Nao Kusuzaki's “Genji” premieres March 24-25 at Asia Society Texas Center, in...
After her years with Houston Ballet, where she was a soloist until 2016, Kusuzaki easily envisioned the dramatic havoc the spirit character could create. “I wanted to see that happen,” she says. Her “Genji” premieres March 24-25 at Asia Society Texas Center, in partnership with Houston Ballet.
Her “Genji” was percolating before the COVID-19 lockdowns, but the pandemic gave her a chance to finally sit down and read the novel, which sprawls across 54 chapters and follows four generations of characters. She was surprised by the book’s timeless evocations of love, jealousy, loyalty and betrayal. “Murasaki was so ahead of her time,” she says. “It’s so relatable.”
Kusuzaki and Watanabe became friends several years ago after she was invited to perform with his group at a festival in San Antonio. “His music is perfect for … a contemporary retelling of this classic literature,” she says. The score incorporates some spoken word — waka poetry from Murasaki’s book — and some of Watanabe’s music will be improvisational.
Set designer Ryan McGettigan is utilizing screen-like pieces and projections to create a minimalist environment on the Asia Society’s intimate stage. Tiffany Schrepferman is designing the lighting, and just-retired Houston Ballet first soloist Allison Miller is creating the “Genji” costumes. “The design will be simple, not what we would expect the Heian imperial court to look like,” Kusuzaki says. “It’s more about the characters and the stories they’re telling.
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