Black Stripe Theater

Director: Walter Roberts

Walter is a founding member of The Black Stripe Theater and directed its inaugural productions of The Dumb Waiter and Victoria Station last summer. He appeared as Shelly “The Machine” Levene in BST’s production of Glengarry Glen Ross. He has recently finished a national Japanese tour as a cellist with the one man production of Ken Ogata’s Cyrano De Bergerac. Walter appeared in Chris Parham’s production of Death of a Salesman in the role of Willly Loman. He has worked on the professional stage in Chicago and New York with the National Shakespeare Theatre Company. Tokyo roles have included: Othello, Macbeth, and Problem Child and The Drawer Boy with the Sometimes Y Theatre Company. Walter can be seen on NHK’s Television program Tokyo Strangers and is soon to appear in the film Watashiwah Kai ni Naritai. Walter is a graduate of The Goodman School of Drama.

Assistant Director: Shiori Sunagawa

Max: Tim Harris

With the late Alan Booth, Timothy Harris has performed works by Shakespeare and other poets throughout Japan. He has studied with the American director and acting teacher Louis Fantasia, as well as with Andrew Visnevski of the Cherub Company, London, and Ilan Reichel of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and he has assisted Louis Fantasia in teaching at Shakespeare’s Globe, London. At Ueno Gakuen University, where he is an associate professor, he has produced, directed and acted in a number of Shakespeare plays, including the first performance in Japan of Edward III (and only the third full production anywhere in the world for 400 years). He has appeared on NHK television and in a number of plays produced locally. In 2000, he and his wife, the pianist Yoshiko Katayama, gave the first performance in Japan of the Tennyson/Richard Strauss Enoch Arden. In 2003 he performed a programme of Christopher Marlowe’s poetry at the Poetry Centre in London. In April, 2007, he directed a production in Tokyo of Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo with Mutsumi Hatano and Satoshi Chubachi among the singers; it was described in Ongaku no Tomo as a ‘wonderful production’ (subarashii jouen). He has written about Japanese theatre for the Asian edition of the Financial Times and for Plays International (London), and about poetry and other subjects for PN Review (Manchester), Quadrant (Melbourne) and the Chicago Review. He contributed to The Oxford Companion to Twentieth-Century Poetry in English (Oxford University Press), and is one of the directors of (Japan’s) University of the Air’s course, ‘Poem into Song’. He works regularly with the mezzo-soprano Mutsumi Hatano and the lutenist Takashi Tsunoda, teaching pronunciation, phrasing and interpretation to Japanese singers of English songs.

Lenny: Ian Martin

Born in Scotland, raised in Hokkaido and schooled in England and Niigata, Ian works as a translator for a Japanese law firm in Shinjuku and occasionally treads the boards in search of glory. The search continues on a second outing with Black Stripe Theater after his appearance in the group’s inaugural production of The Dumb Waiter last summer. He has also munched on roles of varying intensity in TIP productions of Arcadia, The Cherry Orchard, Dinner With Friends and Death of a Salesman, but the part of Lenny in The Homecoming has him wondering whether he’s bitten off more than he can chew. But if you don’t eat your meat…there’s simply no glory.

Sam: Ian Platt

Originally from Yorkshire, Ian taught sciences in England and then decided to see a little of the world. After two years travelling, he worked with The British Council in Tehran, then Singapore and Tokyo. He now teaches in Keio- and Chuo- dai. Tokyo life requires frequent visits to his old cottages in the countryside near the Pennines for greenery and quiet. Last seen in The Elephant Man as Ross (the manager), and the Bishop, you‘d have to go a long way back to Hamlet in Five Minutes for his previous performance!

Teddy: Dean Charles

Dean Charles studied Drama in UK and has performed with various groups in Tokyo, including TIP and Intrigue Theatre. This is his first production with Black Stripe, and his first brush with Pinter! A very exciting experience looking for ‘the dead weasel under the cocktail cabinet’ with such a great group of people.

Ruth: Rachel Walzer

Actress, narrator, university Drama teacher and long time resident of Tokyo, Rachel received her theatre training in her native Jerusalem. She is a regular performer, director and writer of this city’s English language theatre groups, including The Tokyo Comedy Store, Tokyo International Players, Tokyo Theatre for Children, Sometimes Y Theatre and New World’s Theatre. She also appears on NHK’s English language educational TV shows, and her voice can be heard on the network’s radio programs. Rachel has been a devoted supporter of Black Stripe Theatre since it made its debut in the summer of 2007, and she is thrilled to be directed by the talented Walter Roberts and to share the stage with this outstanding cast of The Homecoming.

Joey: Chris Parham

Chris is a teacher, actor and director from London. His theatre work in Tokyo includes Trofimov in TIP’s The Cherry Orchard, Will in Writing William and Trevor in The Last Christmas for New World’s Theatre, and Gus in The Dumb Waiter for Black Stripe Theater. He directed Death of a Salesman for TIP a year ago, three short plays at Temple University in November, and Black Stripe’s second show, Glengarry Glen Ross, in February. He is scheduled to direct Schweyk in the Second War World for TIP at Xmas. Chris is a CSSD graduate and has nearly completed his MA in ‘Performance and Theatre Studies’ through Rose Bruford College.