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Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 24, 2008

Nissay Theatre celebrates 45 years

Nissay Theatre in Yurakucho, Tokyo, will present Leos Janacek's opera "The Makropulos Case" on Nov. 20, 22 and 24 to mark the venue's 45th anniversary.
BUSINESS
Oct 15, 2008

Steps set to keep TSE stable

The government announced a package of measures Tuesday to stabilize the volatile stock market, including suspending sales of government-held shares.
COMMENTARY
Oct 12, 2008

More here than meets the Dow

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Should we even be listening to religious leaders when they opine on the financial crisis? Ted Sorensen, in his marvelous new book "Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History," is absolutely right to assert that in the United States, at least, "the wall between church and state...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Oct 12, 2008

Murasaki Shikibu glimpsed behind the screens of time

"Genius" is one of those overused words, but few would argue that it is rightly applied to Murasaki Shikibu, whose book "The Tale of Genji" is not only the world's first novel, but is a work that has delighted and perhaps even guided countless millions of people in the 1,000 years since she wrote it....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Sep 23, 2008

Readers get last word on 'gaijin' tag

The Community Page received another large batch of e-mails in response to Debito Arudou's followup Sept. 2 (Sept. 3 in some areas) Just Be Cause column on the use of the word "gaijin." Following is a selection of the responses.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 5, 2008

'Okuribito'

Aculture's attitude toward death is always going to be something of a mystery to outsiders, even ones who try to immerse themselves in the local language and customs. I had my own cultural shock when my wife's father passed away, and I experienced the Japanese funeral process for the first time.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Aug 16, 2008

Yoga helps bring balanced stance

Every morning, Linda Gould opens the doors and windows of Riverside Yoga studio in Hadano, Kanagawa Prefecture, and feels her body relax, spirit quicken and mind lighten.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 10, 2008

Russia's convertible icon

MOSCOW — Prophets, it is said, are supposed to be without honor in their homeland. Yet Moscow has just witnessed the extraordinary sight of Alexander Solzhenitsyn — the dissident and once-exiled author of the "Gulag Archipelago" and "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich" receiving what amounts...
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 3, 2008

The commodification of bodies of both sexes

LONDON — In the 1960s, feminists coined the slogan, "Our bodies, our selves." But that liberating sentiment has recently undergone an ironic twist. As an anonymous American woman, justifying her decision to undergo cosmetic surgery, put it, "All we have in life is ourselves, and what we can put out...
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 28, 2008

Believe it or not, Mugabe still has supporters

HIROSAKI, Aomori Pref. — The world can't understand how Robert Mugabe has support left in Zimbabwe. After violence and intimidation against his opponents he was able to steal a victory, but at great cost. Why do his people put up with it and why did he gain over 40 percent of the vote in the first...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jul 25, 2008

Kyoto's geisha: Behind the sliding door

A waitress took our drink orders and we waited, my anticipation building by the moment. Suddenly the door slid open and there knelt Ms. Ichimame, our maiko entertainer for the evening. She bowed deeply and introduced herself, smiling slightly.
EDITORIALS
Jul 20, 2008

Science fact or fiction?

Later this year, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is scheduled to go into operation outside Geneva, Switzerland. Scientists hope the LHC will enable them to better understand what happened when the universe was born. Some critics fear that the machine could trigger a catastrophe that ends life on Earth...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 20, 2008

Lemon-picking prof prompts reflection on strange twists of fate

Lately I have been thinking about some wonderful teachers I was blessed with at university. Three, in particular, shaped my life. Had I not encountered them, I doubt that I myself would have become an author of fiction, a translator and a teacher.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 12, 2008

Relationship coaching over the phone

It is easy to spot Jack Ito and his wife Toshie. They're walking hand in hand around the lobby of the Prince Hotel in Shinagawa, looking as much culture-shocked as in love.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 10, 2008

Confucianism makes a comeback in China

BEIJING (Daniel A. Bell is professor of political theory at Tsinghua University (Beijing). His latest book is "China's New Confucianism: Politics and Everyday Life in a Changing Society."
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Jul 6, 2008

Peace follows turbulent times

"It was a nightmare," laughs Tokyo-based author David Peace of a recent trip to Paris to promote the French version of his most successful novel, "The Damned Utd."
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Jun 29, 2008

Getting high and then horizontal in Langkawi

Ask any question you want in Langkawi and you will get a friendly response. But you may not get an answer. Take the following exchange I had with a musician who was leaving the Beach Garden restaurant as I was strolling in there in search of a late supper on my first night in the hot spot of Pantai Cenang:...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 13, 2008

'Juno'

For a long time I was of the opinion I'd see anything with French actress Beatrice Dalle in it. My obsession dated back to 1986's "Betty Blue," which featured a performance by Dalle of such typhoon-like passion and intensity that nothing she's done since even comes close. Still, I indulged her, out of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 12, 2008

One man, two worlds

Ryosuke Hashiguchi is one of the few gay filmmakers in Japan to have had a measure of popular success making films with gay themes. His third film, "Hush" (2002), about a gay couple whose life changes when one of them is drafted into becoming a father by a desperate woman, was an indie hit, as well as...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 29, 2008

Cannes: sobriety and great excess

BUSINESS
May 28, 2008

TCI rethinks J-Power strategy

TCI, the U.K. hedge fund whose bid to increase its stake in J-Power was blocked by the government, bought shares in Mizuho Financial Group Inc. and Kajima Corp. to get major shareholders to prod the utility to boost returns.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 27, 2008

Home alone

When Web designer Soko Hirayama moved to Tokyo five months ago, she did not expect to be living solo.
LIFE / Language
May 27, 2008

Mastery of kanji takes time to build, just like Rome

If you want yuyujiteki no seikatsu wo suru, to live the life of Riley, in Japan, then you should learn as many four-kanji expresssions as you can. (Yuyujiteki implies living in unsurpassed comfort for the rest of your days, an admirable goal if there ever was one.)
LIFE
May 25, 2008

Sonoko

"You're a strange girl!" muttered my mother, shaking her head.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 24, 2008

Nature eases journey back to one's true self

In 2002, James Heartland found himself unexpectedly on Mount Shasta in northern California. There he fell into conversation with a young Japanese woman on a journey of her own.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
May 21, 2008

A nature sanctuary for the ages

Regular readers know that my usual sphere is the biosphere and that I typically pursue wildlife in the wilds. Occasionally, though, one should step beyond home turf and try dipping a toe into a new stream of consciousness.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 16, 2008

Fight vs. apartheid through foreign eyes

Danish director Bille August never had personal ties to South Africa, but he remembers what a "powerful force" Nelson Mandela was throughout the 1980s.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
May 15, 2008

Julie madly, deeply

It's always interesting to meet someone you've seen on the screen so many times. You always wonder: Are they like their movie image? I know, I know — actors are just playing a role, that's not really them up on the screen.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat