David Hirata’s
A Box Without A Bottom:
Soko-nashi Bako
In Person at the Berkeley Marsh TheaterStage
Written & Performed by David Hirata
Directed by Mark Kenward
Online ticket sales close 2 hours before each performance,
and additional tickets may be available for purchase at the door.
January 4th – 26th, 2019
Saturdays & Sundays at 5pm
Ticket Information
Tickets: $20 – $35 General Seating sliding scale | $50 & $100 Reserved Seating
Online ticket sales close 2 hours before each performance,
and additional tickets may be available for purchase at the door.
60 minutes | No Intermission | Ages 13+
Please do not bring infants to the show
Show Description
In 1866, magician Namigoro Sumidagawa became the first Japanese citizen in over 200 years to receive a passport to leave the country. As part of the “Imperial Japanese Troupe,” he dazzled audiences across Victorian America wth his exotic stage magic and became a media celebrity. By the time he returned home, his prize trick, Soko-nashi Bako, had been appropriated by American magicians in yellowface and rechristened as the “J*p Box.” A century later, Japanese-American magician David Hirata excavates the mysteries and stories of the Soko-nashi Bako. Through monologue and magic, he unveils illusions and surprises from the Japanese American story.
Artist Biography
Hailed as “a master of deceit” (KRON 4 TV) David Hirata has amazed audiences throughout the Bay Area with theatrical magic creations at the Exploratorium, the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the Oakland Museum, and at many private events. Previous shows include Kanji by Starlight at the Marsh, and American Wizards at the California Magic Dinner Theater. A Box Without A Bottom premiered at the 2018 San Diego International Fringe Festival where it won the award for “Outstanding World Premiere Production.”
Post Show Talkbacks
Saturday, October 26:
Frederick Schodt, historian and translator, author of “Professor Risley and the Imperial Japanese Troupe”
Saturday, November 2:
Christian Cagigal, magician on magician Henry “Box” Brown and “the other” in magic.
Saturday, November 9:
Jade, magician: on the performance of traditional Asian magic, and the experience of being a female professional magician (note to Marsh staff: Jade is one of the best magicians in the world today, no lie! I am psyched about this one!).
Sunday, November 17:
Brenda Wong Aoki, storyteller and performer. We’ll discuss her work, particularly her show, “Uncle Gunjiro’s Girlfriend” a story based on ancestor Gunjiro Aoki’s (illegal in California) marriage to San Franciscan Gladys Emery in 1909.