Kurō Tanino (Japan, 1976) is leader of the theater company Niwa Gekidan Penino (Theatre of the Garden Penino) and serves as its representative, playwright and director. While a medical student, he formed the company in 2000. Tanino’s recent works include Chekov?! (2011), The Room, Nobody knows (2012), Box in the Big Trunk (2013), Tanino to Dwarf-tachi ni yoru Kantor ni Sasageru Homage (2015), The Dark Master (2003, 2006, 2016) and others. Tanino’s play Avidya – The Dark Inn that premiered in 2015 was the winner of the 60th Kunio Kishida Drama Award. He has received many awards, including Cultural Affairs Agency Arts Festival Excellence Award in 2016 and Toyama Prize in Arts and Culture in 2019.