CASE STUDY · THEATRE AND DANCE
The Coronet Theatre
Six Japanese productions promoted for The Coronet Theatre in Notting Hill, from GOOD-BYE in 2024 to The Gambler in 2026.
Sector: Theatre and Dance · Services: Editorial, Instagram, Newsletter, Sitewide Ads, Giveaway, Reader Offer, Interview
6
Japanese productions promoted since 2024
40,069
plays of our second GOOD-BYE reel
20,000+
newsletter subscribers
THE PRODUCTIONS WE PROMOTED
Japanese theatre and dance at The Coronet, Notting Hill.
GOOD-BYE
Chiten Theatre Company from Kyoto, directed by Motoi Miura. Built on the novel Osamu Dazai left unfinished when he died in 1948, with live music from the Japanese rock band kukangendai.
Kyoto theatre company · Live band on stage · The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
5 to 9 March 2024
U-Bu-Su-Na
A butoh work by award winning choreographer Kentaro Kujirai. Butoh is the Japanese avant garde dance form created in the 1950s by Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno. The piece draws on the history of the Tohoku region of northeastern Japan.
Butoh · Three nights only · The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
14 to 16 November 2024
Waltz
A duet by Saburo Teshigawara and Rihoko Sato. Teshigawara trained in sculpture before ballet and founded the dance company KARAS in 1985; Sato is his long standing collaborator.
Contemporary dance · Four evenings · The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
19 to 22 March 2025
Medea
Shizuoka Performing Arts Center (SPAC), directed by Satoshi Miyagi. Euripides' tragedy is staged as a play within a play in a restaurant in Meiji era Japan, the period of rapid modernisation from 1868.
SPAC's first UK visit · Four nights · The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
18 to 21 June 2025
Naraku 奈落 (Abyss)
Dance Company Lasta, choreographed and directed by Yoshimitsu Kushida. First staged in Yokohama in 2020 and remade as a dance film in 2022.
Contemporary dance · Three nights only · The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
18 to 20 September 2025
The Gambler
Chiten Theatre from Kyoto, directed by Motoi Miura, with a live score by kukangendai. Adapted from the novel Fyodor Dostoevsky dictated in 1866 to clear his debts.
Japanese with English surtitles · Live band on stage · The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
5 to 15 February 2026
THE PARTNERSHIP
How the partnership came about
The Coronet Theatre in Notting Hill regularly brings Japanese theatre and dance to London. We have promoted six of its Japanese productions since 2024, working with Marketing Manager Elliot Hall, and The Coronet came to us directly for Waltz, Medea and The Gambler. For each one we gave our community of Japanese culture lovers the background they needed to want a ticket, then a reason to book now.
OUR APPROACH
What we did for each production
GOOD-BYE, CHITEN THEATRE COMPANY, MARCH 2024
Our first campaign with The Coronet Theatre, introducing a Kyoto theatre company and Osamu Dazai's unfinished last novel to London readers through January and February 2024.
Editorial: We published three articles: an event piece, a feature on Dazai's legacy and a feature on Chiten's working method. Each one linked straight to the booking page at The Coronet.
Instagram: We made two reels from the production's own photos and footage, set to music from the show at The Coronet's request, and posted them on our Instagram on 2 and 15 February. They were played 19,342 and 40,069 times.
Newsletter: Two newsletter deployments carried the articles and booking link to our subscribers in the weeks before opening.
U-BU-SU-NA, KENTARO KUJIRAI, NOVEMBER 2024
A six week campaign that explained butoh to new audiences and pointed them to a three night run in Notting Hill.
Editorial: Our feature explained butoh and its origins for newcomers, then introduced Kujirai's piece and its roots in Tohoku. It linked straight to the booking page.
Sitewide Ads: Custom banners ran across japannakama.co.uk from early October until the run, sending readers to the show page on The Coronet's site.
Giveaway: We gave away a pair of tickets to our readers. The winner was picked in October and The Coronet booked them in for the closing night.
Newsletter: Our weekly newsletter of 1 November led with butoh, two weeks before opening night.
WALTZ, SABURO TESHIGAWARA AND RIHOKO SATO, MARCH 2025
A short campaign for a four night duet, built around one of Japan's best known contemporary choreographers.
Editorial: Our feature profiled Teshigawara and Sato, from his start in sculpture and ballet to the founding of KARAS. It ends with the run at The Coronet and a link to book.
Sitewide Ads: Banners ran across japannakama.co.uk in the run up to the show, linking to the booking page.
Giveaway: We gave our readers the chance to win a pair of tickets. The Coronet booked the winner in for the final performance.
Newsletter: Three newsletter deployments carried the campaign: a promotion for the feature, a giveaway send and a reminder to our 20,000+ subscribers on opening night.
MEDEA, SPAC, JUNE 2025
An editorial led campaign for SPAC's first UK visit, which kept running as the show sold out.
Editorial: We published five articles: an event piece, two features on the Meiji setting and the production's feminist reading, a profile of Satoshi Miyagi, and a list of Japanese stage adaptations of Western classics. Each one linked to the booking page.
Giveaway: We ran a ten day giveaway for a pair of tickets. The Coronet booked the winner in for the Friday performance.
Newsletter: Four newsletters carried the articles and the giveaway to our 20,000+ subscribers through June.
NARAKU, DANCE COMPANY LASTA, SEPTEMBER 2025
A month long campaign for a three night London run, mixing editorial on Japanese horror and art with a reader offer and a ticket giveaway.
Editorial: We published five articles: an event guide, features on dance and horror in Japanese cinema and on Naraku as horror told through dance, a profile of Yoshimitsu Kushida, and a piece on hellscapes in Japanese art. Each one linked to the booking page.
Reader Offer: The Coronet set up a discount code for Japan Nakama readers on full price tickets. We promoted it from the day it went live until the run.
Giveaway: We ran a week long giveaway for a pair of tickets and sent the winner's details to The Coronet the day before the final show.
Newsletter: Four newsletters carried the articles, the reader code and the giveaway to our 20,000+ subscribers.
THE GAMBLER, CHITEN THEATRE, FEBRUARY 2026
Chiten's return to The Coronet two years after GOOD-BYE, with an editorial series built around director Motoi Miura's own answers.
Editorial: We published an event guide and three features: on Japan's social order and the novel, on Dostoevsky's influence in Japan, and on kukangendai's live score. Each one linked to the booking page.
Interview: Director Motoi Miura answered our written questions, sent through Chiten, on how he staged the novel, from roulette as a set of rules for the stage to the way kukangendai's sound leads the action. The interview went live about three weeks before opening.
Reader Offer: The Coronet created a discount code for Japan Nakama readers that worked online or at the box office. We promoted it alongside the articles.
Giveaway: We gave away a pair of tickets for the first Saturday of the run. The Coronet booked the winner in at the end of January.
Newsletter: Two newsletters in January carried the interview, the features and the reader code to our 20,000+ subscribers.
THE IMPACT
What it added up to
What six campaigns gave The Coronet Theatre, in plain terms.
IN FRONT OF THE RIGHT FANS
Horror and dance fans together
Linking Naraku to Japanese horror and art brought the show to readers who might not seek out contemporary dance.
A SEARCHABLE HOME
A plain guide to butoh
The feature stays live as an introduction to butoh that still points to Kujirai's work.
ENGAGEMENT AND INTENT
A trackable offer
A dedicated reader code gave The Coronet a direct way to see bookings that came through Japan Nakama.
A RETURNING PARTNER
The sixth Coronet campaign
The Gambler was the sixth Coronet production Japan Nakama promoted, and the third time The Coronet came to us first.
SEE THE WORK
Read the coverage
GOOD-BYE: feature, Dazai's legacy
GOOD-BYE: feature, Chiten's journey
Medea: feature, the Meiji setting
Medea: feature, Miyagi's radical Medea
Medea: profile, Satoshi Miyagi
Medea: list, Japanese adaptations of classics
Naraku: feature, dance and horror in Japanese cinema
Naraku: feature, J-Horror beyond cinema
Naraku: profile, Yoshimitsu Kushida
Naraku: feature, hellscapes in Japanese art
The Gambler: feature, social order and The Gambler
The Gambler: feature, Dostoevsky's influence on Japan
“Indeed, you're on my list of people to contact about this season!”
Elliot Hall, Marketing Manager, The Coronet Theatre
WORK WITH US
Bringing Japanese theatre or dance to London?
Tell us about your production and we will put together a campaign for our readers.