Dans la mesure de l’impossible is a play by Tiago Rodrigues, the Portuguese director of the Festival d’Avignon (France). Created through extensive dialogue with thirty members of the International Committee of the Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders, this widely discussed work sheds light on the solitude and emotional toll faced by humanitarian aid workers in areas of conflict. This rendition presents a readers theater adaptation of the piece in Japanese, directed and performed by The Busstrio, a performing arts collective led by Yuichiro Konno.

How to run a refugee camp? How to deal with life and death choices? What does it mean to witness human dignity in moments of profound despair, yet remain powerless to change the ways of the world? In this piece, the performers that appear on stage, relaying the voices of those engaged in the “impossible” world of humanitarian aid. No real names or places are revealed, prompting the audience to expand the limits of our imagination to weave together the story unfolding before our eyes.

Following the performance, a discussion will be held with the director, the Japanese translator, and a specialist in humanitarian aid, with themes ranging from the pleasures of (reading) theater to the current state of conflict zones and international aid. The audience is invited to enjoy a dialogue and time of contemplation that lingers and expands beyond the stage.