Shiomibashi's First Solo Show Sells Out Same Day, Boosted by Torek Prize Nomination
Comedy duo Shiomibashi, pairing a human performer with a non-humanoid cleaning robot, put tickets for their first-ever solo show on sale at noon on the 20th — the show, previously reported on the 15th, will run at the street-corner theater in Shiomibashi shopping district next month — and sold out within 18 minutes. The sale method, undecided as of the 15th announcement, had just been finalized, and Tuesday's first-ever nomination in the Torek Prize's special category, reported yesterday, is thought to have given the rush an extra push.
Daisuke Namekawa, 31, the human straight man of comedy duo Shiomibashi, and his partner, the cleaning-type symbiotic robot Harisen, announced ticket sale details on the 20th for the pair's first-ever solo show, marking their fifth anniversary as previously reported on the 15th. Sales opened at noon both at the shopping district's information counter and on a ticketing site, and all 96 seats at the street-corner theater sold out within 18 minutes. The ticketing site briefly became hard to reach under the surge in access.
"So many of Harisen's parts are no longer available, so this was meant to be a small show, almost like a record," Namekawa said, not hiding his surprise. "I never expected the website to jam up."
As previously reported on the 19th, Shiomibashi had just become the first-ever nominee in the Torek Prize's newly created special category. A guide at the shopping district said, "Selling tickets the day after the nomination story ran wasn't planned, but the timing couldn't have worked out better. The phone was already ringing twice as much as usual before the sale even opened." Namekawa agreed the overlap was coincidental, but added, "To the audience, it may have looked like this is our moment."
As previously reported, Namekawa has repeatedly said he has no intention of moving to a larger venue. "Harisen works best right here on the street, in the end" remains his stance, and there are no plans for an additional showing at this time. Some who missed out on tickets have already asked the information counter for a streamed or recorded version, and Namekawa said, laughing, "I'll decide after I talk it over with Harisen."
Shiomibashi's rise has run alongside the Robotics Legal Status Council's own debates: at the contentious hearing previously reported on the 12th over whether Tokiwado's robot 'Unit Four' counts its operating sounds as speech, Namekawa has repeatedly noted that his act has treated Harisen's operating sounds as comic lines for five years. Asked about today's sellout, one council member said, "Apart from the legal debate, the fact that a pairing like this has this much support on the ground is useful to keep in mind."
Following the sudden sellout, the shopping district's information counter announced on the afternoon of the 20th that, having already spotted what appeared to be resale listings on some brokerage sites, it would check ticket-holders' names against the purchaser list at the door. "It's precisely because this is a small street-corner theater that we want to keep it within sight of familiar faces. Harisen wouldn't be happy seeing tickets flipped for a markup," the guide said. Namekawa, too, hinted at eventually considering a streamed or recorded release, saying, "Rather than have tickets scalped, I'd rather find another way to give people who want to see it a chance." The solo show is set for mid-next-month.
