“My life began with ‘Please look at me’ and ended with ‘Please forget me.’”
This play has a modest ambition:
· Not to criticise people-pleasing, but to lay bare the absurdity of being held hostage by the desire to be loved:
“We keep saying, ‘You have to love yourself,’ but nobody tells you how”;
· Not to manipulate emotion, but to hold up a mirror:
“If audiences can see even one per cent of themselves in Matsuko, this risk will have been worthwhile.”
A solo performer’s monologue
How does Matsuko come alive onstage?
· Memories in a suitcase: a battered suitcase holds her dismissal letter, a wig, stockings, syringes… Each object’s entrance tears another opening in Matsuko’s soul.
· The tension of a minimal stage: without elaborate scenery, light and shadow alone divide time and space—the silhouette on a curtain is violence, a ringing telephone is a fall, and a police siren is the end.
At the heart of the story
The self-erasure and rebirth of a people-pleaser
“Kindness was the knife
that stabbed me to death.”
Matsuko’s life is an extreme portrait of countless people’s longing to be loved:
• For a word of approval from her father, she willingly lives as a substitute for her sister;
• For a student’s mistake, she steals money and takes the blame, destroying her teaching career;
• For a lover’s empty promise, she takes drugs and takes the blame, eventually becoming a wandering spirit among the rubbish…
This is not a “tragic story”, but a mirror reflecting your obsessions and mine.
Behind the making: the truth and challenges of writing, directing and performing alone
“Solo performance is an art of solitude, and solitude is precisely the ground of Matsuko’s life.”
Men Fanxi says candidly that the initial impulse for making the play was “to touch human nature in the simplest way”:
• Shaping the text: the original novel is substantial. The adaptation retains only Matsuko’s monologues and key props, directing attention to why she moves towards destruction.
• Experiments in performance: bodily language takes the place of spoken lines—curling up, crawling and trembling fingertips are all Matsuko’s silent cries for help.
Why see it?
✅ Unconventional but piercing: abandoning commercial formulas to reach the heart through theatre’s most elemental power.
✅ Immersion at close range: the small-theatre setting puts audiences less than three metres from Matsuko, where every tear can be seen.
✅ An after-effect like a hangover: after you leave, “But I really did try to live” will run through your head for three days.
A final word
“The tragedy of people-pleasing is not being unloved, but not daring to love yourself.” If you too have exhausted yourself seeking recognition, this play offers a reason to embrace yourself.
On 3 April 2025, come to the theatre and face the Matsuko within you.
Time:
3 April 2025, 18:00
Venue:
321 Space (21 Sanjing Hutong, Xicheng District, Beijing)
Tickets:
Scan the QR code below to pay. Include your name and the last four digits of your phone number in the payment note. Show the payment record for admission.
Early-bird ticket: RMB 68 (save the image before scanning; valid before 28 March).
For questions, contact us on WeChat:
#IndependentSoloPerformance #APeoplePleaser’sSelfHelpGuide