Toshiki Okada – Playwright, theatre director, novelist and founder of the theatrical company chelfitch.

I was born in 1973, Yokohama and lived in a housing complex, with my mother, father and younger brother, every room had same composition.

First memory

A carpet, which is blue, I liked it; it is blue, deep one. The sound of clock on the wall, that I don’t catch usually, only in special moment, when I get a cold, lying on the futon, the room so quiet, sound of clock, over the sound of fridge, I thought I can hear the clock, the fridge, but usually I don’t, it’s strange, it’s mysterious; being home alone in the day time of week day, is very unusual.

Obon

Almost every year we went to spend some days with my grandparents in Aizu district. When the spirit is coming, put a fire on the stack of pine tree twig, a welcoming for spirit to recognise our house is here; and put chopstick wood on the cucumber and eggplant making horse and cow; the mountainside near my grandparents, we went there, we stopped at the bridge, we throw the horse and cow to the river, asking them to carry the spirit, by the sea to the other world.