2022.10.8
Theater
Jarunun Phantachat
I Say Mingalaba, You Say Goodbye
I create history and history affects me
What lies between personal stories and those that are shared as “history”? Such questions are the focus of a new work by Jarunun Phantachat from Thailand, in which the relationship between individuals and politics/the state is depicted through a collaboration with artists and actors from neighboring Myanmar.
Of the 2,400 km long Thailand-Myanmar border, just 59 km are officially demarcated. A personal encounter with an artist from Myanmar sparked Phantachat’s interest in the long, tense relationship between the neighboring countries. However, not long after she conceived of the collaborative project, the Myanmar coup d’état of 2021 occurred. With no way to travel between the two countries, Phantachat researched using textbooks, the news, and stories, but as she progressed, it became clear how little she knew about her neighboring country. Turning toward a more personal approach, Phantachat worked virtually as well as in person with four actors to write a play based on their own research on the two countries.
Despite its political context, the play itself is surprisingly comical. Every actor performs as Jarunun, and the unexpected mix of Thai, Burmese, Japanese, and English is sure to draw you in. When the curtain comes down, we are left with a simple yet difficult question: “What words can we believe in?”
10.15 (Sat) 19:00
10.16 (Sun) 13:00★♡ /19:00
Doors open 30min prior to the performance.
★ Post-show talk
♡ Childcare Service (reservation required 7 days before each performance)
Duration: 90 min (TBC)
Thai, Burmese, Japanese and English with Japanese and English surtitles
Age limit and other information:
No admission for preschoolers. Elementary school students and under must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Jarunun Phantachat
Bangkok
Phantachat is an actor, playwright, director, producer and co-artistic director of B-Floor Theatre, a physical theater group based in Bangkok. She has performed and produced in numerous B-Floor productions and toured internationally with the company around Asia as well as to Denmark, and the US. Her major works include The Other Land, Demographic Survey, Lear and His 3 Daughters, which was selected as one of the top ten productions of the decade by The Bangkok Post, and Test of Endurance, which won Best Direction in the Thai Section from the International Association of Theatre Critics (IATC – Thailand) in 2015. In 2014 Phantachat received the prestigious Silpathorn Award for outstanding merit in theatre from Thailand's Ministry of Contemporary Art and Culture. Phantachat is also a freelance writer, a voice-over director for online games in Thailand, and co-founder of Collective Thai Scripts, a group that curates the translation and publication of contemporary Thai scripts.
Director and Playwright: Jarunun Phantachat
Performers: Paopoom Chiwarak, Beer Yingsuwannachai, Thongchai Pimapunsri, Suu
Assistant Director and Dramaturge : Thanapol Virulhakul
Production Designer: Surachai Petsangrot
Assistant to Production Designer: Yanin Chaicharn
Multimedia Designer: Setthasiri Chanjaradpong
Assistant to Multimedia Designer: Thanyawee Thongdeephan
Sound Designer: Kamonpat Pimsarn
Light Designer: Palita Sakulchaivanich
Costume Designer: Nicha Puranasamriddhi
Technical Director: Kronchai Meevong
Stage Manager: Nasrey Labaideeman
Assistant Stage Manager: Pitchayapha Poongya
Subtitle Operator / Live Translator: Chanida Punyaneramitdee
Subtitle Translator: Piyawan Sapsamroum (Japanese), Cholatep Nabangchang (English)
Subtitle Team: Suchaya Surapananonchai
Graphic Designer: Kajit Pramsukdee
Photographer: Jira Angsutamatuch
Videographer: Teerawat Mulvilai
Editor: Adisak Chanchaipoom
Production Management : Peangdao Jariyapun
Song credits
We are Friends (Myanmar version); Written and Performed by Commoner; Courtesy of Commoner
Mamia; Written by Jampar Saenprom
Special Thanks
Phuttiphong Aroonpheng – Ferris Wheel's director, FabCafe Bangkok, BIPAM, Thai Theatre Foundation, Thammasat Playhouse
For Thai and Myanmar activists and every youth across the world yearning for change.
Produced by Kyoto Experiment
Supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs Government of Japan through the Japan Arts Council and National Arts Council
Presented by Kyoto Experiment
Kyoto Experiment Staff
Stage Manager: Mao Sakai
Assistant to Stage Manager: Kanako Takekoshi
Lighting: Kosuke Ashidano (RYU)
Sound: Kouji Shiina
Video: Kotaro Konishi
Video equipment: Takenaka Co., Ltd.
Translation support: Sho Fukutomi
Production coordinator: Kei Saito (ROHM Theatre Kyoto)
Intern: Yuuki Mochizuki