L’Alliance New York presents the North American Premiere of Le Tambour de Soie from October 24-25, 2025 at 8 pm at Japan Society, 333 East 47th Street New York, NY 10017. For tickets and more information, visit https://lallianceny.org/event/the-silk-drum/.

Inspired by the Noh play Aya no Tsuzumi and its modern adaptation by Japan’s great novelist Yukio Mishima, Le Tambour de Soie (The Silk Drum) strips the original fable down to its core: a human drama between an old man desperate to feel young again, and the beautiful dancer made complicit in his downfall. Originally a coproduction between the Festival d’Avignon and the Théâtre de la Ville, this North American Premiere features New York stage star Paul Lazar alongside the French-based Japanese dance artist Kaori Ito, interpreting a script by acclaimed French novelist and screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière set to Makoto Yabuki’s percussive original music.

“Kaori Ito reveals a dance of madness, where gesture and music are used in a single breath, just beyond reach” — Belinda Mathieu, La Terrasse

Performed in French and Japanese with English surtitles. Duration: 60 minutes

Presented by Japan Society in partnership with Crossing The Line Festival

Japan Society is the premier organization connecting Japanese arts, culture, business, and society with audiences in NYC and around the world. Since the inception of the Japan Society Performing Arts Program in 1953, Japan Society has introduced nearly 1,000 of Japan’s finest performing arts programs to an extensive American audience. Programs range from the traditional arts of Noh, kyogen, bunraku and kabuki to cutting-edge theater, dance and music. The Program also commissions new works to non-Japanese artists, produces national tours, organizes residency programs for American and Japanese artists and develops and distributes educational programs.

L’Alliance New York is an independent, not-for-profit organization committed to providing its audience and students with engaging French language classes and audacious multi-disciplinary programming that celebrates the diversity of francophone cultures and creativity around the world. A welcoming and inclusive community for all ages and all backgrounds, L’Alliance New York is a place where people can meet, learn, and explore the richness of our heritages and share discoveries. L’Alliance New York strives to amplify voices and build bridges from the entire francophone world to New York and beyond.”

Crossing The Line is a citywide festival that engages international artists and New York City audiences in artistic discovery and critical dialogue to re-imagine the world around us. Crossing The Line is produced by L’Alliance New York in partnership with leading cultural institutions.