Story

At once a detective story, an account of a disintegrating marriage, and an excavation of buried secrets from World War II, this surreal mystery follows an unassuming “everyman”, Toru, as he searches for his wife who's inexplicably disappeared.

Toru soon encounters a cast of strange characters, each with their own intriguing stories, who begin showing up in his dreams, opening doors to a hallucinatory world charged with sexuality and violence. As the lines between dreams and reality dissolve, Toru must confront the dark forces that exist inside him as part of his human nature.

Murakami's Story

One of Japan’s most renowned writers, Haruki Murakami’s work has been translated into forty-two languages, poising him to become the most widely read Japanese author outside of Japan of all times. Murakami’s many honors include the prestigious Franz Kafka Prize and the Yomiuri Prize, whose previous recipients include Yukio Mishima and Kenzaburo Oe. The Wind Up Bird Chronicle is considered his most important work.

Though Murakami writes about his native Japan, his characters’ desperation to find intimate connections while plagued by urban loneliness are universal. Because of Murakami’s exploding popularity and international interest in his work, as well as the intrigue with Japanese popular culture, this production has tremendous potential for both critical and popular success while offering a universally compelling and original piece of theatre.