About Theatre - Student Organizations
WAFU - Japanese Student Theatre Club
In her first year and a half of teaching at UNR (beginning in January, 2000), Sue Klemp, Theatre Lecturer, was struck by the enthusiasm and talent shown by a number of Japanese students (including Koji Setaishi, Yoko Fujioka, Ayumi Taguchi, Mayumi Onodera, and Kae Hagimoto). In acting classes, she was greatly impressed with the commitment they devoted to projects and the skillfulness they exhibited. Some were theatre majors or minors and were involved in Nevada Repertory Company production work in the scene shop, costume shop and in backstage functions. They brought their high level of commitment, work ethic, and skillfulness to these projects as well. But there was an inequity.
Due to the difficulties Japanese students have in speaking English clearly, major onstage roles were eluding them. Klemp felt that their talents and commitment to theatre deserved a showcase. In the summer of 2001, the seeds of an idea were formulated: could the UNR theatre department provide more opportunities for Japanese students to perform—perhaps in Japanese? After discussing the idea with colleagues and some of the Japanese students this question was answered with a resounding “Yes!”
Yoko Fujioka took on the task of directing with Klemp as collaborator and faculty mentor. A full-length play adapted from a Japanese folk tale and performed partly in Japanese and partly in English was mounted, "AKAONI - The Beast is Red". The multi-cultural cast consisted of eight Japanese students, one American, and one Taiwanese. The cast composition helped to tell this story with its themes of alienation and miscommunication.
AKAONI was well received, drawing large audiences, and the company worked well together. This opportunity only made them more excited about Japanese theatre projects. Ayumi Taguchi, theatre major and lead actress in AKAONI, initiated the idea of holding weekly meetings and theatre workshops. And so WAFU was born! Out of the workshop activities the group began producing shows, usually in Japanese, on a regular basis.
The WAFU projects have provided many opportunities for the club members. Most of the productions have been created from original scripts written by members of the group. In addition, members have taken on full responsibility for directing; designing costumes, sets, lighting, and sound; stage and front-of-house management; publicity and program creation; and, of course, acting. Since its inception, WAFU (Japanese style) has produced two to four (or more!) shows each year including during the summer school session. Members have also participated in the UNR Night of All Nations International Student event, the JSAN Summer Festival, and the TMCC Multicultural Festival.
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