Koidzumi, the director of the Bungeiza Theatre and the deputy chairman of the Toyama Prefecture Arts and Culture Association, established his Hungarian connection when his theatre troupe performed a production of Chekhov?s ?The Marriage Proposal? at a theatre festival in New York in 1981, only to discover that the same play was being performed by the Debrecen Drama Studio of Hungary under the direction of András Lukovics.
Since then, Koidzumi has helped organise visits by more than 600 artists from Debrecen and its surroundings to Japan?s Toyama prefecture. Hungarian groups performing in the prefecture have included the Debrecen Kodály Choir, the Hajdú Dance Company and the Debrecen Philharmonic Orchestra Chamber Ensemble, as well as artists from the Csokonai Theatre and the Debrecen Drama Studio.
Koidzumi has even translated Hungarian author István Örkény's play ?The Tóth Family? into Japanese and performed it around the world. He has also directed a number of Japanese plays in Debrecen ? most recently one entitled ?The Night Visitor?.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
