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4.
Lysander & Hermia
Traditionally in
Japan, showing affection and touching are frowned upon in
public, though habits are changing now, especially among the
young.
The alternative
settings of Deguchi's 3 versions of MND seem to invite
different kinds of judgement on the lovers' actions - or
suggest the lifestyle subcultures of different age-groups.
In this version,
the teenage lovers are alone in an empty classroom, while in
the Bar version (Bar 3.
Lysander & Hermia, close) they have graduated to a public bar. In
both versions chairs surround them and they stand (first
image), or, if they kneel (second image), they avoid full
contact with the dirty floor; in the Mask version's empty
space (Mask 2.
Lovers in masks) they kneel as they would in a
tatami-covered room or on a traditional polished
stage.
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