“I am from Iwakuni City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. I am Japanese,” Toru Watanabe said, as he opened up for Unit Souzou’s performance called Constant State of Otherness – which exposes the depths of identity through the multimedia production . Unit Souzou is a Portland, Oregon, based Japanese theatrical musical performance group. They kicked off their Alaska tour with a show in Wrangell last Saturday.
But before Unit Souzou performed, the Wrangell Cooperative Association greeted them on stage, with a drum beat that filled the large room as they sang their tribal songs and danced.
Soon after, Michelle Fujii, who co directs Unit Souzou with her partner, Watanabe, gave thanks to the tribe for welcoming them.
Unit Souzou performs Japanese folk dance and taiko – or Japanese drums. They also weave in film and audio.
Performer David Mark Wells Jr. walks towards the center of stage with a microphone
There’s a video of him behind him speaking. They (the video and the present moment Wells) speak simultaneously.
DJ?
Yeah mommy?
Yeah.
Creation. Imagination. Noisy.
Fujii said Souzou can be described in three ways: creation, imagination and being noisy.
She said, “We combine these three words in the aspiration to be creative, to be imaginative with the drum and hope that we are heard throughout our communities.”
She said their performance, Constant State of Otherness, went through a deep creative process.
“We started with our own personal stories. It was a multi year process,” Fujii said. “We also worked with a lot of different high school students throughout five different cities. So even in the show, you’ll hear woven quotes of the high school students speaking about themselves.”
Vicky Zhang walks towards center stage with a microphone as a taiko beat softens.
She as well has an image of her on the big screen behind her.
Dad? Are you worried?
Fujii said self identity plays a really big part in the storytelling of the performance, which can be seen and heard throughout.
Kristy Oshiro walks towards center stage with a microphone while Watanabe melodically sings in the background.
“I am from the stolen lands of the Native Hawaiians.”
She said identity is not just about themselves, even though the original question that shaped the performance was, ‘Who am I?’.
“So much of who we are is based on our upbringing, our ancestors, our traditions, these rituals that exist in our lives because it was from generations and generations of practice,” Fujii said.
Performing in Alaska has been a work in the making. She said two years ago they were showcasing their work in Washington and met a presenter from the Cama-i festival from Bethel who invited them to perform in the Central Alaska city.
“It was just really beautiful because all of a sudden, all six of the presenters in the cities just got together and said we really would like to have Unit Souzou from just this one conversation,” Fujii said. “(It) became a six-city tour throughout the state.”
As for now, here in Wrangell, Fujii said this performance is a memorable and heartwarming one.
“Even within this little period of time, we’ve been shown and reminded of generosity, of helping each other out,” she said. “We’ve been reminded about compassion.”
Deep sounds of a bass taiko booms throughout the air
She said Unit Souzou primarily stays closer to home in Portland. They do a lot of regional projects, like working with inmates at Oregon State Penitentiary.
“This is sun setting our touring right now, because we just sort of go where the project is flowing,” Fujii said. “The most upcoming projects for us will be very much close to home.”
They also did one on pedestrian safety where a lot of fatalities were happening on the streets.
“We’re building visibility about safety through rhythm and sacred walking,” she said.
Sylvia Ettefagh helps organize the annual Bearfest festival in Wrangell. She said she found out about Unit Souzou through the Alaska State Council on the Arts and helped bring them to town.
“I look for opportunities that we can actually make and something that’s different, that has a big impact, something that is special,” she said. “And when I find that opportunity, we jump on it.”
She said bringing Unit Souzou to Wrangell is a way to raise money for Bearfest, which happens in late July. Ettefagh brought the performing arts group to Wrangell with a combination of grants and money raised by Bearfest in previous years. She said all together, the cost might be close to $16,000 to bring the group in.
“I think for these times and the way it was presented, it was very appropriate.”
Ettefagh said she always tries to make sure the performers she brings in visits Wrangell’s schools as part of an educational outreach component.
“I think that they did a great job at the school,” she said. “At the elementary school, the program was just a little different than it was at the high school, and it was appropriate for both schools, and this was different than both of those, and I think for these times and the way it was presented, it was very appropriate.”
Unit Souzou is the fourth event Bearfest has brought in to support the festival itself. The other three included a melodica performance, a jazz manouche band and a comedian.
Before heading home to Portland, Unit Souzou is scheduled to perform five other shows throughout Alaska, including Petersburg, Anchorage, Talkeetna, Homer and ending in Bethel later this month.
