Sleeping Fires - Two Blind Women in the Snowy Tokugawa Nights by Kuro Tanino
In-venue Programme
Date
28 March 2026 (Sat), 2:45pm*
28 March 2026 (Sat), 7:45pm
29 March 2026 (Sun), 12pm
29 March 2026 (Sun), 4:30pm
Venue
Limited Time Offer
2 December 2025, 10am – 23 December 2025, 11:59pm
20% discount on all full-price tickets.
Limited quota available.
Purchase programme tickets worth HK$500 or more to receive one No Limits Inclusive Plush Toy Keychain Redemption Coupon.
Details refer to Booking Guide.
Approx. 100 minutes with no interval
Performed in Japanese
Recommended for ages 12 and above
The performance contains smoke effects
The performance contains scenes of near complete darkness
Subtitles and accessible captions in Chinese and English, audio description and caption reading in Cantonese and house programme in audio format available, guide dogs welcome.
A sensory evocation of friendship, warmth and the struggle for belonging
“No Limits” Asia New Commissioned Work
Set in the feudal Tempō era, Sleeping Fires tells the story of blind female massage therapist Iku and her young apprentice Saya. Through poetic layering of soundscapes, dialogue, gesture and scent, the newly commissioned theatre piece depicts the hardships and pleasures of the women’s day-to-day life, and the complex issues of trust, secrecy and suspicion experienced by the inhabitants of the remote, snow-covered mountain village where they live. Contrasting the bonds of tradition and the women’s pursuit of independence and belonging, the piece portrays their friendship and struggles, and the harshness and beauty of the natural world around them.
Sleeping Fires is the latest work by renowned theatre director Kuro Tanino (presented Mother at No Limits 2019 and Fortress of Smiles at No Limits 2023). Commissioned by No Limits (Asia Commission 002), and performed on stage by Tanino’s Niwa Gekidan Penino theatre company, the work takes inspiration from the lived experiences of visually impaired people and classic works of literature and film, and delivers a lyrical meditation on ageing, memory, sensory experience and the autonomous physical body. The performance in Hong Kong marks its world premiere.
Niwa Gekidan Penino
Niwa Gekidan Penino is a theatre ensemble and the brainchild of Kuro Tanino during his student days at Showa University in 2000. Niw Gekidan Penino has shared its intricate artistry and distinct vision of the world. The theatre company is known for its keen attention to the performance space. From 2009 onwards, the group has been invited to numerous performing arts festivals at home and abroad, and has ventured virtual reality in recent years through works.
Kuro Tanino
Kuro Tanino is the founder and director of Niwa Gekidan Penino, a playwright and former psychiatrist. In 2000, while still a medical student, he established Niwa Gekidan Penino, and has since written and directed all of the company’s works. His productions have been invited to numerous major theatre festivals both in Japan and internationally, particularly in Europe. With Frustrating Picture Book for Adults (2008), Tanino and Niwa Gekidan Penino participated in the renowned 2009 HAU (Hebbel am Ufer) in Germany, Zurcher Theatre Spektakel in 2010. Tanino and Niwa Gekidan Penino were then invited to various festivals including the Helsinki Festival, the Theatre der Welt and Vienna Festival, Paris Autumn Festival and more. In 2016, Tanino won the 60th Kishida Kunio Drama Award for Avidya: No Lights Inn. The same year, he was awarded the Kita Nippon Shimbun Arts Prize and the Grand Prize of the 71st ACA National Arts Festival. He received the 36th Toyama Award for Culture and Arts Category in 2019. In 2022, he was appointed Policy Advisor for the City of Toyama. As of 2024, he serves as a jury member for the Kishida Kunio Drama Award.
Purchase No Limits programme tickets worth HK$500 or more in a single transaction via URBTIX to receive one No Limits Inclusive Plush Toy Keychain Redemption Coupon upon ticket collection. Details Here.
2 December 2025, 10am – 23 December 2025, 11:59pm
20% discount on all full-price tickets.
Limited quota available.
From 2 December 2025, 10am
Half-price tickets are available for fulltime students, people with disabilities and a companion and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients. Concessionary ticket holders must produce evidence of their identity upon admission.
From 24 December 2025, 00:00am
10% discount on each purchase of 4–9 full-price tickets (one programme)
20% discount on each purchase of 10 or more full-price tickets (one programme)
From 24 December 2025, 00:00am
10% discount on each purchase of 2–3 full-price tickets (multiple programmes)
20% discount on each purchase of 4 or more full-price tickets (multiple programmes)
Cover painting: "The Blind Female Musician Who Became a Star (The Sorrow of Misao Goze)", 1971, Shinichi Saito, Collection of the Kurashiki City Art Museum
