Marita is directing the Spring musical at Senzoku! Thoroughly Modern Millie will be presented in the Black Hall over two weekends. Come in from the cold and enjoy this Broadway smash, full of roaring 20s frivolity and heart!

February 22 - 24, March 1 - 3, Black Hall, Senzoku Gakuen College of Music, Kawasaki

The hard-working students of Marita Stryker Studio will be performing a Rockin’ Recital on Valentine’s Day! Come enjoy the vocal stylings of these fabulous young artists!

February 14th, 7:30p, Nakameguro Try, Nakameguro, Tokyo

Marita will be directing the 1st Annual Winter Musical Showcase for the Senzoku Gakuen Musical Course. This will be presented by the first and third year students who have been studying the music of Rodgers & Hammerstein and Kander & Ebb.

January 13 - 14, Maeda Hall, Senzoku Gakuen College of Music, Kawasaki

If you will be in the Kobe area over the holidays, be sure to get tickets for the New Year’s Concert at Hyogo Performing Arts Center. It will be a celebration of Bernstein, directed by June Iyeda. Marita has taken on the role of vocal coach for production.

December 31st, Hyogo Performing Arts Center, Nishinomiya
www.gcenter-hyogo.jp

Senzoku Gakuen is holding a special edition Musical Cocktail: Masters’ Concert, featuring the faculty of the Musical Course. Come see Marita sing, along with some of her fabulously talented colleagues!

November 16th, Maeda Hall, Senzoku Gakuen College of Music, Kawasaki

Marita is excited to perform as a Guest Artist at Smash Cabaret in Tokyo! The theme this month is “Rage and Joy.” Come hear this month’s contestants as they compete for your votes in this fun, monthly musical theatre audition show!

October 25th, 7:30p, Com.Cafe, Shimokitazawa, Tokyo
​www.smashcabaret.com

After a full semester of study and rehearsal, the second and fourth year students at Senzoku Gakuen College of Music, Musical Course, under the direction of Marita Stryker, are excited to present their Summer Musical Showcase: This Is the Greatest Show! Featuring performances from Natasha Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, Kiss Me Kate, Gypsy, Waitress, and more!

June 20 - 22, Maeda Hall, Senzoku Gakuen College of Music, Kawasaki

Come see Marita sing at the Summer Musical Cocktail, along with visiting tenor, Stephen Carr, and some of the talented students from Senzoku Gakuen Musical Course!

​June 24th, Black Hall, Senzoku Gakuen College of Music, Kawasaki

Tokyo International Players presents The Who’s Tommy. Marita will be playing The Acid Queen!

May 17 - 20, Nakano Pocket Theater, Tokyo
​www.tokyoplayers.org/the-who’s-tommy

I've decided to up the blog again, as I have found myself regularly in a state of bliss here in Japan. I am learning so much!...as a teacher, as a mom, and as a gaijin (foreigner).
Here's my update:

• I love love LOVE my job at Senzoku! I am working with a language barrier (and a gradually growing cultural understanding), so I have been savoring the challenge of finding new ways to approach the material that we assign to the students. The faculty that I work with are wonderful, especially those that are helping me with translation while co-teaching. 
• I commute to work on a bike...and don't have to worry about it getting stolen.
• The food here is amazing. Everywhere. At every price level. You can even eat well at the combini (convenience store) on the corner, although a ma and pop soba shop would be my pick.
• We've been exploring, not only Tokyo, but also other areas of Japan. We went to Bali this summer, which was a first for me. I can't wait to see more of this pocket of the world!
• I was thrilled to work with an English language theatre group here, called Tokyo International Players. It was a wonderful way to meet other English speakers in the area with similar interests, and find out how the heck they ended up in Tokyo! Since in my second year at Senzoku, my schedule has filled up a bit, I have now joined the Board of Directors in lieu of the block commitment for shows, in order to stay involved with the company.
• A few new TIP friends and I went to the SCOT Summer Festival in Toga. I learned so much about traditional Japanese performance practices and how they have evolved. I look forward to exploring this while I'm here, and how it might relate to the future of original musical theatre works in Japan.
• There is so much more, but it will come up on this blog in time...

I am inspired every day and feel like I am in another round of academia...a new kind of education. It may not be a doctorate (yet), but it sure has peaked my interest to many possible areas of research and exploration. More on that to come. Until then, kanpai! Here's to taking the leap and reaping the lessons!