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ZEROKO MONONOME
re-creation
version

WORKS:

Overview:

Director Worry Kinoshita has recreated “Mononome”, the masterpiece by the duo ZEROKO, which specializes in physical comedy. In this work, the audience is invited to participate in ordinary scenes from daily life by “miming” rather than “anthropomorphizing” them. In the recreated version, “the wonderment of everyday life” is on full display. This gradually transports us into a mysterious world. This is a “piece that transcends language” a trait unique to non-verbal performance, and which offers the audience “the sense of live performance” created through a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with the audience.

Keyword:

  • Physical Theater
  • Non-verbal
  • Miming
  • Comedy
  • Small Cast
  • Heartwarming
  • Short Play
  • All Ages
  • Immersive Theater
  • Life

Performing Group:

cube inc.

Genre:

physical comedy

Status:

Inquiries accepted.

Time:

60 min

Dialogue:

non-verbal

Subtitle:

non-verbal

Capacity:

50 to 200

Cast:

2

Trigger Warning:

a performance with audience involvement

1

Synopsis:

We often describe inanimate objects with human traits—a technique known as “anthropomorphization." But in this piece, the reverse is true: humans are likened to objects and phenomena through a method we call "objectification." The comedic duo Zeroko portrays slices of everyday life using this unique approach.

By transforming performers—and even the audience—into seemingly mechanical or conceptual elements, the work reframes the mundane. What was once familiar becomes strange and new, offering a refreshed lens on daily life.

At its core, the piece values "co-creation" between the performers and the audience. Through relatable depictions of everyday habits, and the voyeuristic thrill of peeking into someone else’s routine, it cultivates a sense of shared mischief. The result is a theatrical experience that’s as curious as it is compelling—one that can only exist in that moment, in that space, with those particular people.

2

Concept:

The technique of comparing things to people is called “anthropomorphization”. In this work, we use the opposite technique, “objectification,” in which people are compared to objects.

Using objectification, the two members of ZEROKO will perform a moment in people’s lives. Through objectification, we transform the audience into the inorganic beings and actions from daily life giving the audience a new perspective on familiar everyday scenes.

In this performance, we value the sense of “co-creation” in which the performer and audience improvise together to create a work of art. Through depictions of relatable daily habits and a 'complicit' sensation of glimpsing into others' lives, this is a work where one can experience a uniqueness and wonder that can only be felt by those particular people, in that particular moment, in that particular space.

3

Crew & Cast:

  • ZEROKO(Masashi KADOYA・Keisuke HAMAGUCHI)

    Written / Directed / Performed

Company Profile:

cube inc.

Established in 1997, we specialize in managing artists and creators and producing stage and live performances. In 1998, we produced 'Kodomo no Issho' (A Child's Life) in our first collaboration with Parco Theatre. Since then, we have created many theatrical works, primarily centered on productions written and directed by Kera Lino Sandrovitch. In July 2011, we opened 'CBGK Shibugeki!!' in Shibuya, Tokyo—a 242-seat theater that operates as a venue for performing arts productions, which focused on theater productions.

Performance Record:

2018

September

Kobe Art Village Center

2022

November

Roll

2023

July

Roll

2024

February

Roll

CONTACT:

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