I recently saw the much talked about digital opera "THE END," featuring Hatsune Miku, at Shibuya Bunkamura Orchard Hall.

A four-sided screen made of a thin, gauze-like material hung from the stage, where projection mapping was performed, showcasing highly polished images by digital video artist YKBX. Architect Shohei Shigematsu's stage design, which matched the simple screen, consisted of a rectangular booth made of the same material and a sloping floor. The minimalist design created a sense of depth.

The stage structure and the polished images created the illusion that Hatsune Miku was present onstage once the performance began. I was completely captivated by the addictive images.

The story, written by Toshiki Okada of the Chelfitsch company, explores the existential themes we all experience during adolescence. This is the story of Hatsune Miku, a nonexistent character ("thought"), who begins to become aware of her real-life alter ego ("body") that appears out of nowhere, and, despite her confusion, achieves "unity of thought and body." The story is driven by the desire to understand death. It's a classic, easily understood narrative structure. Keiichiro Shibuya, with his costumed hair and makeup, takes the stage as the narrator, playing the same role as the rabbit in Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" and the fox in Saint-Exupéry's "The Little Prince." Regarding the sound, Shibuya said, "I was conscious of skipping the sense of time." He effectively used a range of sounds, from whispering sounds right next to the ear to deep bass tones that tremble the insides. Voiceroid's audible and inaudible lines overlap, increasing concentration on the story as time passes. Hatsune Miku's costume, designed by Louis Vuitton's Marc Jacobs, was composed of looks straight out of the Spring/Summer 2013 runway and currently featured in fashion magazines. "I chose Louis Vuitton because they most vividly express the relationship between art and fashion. Rather than simply framing art, they bring art to the side of fashion and integrate fashion into art, building an active relationship between the two," Shibuya said of Louis Vuitton. Hatsune Miku's bust was also fashionably reduced in size. Recently, I've been interested in a project in which stylists style anime characters and then create original drawings, and this could be considered an evolution of that project. I look forward to seeing even more developments in this type of project. Shibuya commented, "I created this opera with an international audience in mind from the beginning," and it's true. The level of completion and taste of this opera hits the spot, in a positive sense, right on the money for what's known as "Cool Japan." I have a lecture coming up at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris in November, and I am looking forward to seeing how this Japan-made opera will be received around the world.