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December 23, 2024
 

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Mana Katsura
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 27, 2015
Youth lost on isles of rage and doubts
'The person I hate most is my mother. Because she gave birth to me, I have to walk toward old age and death," Barcelona-born Angelica Liddell declared during a recent trip to Japan, her dress soft, smooth and elegant in stark contrast to her harsh sentiment.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 18, 2015
Unsung creator casts light on casting and her 'gift from heaven'
Ask any Japanese theater lover to list his or her favorite foreign directors, and most would include Peter Brook, the English-born, long-time French resident who has been bringing his productions here and encouraging audiences to explore new artistic realms since way back in 1973.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 11, 2015
Going where Terayama's rare spirit lives on
The avant-garde stage and film director, poet, critic, author and founder of the experimental theater group Tenjo Sajiki, Shuji Terayama (1935-83), influenced theater the world over with his iconoclastic plays such as "Mink Marie," "Heretics" and "Directions to Servants."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 4, 2015
Kabuki icon takes Dazzle dancers to new levels
Street dance has been growing in popularity for years among younger generations in "Cool Japan," with displays often attracting crowds of passers-by.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 11, 2015
Couples beware as Kayoko Shiraishi returns in intriguing style
Actress Kayoko Shiraishi is famed for her portrayals of male and female characters of all ages almost as if she were possessed by their souls.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 28, 2015
Young gun Kinoshita takes aim at tradition
Though for more than 300 years it's only been performed by men and boys, kabuki exists in the public imagination as actors engulfed in hair and makeup, wearing elaborate costumes and striking ostentatious poses on a vast stage.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 1, 2015
Curtains up on 2015
Innovation adds sparkle to traditional forms
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Nov 26, 2014
French idol reflects on her Japanese droid son
As a playwright, stage director, Osaka University professor, manager of the Komaba Agora Theater in Tokyo and leader of the city's Seinendan theater company he formed in 1983, Oriza Hirata — whose "contemporary colloquial theater" set the scene for much of Japan's new drama over the last 20 years —...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 29, 2014
It's touring for two in 'From the Sea' feature of festival's new Asia Series
Last October I partook in a tour-style play in Yokohama that was titled "Tsurenakumo Aki no Kaze" (quoted from Basho's haiku on autumn wind) and directed by 49-year-old South Korean artist Seo Hyun-suk.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 15, 2014
Classic early mystery lays bare elusive Lepage style
As an actor and world-class theater, film and opera director, Robert Lepage has become renowned for his unconventional productions using high-tech devices. Now, though, Tokyo audiences can feast their eyes and minds on this 56-year-old French-Canadian's early masterpiece, 1987's "Le Polygraphe (Polygraph),"...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Aug 6, 2014
Theater's magic brings wonderful 'War Horse' to life
It is now 100 years since the start of World War I, which claimed close to 17 million lives before it ended in November 1918. Hence the Tokyo opening of "War Horse" — a play set during that so-called "war to end war" — serves in part as a memorial to the awful conflict.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 23, 2014
Diverse joys unite distant theater fests
In early summer this year, I went to the famous theater festivals in two European cities — first the Theater der Welt 2014, which ran May 23-June 8 in the war-blitzed and rebuilt southwest German city of Mannheim, then to the Sibiu International Theatre Festival 2014 held June 6-15 in the Romanian...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 2, 2014
Son's film reveals secret workings of stage maestro Peter Brook's art
Peter Brook is a titan in the world of theater. Now aged 89, the director staged his first work, Christopher Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus," in 1942. After a groundbreaking stint at the Royal Shakespeare Company in the 1960s, in 1970 the London-born director co-founded the International Centre for Theatre...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
May 28, 2014
'The Bee' in Paris: Take #2
Last week, the Stage page featured a Paris resident's take on an English-language version of "The Bee," a disturbing drama cowritten by Hideki Noda and Irish playwright Colin Teevan that was performed there this month in a 300-seat section of the Theatre de Chaillot.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Apr 9, 2014
'Lady Bess' set to make grand Tokyo entrance
April 13 is a big day for theatergoers in Tokyo, as it sees the world premiere of "Lady Bess," a musical by the world-renowned team of German writer Michael Kunze and Hungarian composer Sylvester Levay, with famed hit-maker Shuichiro Koike directing.
Zelenskyy to replace Ukraine ambassador to Japan
Ukrainian Ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky delivers a speech during a handover ceremony of Self-Defense Force vehicles to Ukraine, at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo, in May last year.
Bankruptcies and suicides rise as Japanese struggle with mounting debt
Lawyers estimate that personal bankruptcies in Japan are on track to reach the highest since 2012 this year.
Honda and Nissan consider mutual production of vehicles, report says
Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe at the Japan Mobility Show 2023 at Tokyo Big Sight in October 2023.
The mighty Mekong River's growing plastic problem
A group of elephant keepers in Chiang Saen, Thailand, remove plastic waste from the Ruak River, a tributary of the Mekong River, as a pair of Asian elephants bathe behind them.
Record 78% of people in Japan feel anxious, government survey finds
The public opinion survey on people's lives, conducted by the Cabinet Office, found that 28.1% of respondents think that their standard of living is at a lower-middle level among the general public — the highest percentage to give that response in 35 years.
Casual workouts, cool living, ‘complete’ food: Japan’s health trends of 2024
In 2024, efficiency trumped effort among Japan's fitness-focused aspirants.
The mighty Mekong River's growing plastic problem
A group of elephant keepers in Chiang Saen, Thailand, remove plastic waste from the Ruak River, a tributary of the Mekong River, as a pair of Asian elephants bathe behind them.
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
Crime numbers rise in Japan for second straight year
A police officer stands in front of the residence of a man alleged to have stabbed two junior high school students in Kitakyushu.
North Korea aiding Russia where it needs it most, Canadian general says
North Korean special forces soldiers march and shout slogans during a military parade marking the 105th birth anniversary of the country's founding father, Kim Il Sung, in Pyongyang in April 2017.

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By Alex K.T. Martin

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