Ancestor Realm

Interview with Courtney Ozaki

When I first met Courtney I was… Shocked. She was not the woman I thought she was.

Not metaphorically, morally or ethnically. I literally thought she was a different woman.

In the final scene of the “ZOTTO” one of the main characters has everyone sit in a circle as she explains the historical origins behind the story. She tells the story of her family, forced from their homes on short notice by the US government, neighbors waiting on the curb to ransack what was left behind. She talks about her family’s attempts to turn a horse stable into a home. She talks about what it was like for her family to be refugees in their own country after the war. It was such an incredibly powerful story, and ZOTTO such a powerful creation, I assumed this character was the creator. 

Later I found out that it was her family’s story. It was also the creator, Courtney’s, story. This is not a coincidence, but instead the story of thousands of Japanese Americans.

I don’t think I can overstate what an extraordinary production ZOTTO was (and is). The set design, minimal and drab at first, became increasingly magical as you moved throughout the show. The story had me ping-ponging between laughter and tears, gave me a deeper insight into the history of Japanese internment during World War II (1939-1945), and drove me heart-first into the immigrant experience. I was incredibly moved by the story, the artistry, and the meaning behind this work. 

To me, this is the kind of work all artists dream of creating. 

I was extraordinarily grateful and excited when Courtney agreed to meet with me and tell me how she did it. How she created ZOTTO.

It started during the pandemic, “I was feeling paralyzed because I wanted to do something to to help the community better look internally, [and] be more introspective about their impact on the world. […] theater wasn't safe, so we did it as a driving experience.”

“It was more about the sordid stories and the ghosts of Denver's past than just the Japanese experience. One of the stories was about this unique character [Yuri] we took and exploded into what the immersive experience [is] now. It is my family's story as well as a story of this community, it it made sense to build out that story because it's what I knew best.”

Two years later Courtney took Yuri’s story and expanded it into a dedicated production. From inception to opening night it took about 6 months, $90,000 and 30+ people (not including all the volunteers and crowdfunding contributors).

“The live immersive theater production of ZOTTO was originally envisioned between Japanese Arts Network and our co-producers: Theatre Artibus, Luster Productions, Control Group Productions, and a little later on Starry Night Productions. […] This type of show is built from the ground-up and takes an entire community of creatives and professionals to see an initial idea come to fruition. They say it takes a village, but I say it takes a universe.”

Immersive. Experience. Two buzz words that have myriad different meanings depending upon what production you are talking about, but some commonalities include: (1) extensive set design that the audience is allowed to move through and interact with, (2) Wondering characters who guide, interact, and react to the audience creating a unique experience with every performance, (3) The audience’s close proximity to the action. 

There are a thousand different points to consider with any show: from the story, casting, movement and script, to the music, lighting, set design and venue layout. Creating an immersive show means making each of these points 10 times more complicated. It is a, in Courtney’s words, “a behemoth of an undertaking”. 

Despite its added difficulty, more and more artist like Courtney are being drawn to produce their work in this medium, “I feel like, with immersive theater, it gets in your bones a little more. [It] impacts you in a less tangible way but in a more visceral way. I don't think that this story would have the same impact if it were a straight ahead play or if it were in some other format.”

“[ZOTTO is] a very human story. Everyone can relate to certain parts of thinking about the generations before you. […] Coming out of the pandemic that was really important. For people to have care and empathy for one another, and also to give themselves grace for their grieving. I think a lot of people felt like they had to just be resilient. [You hear] “Shikata-ga-nai” throughout the show because that was the way to survive — “It can’t be helped”. 

There is a moment of reckoning in ZOTTO between a daughter who wants to be an artist and a mother who is afraid. Her fear stems from everything her family had to endure, and the means they used in order to endure it. That kind of mental and emotional survival often makes people feel like there’s no room for “luxuries” like art. 

There are moment in our history when, as an individual, a community or a nation we are forced to focus on nothing but survival. ZOTTO is such a powerful piece because it asks us to reflect on our present as if it were the past, and confront our future as if it were our present. 

The pandemic was (and is) a historical moment. A moment of reckoning, in terms of public health, racism, working conditions and the values and priorities that structure our society. For Courtney, ZOTTO and the pandemic both showed that, “how you choose to care for yourself and others in the present is going to have a giant impact in the future.”