News

Play Partly Inspired by Blue Bird Anime to Run in NYC

On January 7, the New York City-based theater company Witness Relocation will begin performing The Blue Bird, a Japanese play partially inspired by the 1980 anime series Maeterlinck's Blue Bird. The series, which features character designs by Captain Harlock and Star Blazers' Leiji Matsumoto, is itself based on the 1908 play The Blue Bird by Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlink. The plots of the original play and the anime revolve around a pair of children and their quest for happiness, as symbolized by a blue bird. Choreographer Mikuni Yanaihara created the new stage adaptation and centered its story around a group of scientists who are trying to prevent the extinction of the last blue bird in the world.

Showtimes are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Wednesdays through Saturdays, with a 3:00 p.m. performance on Sunday, January 11. All showings will be held at the Clemente Solo Velez Cultural Center (107 Suffolk Street). Witness Relocation, which was founded in 2000, specializes in shows that blend together elements of theater and dance. Besides performances, it also sponsors various installations, live video, improvisation, and other non-traditional features.

Other recent American stage productions with anime connections have included Trees and Ghosts, based on three manga short stories by Osamu Tezuka, and Madness at Mokuba, which is inspired by themes and images drawn from classic giant robot series.