Condors in Mars: Conquest of the Galaxy II

Thursday, February 24 & Friday, February 25
7:30 pm

The exhilarating all-male dance troupe Condors make their much-anticipated return to New York! The Village Voice compared their 2002 New York appearance to Monty Python’s Flying Circus, except “less verbal, more physical, and adolescent grottiness and outright lunacy invade the terrain of Japanese pop culture.” Don’t miss this unique fusion of slapstick, dance and relentless joy, all under the direction of choreographer Ryohei Kondo, who has been hailed as “the most promising choreographer for the 21st century” by Yomiuri Shimbun.

Founded in 1996, the Condors are known for their bold, frenetic and kitschy aesthetic in a fast-paced episodic structure mixing dance, video and hilarious sketches, much like a TV variety show that has spun out of control. The group performs in gakuran, the typical Japanese black school uniform for boys, calling to mind the boyish and irrepressible joie de vivre of youth. The New York Times raves: “The Condors’ comedic logic [is] as intriguingly random as the Japanese cartoon style called anime–and their personas just as cute.”

Tickets: $30; $25 Japan Society members.