“Visit to Bali” Atsushi Sugano, EC General Producer

Leonard Eto, Kinu Watanabe of the Japan Foundation, Shimazaki (Chairman of Kodo Cultural Foundation) and I visited Bali, Indonesia in order to explore the potential for a collaborative performance at EC for the first time in 18 years and for future Kodo performances in Bali. For Leonard and myself, it was our first trip to Bali in 20 years, but the moment we felt the warm, humid air of the tropics, we were overcome by nostalgia, and everything felt at once familiar again. Our reunion with Suwentra, the leader of Suar Agung, also felt so natural  that it was as if no time had passed at all. We spoke fondly of our memories together, and continued our recent conversations about this year’s performance at EC without reservation. The next day, we went to Nugara, the western region of Bali where their headquarters are.  There, Leonard led rehearsals with Suar Agung, keeping in mind the vision of Mitsuru Ishizuka who would be directing the performance “Shukusai” to close EC.  It was indeed a fruitful visit.