日本現代戲劇的鼻祖級人物川上音二郎於1902年11月下旬來到臺灣，此行目的是為了籌備即將在帝都東京推出的一檔戲劇製作──《奧瑟羅》，而前來進行「實地調查」。改編自莎翁同名劇作的《奧瑟羅》是川上音二郎一生戲劇經歷的重要轉折點，他藉此劇倡議「正劇 (Drama)」，並將這種源出自西方劇場的戲劇樣式，視作日本戲劇現代化所應追求的範式。 本文考察川上音二郎的戲劇經歷與追求、重建並審視其臺灣行的實際經過與成果、檢討「臺灣」如何被再現於帝都的舞臺。筆者認為，川上音二郎訪臺後發表的遊記與《奧瑟羅》一劇，兩者皆隱含迫切的殖民論述：強化殖民統治的合理性，也再現日本中心的「帝國秩序」。 藉由檢討、批判這齣百年前的戲劇製作，本文不僅意圖為身負殖民創傷的臺灣人進行後殖民發聲，也向當代的跨文化劇場工作者，提示值得警惕的歷史經驗。

Kawakami Otojiro, the founder of Japanese modern theater, visited Taiwan in the late November of 1902, where he made a field survey for his new production Othello, which was staged later in Tokyo, capital of the Japanese empire. Adapted from Shakespeare's namesake masterpiece, Kawakami's Othello was staged to demonstrate his arguments for "Seigeki (Drama)," which he derived from the western theater and regarded as the paradigm to be made for the modernization of Japanese theater. Therefore, Othello serves as a crucial turning point of Kawakami's theatrical career. This article explores the theatrical experiences and pursuits of Kawakami, reestablishes and examines the actual course and results of his trip to Taiwan, and reviews the way was "Taiwan" was represented on the stage of Othello in Tokyo. The author argues that both the travel notes Kawakami published after his trip to Taiwan and his Othello imply an urgent colonial discourse aiming to reinforce the legitimacy of Japanese colonial rule and manifest the imperial order centered around Japan. By examining and criticizing this production staged a hundred years ago, this article intends not only to speak for the traumatized Taiwan people from a post-colonial viewpoint, but to suggest a historical example for the contemporary cross-cultural theater workers to beware of.