TEHRAN – Yoshiji Yokoyama, the programmer of the Tokyo Festival, a theater and urban arts festival in the Japanese capital, has said that he is amazed by the diversity of Iranian theaters. 

Yokoyama, who is in Tehran to attend the National Showcase for Iranian Dramatic Arts at the 37th Fajr International Theater Festival underway in Tehran, made the remarks in an interview with the Persian service of Honaronline on Monday. 

“During my stay in Tehran, I have watched some Iranian plays, including Behruz Gharibpur’s opera puppet show ‘Love’, by which I learned that there are similarities between Iranian and Japanese puppet shows,” he said.

“While puppet shows are mainly for children around the world, we both make them for adults with poetic texts and enlightening messages,” he added.

Yokoyama is also a dramaturge at the SPAC-Shizuoka Performing Arts Center and is in charge of international exchanges and programs of the center. 

“Contrary to Saudi Arabia and many other countries, I was surprised with the collaborations of the Iranian actresses on the stage. The quality and quantity of their works are amazing,” he said. 

The 37th Fajr International Theater Festival will be running until February 23.

Photo: Japanese theater expert Yoshiji Yokoyama in an undated photo.

ABU/MMS/YAW