-production between Japan and Indonesia. In 2018, it was first performed during SCOT’s Summer Season in Toga, Japan, and then at the Prambanan Temple Compounds in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. In 2019, it was staged at the Singapore International Festival of Arts and the 9th Theatre Olympics in Toga, among other venues.

The 2018 production featured a cast of 15: one actor from SCOT, one from China, and 13 Indonesian actors from different Indonesian islands. In an innovative move, these actors performed in their native island dialects, a creative decision that was well received.

Over the years since 2015, Indonesian actors chosen by the Indonesian performing arts producer Restu I. Kusumaningrum have honed their skills at Suzuki’s annual summer training camps in Toga. A select few actors chosen from this pool will perform alongside SCOT’s cast in the upcoming October performances.

Through this production, JF hopes to showcase the fruits of artistic collaboration between the two countries to a wide Indonesian audience and theater community, and looks forward to promoting further performing arts exchanges between Japan and Indonesia in the future.

Related Materials

• ［Announcement］“Dionysus” by SCOT to be Staged in Indonesia: A Celebration of 50 Years of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation and 65 Years of Indonesia-Japan Diplomatic Relations　Jakarta premiere of the acclaimed international co-production (PDF: 392KB)

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