Behind a massive building in a city. A civil servant who is searching for some 'evidence' meets a gatekeeper who is polishing shoes. Although they have just met for the first time, they start talking to each other, trying to tell each other the 'truth'. At the end of their conversation, a trivial yet major incident occurs, which no one notices.

The Gate was written in 1966, during Japan's rapid economic growth.

Twenty years after the war's end, as urbanisation progressed and people's lives changed dramatically, the piece portrays the anxiety and loneliness that seemed to diminish our bodies and the actual feeling of 'living'. The author, Minoru Betsuyaku, devoted himself not only to plays but also to children's stories, leaving many stories with a vague sense of loneliness. More than half a century has passed since The Gate, Japan has moved on to become an advanced information society, and society is undergoing significant changes again. What are we losing in this transition? And can we ever get it back?