Win two free tickets to The Mahabharata @metropolistokyo.

“How to manage humanity?” art director Hiroshi Koike asks Metropolis in an interview at a Tokyo rehearsal studio. “How do we begin to rethink human beings again?” These are the questions Koike poses as an introduction his latest masterpiece, a theatrical interpretation of the sacred Hindu epic poem The Mahabharata. 

At about seven times the length of the Iliad and the Odyssey combined, The Mahabharata is the longest epic poem in the world and one of the most important pieces of literature ever created. It tells the story of the struggle for sovereignty between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, and the universal themes of good and evil, life and death, love and war.

Though the bulk of it was written sometime between the third century BCE and the third century CE, the origins of Hiroshi Koike’s production really started to form in 2011. 

Specifically on March 11, 2011 — the day that Koike witnessed the Tohoku earthquake and subsequent nuclear disaster in Fukushima devastate northern Japan, including his hometown in Ibaraki prefecture. Even before that tragedy, Koike was concerned about the future of our world, and was already ruminating how to translate his questions into art. “In 2001, I made ‘WD production,’ meaning ‘What have we Done?’ I wanted to create that as a bridge between the 20th and 21st century. That time, I worked with many American artists, but one actor couldn’t continue because he was so traumatized after witnessing 9/11. I didn’t want us to become this kind of world, but my fears of what the 21st century could become like were already becoming actuality.”

“Making the Mahabharata was, therefore, my big purpose after 2011,” he explains, jumping back to 2021. “Now, humans are facing very dangerous and very large man-made problems in this world. I see a connection to The Mahabharata series here. This poem starts as a story about the Gods, but the Gods come from heaven to earth to create one human family. That family separates into two and starts to fight. At the end, everybody dies. Everyone and everything faces collapse because of man’s actions.”

At almost 100,000 couplets long, the sheer length of the series meant that Koike’s production was never going to fit into something resembling any other standard two-hour theater performance. But as Koike traveled across Asia over the coming years, it began to evolve into something even larger and more ambitious than anyone could have expected. 

The cast is made up of performers scouted by Koike himself across seven Asian countries, and the result is a stunningly multi-cultural blend featuring traditional dance, music, song and costume from Cambodia, Thailand, India, Malaysia, Japan, Bali and Indonesia.  

Win two free tickets to The Mahabharata @metropolistokyo.

“I made chapter one in Cambodia back in 2013,” begins Koike. “At that time, I used Camobodian language [Khmer] but, for those who were not from Cambodia, it was so difficult to feel the story the actors were telling. The second one was in India, 2014. At that time, I used English. Of course, then everyone understood the meaning, but the mentality and heart was not connected to the words they were saying. That’s why I ultimately chose to use the performers’ mother tongues.”

“Language has different rhythms,” he continues. “Dance movements, musical melodies and body language vary across cultures. All the performers’ backgrounds are different, everybody is using a different language and different body language in this production — but still, despite their diversity, they make a harmony in this production. When thinking about our world, this is the most important element for the future.”  

A beautiful manifestation of humanity’s flaws, a provoking presentation of its (in)ability to change the course of our future and a celebration of Asian cultures and traditions, all told through a synergy of music, dance, video art and animation, Koike’s Mahabharata is a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience of one of the world’s three great epics for both performers and audience alike.

The production is presented in two parts, “Chapter of Desire” and “Chapter of Tempest,” as a six hour production. You can choose to watch the two chapters over two days, or in one day with a three hour break in-between (the perfect opportunity to stretch your legs and explore Nakano). Tickets will go on sale from June 12, 2021 until August 23, 2021. 

The Mahabharata

Performance Dates and Times*

August 20, 2021 (Fri) 6pm (Chapter of Desire)
August 21, (Sat) 12pm (Chapter of Desire); 6pm (Chapter of Tempest)
August 22, (Sun) 12pm (Chapter of Desire); 6pm (Chapter of Tempest)
August 23, (Mon) 2pm (Chapter of Tempest)
*Doors open 30 minutes before show time. Attendees and staff are required to wear masks and sanitize hands with hand sanitizer when entering the theater space.

Venue

Nakano Zero Main Auditorium
2-9-7 Nakano Nakano-Ku, Tokyo
Tel: 03-5340-5000

Access

JR Chuo Line Nakano Station
Seven-minute walk from South Exit

Ticket Prices

Win two free tickets to The Mahabharata @metropolistokyo.
Please contact MB Executive Committee Office for Nakano Ward Residents special discount

~Chapter of Desire, ~Chapter of Tempest Double Bill Tickets

Additional ¥1,000 for tickets purchased at the door on day of performance
S Seats：¥16,000 / A seats：¥12,000 / B Seats：¥8,000
Artist Discount (Only B seats):¥ 7,000
Student Discount (Only B seats): ¥6,000
Children’s Discount (3 Years old ~ Elementary School): Discount of ¥5,000 from any seat category

Single Bill Tickets

Additional ¥500 for tickets purchased at the door on day of performance
S Seats：¥9,000 / A seats：¥7,000 / B Seats：¥4,500
Children’s Discount (3 Years old ~ Elementary School): Discount of ¥2,500 from any seat category

※Discounts cannot be combined
※Discounts for groups of 20 people or more are available – Please contact MB Executive Committee Box Office for details 

How to Purchase Tickets

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Online and Telephone 0120-240-540（weekdays 10am – 6pm）
※ To purchase Double Bill Tickets for performances on separate days please contact the MB Executive Committee Box Office

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Chapter of Desire, ~Chapter of Tempest Double Bill Tickets for Advanced Purchase
※ To purchase Double Bill Tickets for performances on separate days please contact the MB Executive Committee Box Office
Single Bill Tickets for Advanced Purchase

Mahabharata (MB) Executive Committee Box Office

Double Bill Tickets Reservation Form
Single Bill Tickets Reservation Form
Tel.03-3385-2066／Fax.03-3319-3178

For More Information on Tickets, Please Contact

Mahabharata (MB) Executive Committee Box Office
hkbpyoyaku@gmail.com／Tel.03-3385-2066

Win two free tickets to The Mahabharata @metropolistokyo.