The Fire of Inamura (rice sheaves)

a shadow play


Written by Kazue Yoshioka

Translated by Yasushi Ninomiya

■CAST
Operation of Puppets ･････････････Yaeko Kawai, Fujiko Imai, Sumire Itoh

Operation of Backgrounds ･････････Noriko Shirai, Kazue Yoshioka, Sumire Itoh,
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Yaeko Kawai, Fujiko Imai

Voice Performance ･･･････････････Noriko Shirai, Fujiko Imai, Kazue Yoshioka,
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Yaeko Kawai, Sanae Suzukake, Mieko Sugiyama

■STAFF
Scenario ･････････････････････････Kazue Yoshioka

Instruction of Performance ････････Mieko Sugiyama

Voice Training and 　　　　　
Words Instruction ･････････････････Saburo Yamazaki

Manufacture of Shadow Pictures ･･･Kazue Yoshioka, Eriko Uesugi, Mieko Sugiyama

Manufacture of Puppets ･･･････････Noriko Yukiko Shirai, Kazue Yoshioka, Yaeko Kawai,
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Sumire Itoh, Fujiko Imai

Music ････････････････････････････Naoya Fukushima

Recording: Sound ･････････････････Bigot

Edition ･･･････････････････････････Naoya Fukushima

Photograph ･･･････････････････････Kurie Photo Studio

Stage Settings and Properties ･･････Sugiyama Studio

Cooperation ･･･････････････････････Sompo Japan Insurance Inc. "Chikyu (Earth) Club"
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(Employee-managed volunteer organization)

Sponsor ･･･････････････････････････Sompo Japan Insurance Inc.

TATSUYA: Grandma, that seagull came to me!

SUMIRE: Oh, really?

TATSUYA: Yes, I could nearly touch it. See, again!

SUMIRE: Oh, nice. Maybe it wants your cookies. Why don't you give some?

TATSUYA: OK, Grandma. (He tries to give some cookies to the seagull.) The sea is good. I like it.

SUMIRE: Yes, it's good. But a scary disaster sometimes happens. Hundreds of years ago, in the Edo period, a big earthquake took place, and a tsunami hit this village.

(The scene changes into 150 years ago, the Edo Period. Music representing a peaceful, quiet village. The lattice of a paper sliding-door. The title of the play "The Fire of Inamura" overlaps.)

(The scenery of a village living on fishing. An evening in early winter.)

SUMIRE: The people in the village lived on farming and fishing. The village chief, Gihei Hamaguchi, lived on a hill. He helped the people when they had troubles. He listened to their words carefully and gave them advice. He even lent them money when they needed to repair their boats. Everyone in the village respected him. One day, he was looking at the village from his house on the hill.

(The earth rumbles suddenly. The sound of an earthquake. It gets louder.)

SUMIRE: Suddenly, a big earthquake hit the village.

(GIHEI's room. The room is shaking. The sound of furniture falling.)

GIHEI: Oh, no! It's dangerous!

(Broken furniture. The room shakes heavily. Squeaky, crashing sounds. Alarm calls of farm animals.)

(Broken houses.)

SUMIRE: That big earthquake faded away. Gihei ran out of his house to see how the village was.

(Scary and violent music.)

(the village is destroyed.)

SUMIRE: Gihei looked down at the village. People were at a loss around their destroyed houses. They were standing still, and did not know what to do.

(It is getting dark. The sea dries out.)

SUMIRE: Then Gihei looked at the sea. He found the seawater was drying out quickly. Gihei called out as loud as he could.

GIHEI: Everyone, a tsunami is coming! A tsunami is going to hit our village! Come up to the hill! Hurry up! …No, they can't hear me.

SUMIRE: Gihei made one of his men ring an alarm warning.

(The sound of bell.)

(The watchtower on the hilltop.)

MAN: A tsunami! A tsunami! A big wave is coming!

(The music representing danger and emergency. The sound of an alarm bell.)

SUMIRE: Gihei got a torch in his hand, lit it, and ran to his farm. Then he set fire to the rice sheaves there.

(GIHEI sets fire to the rice sheaves.)

GIHEI: This harvest is precious, but I can save the people's lives by burning it. I should set fire to the sheaves. This is the best way to save them. Everyone will come up to the hill guided by the fire.

(It gets completely dark. Burning sheaves and destroyed houses.)

SUMIRE: The people of the village found the fire on the hill.

VILLAGER 1: Oh, no, a tsunami is coming! Go up to the hill! Go for that fire! Hurry up! A tsunami is coming!

(Villagers run to the hill.)

RYOSAKU: Shige, you go first. I'll see if my boat is safe.

SHIGE: No, Ryosaku! It's so dangerous. Your life is more important!

RYOSAKU: No, we can earn and live with the boat. I should go and secure it. (He runs.)

SHIGE: No! Don't go!

RYOSAKU: I'll come back soon. Go to the hill first and wait for me.

SHIGE: Shunsaku, Hana, let's go to the hill.

SHUNSAKU: Hurry up, Hana.

HANA: Oh, wait.

SHUNSAKU: What are you doing? Hurry up.

HANA: I should take my cat Tama with me.

SHIGE: Just leave it. Tama can manage to escape. Hurry up and go to the hill. I'll take Grandma and follow you soon.

(SHUNSAKU and HANA escape.)

GIHEI: (On the hill, loudly) Hurry up, everyone! Hurry up!

VILLAGER 1: (Running, breathlessly) Oh, we are almost on the hill.

VILLAGER 2: (Running, breathlessly) We have no time. Hurry up!

(The sound of a tsunami fades in. It gets louder and louder. A tsunami approaches the village.)

GIHEI: Here comes a tsunami! A tsunami!

(Screams of the villagers. Disastrous music. A tsunami hits the village again and again.)

(The village after the tsunami hit. GIHEI and the fellow villagers look at it from the hill.)

SUMIRE: The tsunami hit the village again and again. It destroyed their houses, farms and boats. The villagers could only see the destroyed land. They couldn't say a word.

(SHIGE, SHUNSAKU, HANA and SAKI look for RYOSAKU.)

SHUNSAKU: Dad, where are you? Dad!

HANA: Dad! Dad!

SHUNSAKU: Oh, no! Dad is gone! (He cries.)

SAKI: He should have saved his life first, not the boat.

(SHIGE, SHUNSAKU, HANA and SAKI cry. Their cries overlap. Sad music.)

GIHEI: You must be very sad. But don't lose your courage. Just live. Shige, you should take care of your family. Shunsaku, Hana, you should help your mother. You should stay strong even if you lost Ryosaku.

HANA: (Sadly) Where's Dad?

(SHIGE, SHUNSAKU, HANA and SAKI cry again. The sound of burning sheaves.)

(The sheaves go on burning.)

SUMIRE: The fire of the rice sheaves burned up just as if they were relieving the sadness and inspiring the hearts of their people.

(GIHEI talks to the villagers in front of the burning sheaves)

Everyone, it is lucky that the temple and my house are safe. You can manage to stay there. Meanwhile you can rebuild your houses. I have saved both money and food to help you in case of disasters. Let us help each other and rebuild our village. Let us make safe and sturdy houses.

(The villagers encourage each other, saying "We can help each other." "Yes, we shouldn't be beaten by a tsunami." "Our lives were saved. This is the time for us to encourage ourselves. " Energetic, encouraging music.)

(Clear sky and blue sea. Villagers come in and begin construction works.)

SUMIRE: The village chief Gihei decided to donate his property to build banks along the coast. They wanted to protect the village and the people from the tsunami.

(Villagers including SHIGE and SHUNSAKU are working, encouraging each other. GIHEI comes in.)

GIHEI: Oh, you all are working very hard. Why don't you have some rest now?

(On the embankment under construction.)

GIHEI: How is the construction work going?

VILLAGER 1: We are working hard and going further as we planned.

GIHEI: Oh, that sounds good. (To SHIGE) I have been paid just one man's daily wage for the work of you and your son. It's a little bit money than a woman's wage. Can you live on that?

SHIGE: Yes it's enough money for us. We can buy food every day because we are paid daily. Ryosaku would have been relieved.

GIHEI: OK. Shunsaku, you don't have to work every day. Instead, go to school and study hard.

(SHUNSAKU is closed up.)

SHUNSAKU: Yes, I will study hard and be a great man like you when I grow up.

(Villagers say, joking, "Shunsaku, eat a lot, or you won't grow up." "Oh, you have a beard of mud." "You look better with it.")

(The scene comes back to the modern day. The music representing a bright sea. TATSUYA and SUMIRE talk on the embankment.)

TATSUYA: Are we now on the bank made by Gihei and the village people?

SUMIRE: Yes. Thanks to these banks, the village is safe in case another earthquake hits it. Gihei was thinking about the future of the village.

(TATSUYA and SUMIRE look at the sea.)

TATSUYA: They didn't have to leave the village. They could just stay there. It was so good.

SUMIRE: Yes, it was really good. The people have been keeping these banks for 150 years. They would never forget Gihei and his fellow villagers.

(Emotional, and inspiring music.)

The End