Posts by Kodo Members
“DADAN’s in Spain!” by Mitsuru Ishizuka
July 7, 2014
DADAN’s in Spain!
We, the “DADAN” members, took three connecting flights and safely made it to Spain! Our first destination is Oviedo, a beautiful town in the north-west of Spain. We are going to the theater to start setting up this evening.
New pieces, new members… there are a lot of new elements in this new DADAN! I hope the people in Spain enjoy it!
But, first of all, we have to get over our jetlag!
Kodo “DADAN” Spain & France Performances
http://www.kodo.or.jp/news/20140709dadan_en.html
“The ‘DADAN’ Tour Begins Soon!” by Kenta Nakagome
Kodo “DADAN” Heads to Spain & France
The members for the “DADAN” Spain & France Performances will leave Sado soon. This time, “DADAN” has a new programme and the cast will also feature our junior members. There are new pieces, too!
We have practiced hard everyday, over and over, and “DADAN” has gotten even more powerful. We look forward to seeing how our audiences feel when they come to see this performance.
Kodo “DADAN” Spain & France Performances
http://www.kodo.or.jp/news/20140709dadan_en.html
“Performance in Kumagaya, Saitama” by Kosuke Urushikubo
June 28, 2014
Hello, everyone! Recently, the sun’s rays have been getting stronger as summer heats up. I hope you are all keeping well. Actually, I am not a fan of hot weather, so I’m battling against the heat everyday.
Tomorrow, on June 29, we will have a performance at Kumagaya Bunka Sozo-kan Sakuramate in Kumagaya, Saitama.
Kumagaya City is close to my hometown, so I would often go there to visit taiko shops, go shopping and see cherry blossoms, etc. I have a lot of memories there. Before coming to Kodo Apprentice Centre, I also came to Kumagaya to take the bullet train from Kumagaya Station. I am happy to perform in such a familiar place and I am really looking forward to it.
I’ll be waiting for you all at the theater!
“School Workshop Performance at Tawara Elementary School in Asakusa” by Mariko Omi
June 18 School Workshop Performance at Tawara Elementary School in Asakusa
In the middle of “Kodo One Earth Tour: Mystery,” we gave two School Workshop Performances in Asakusa, Tokyo, in hopes that everyone in Asakusa would get to know Kodo better.
The programme and pieces are different to the “Mystery” performance, so we have been making good use of our spare time on the One Earth Tour to practise and prepare for these school performances. There are a lot of young newcomers on this tour and surprisingly more than half our cast has never been on a Kodo School Workshop Performance tour. During our rehearsals, we had to make sure that our facial expressions and movements, which usually aim to reach the furtherest parts of large theaters, were adjusted to suit an audience of children sitting right in front of us. We also had to check that the sound of the taiko and many other things were just right for the kids’ programme.
Once the performance began, the 60 minutes went by in a flash! We received a lot of laughs and some unexpected reactions!
When we rolled out the biggest taiko (o-daiko), there were some kids squealing in anticipation, like they were at the top of a roller coaster just before a big drop!
For me, the impressions of a pupil, who spoke on behalf of her peers, were particularly memorable. She looked us all in the eyes while she told us the characteristics of each piece we had played and how each one made her feel with great frankness. It really made us take note of how your true feelings can have such power of persuasion.
As the children left the hall, one of the little girls gave me a keyring. She said, “It’s handmade. Thank you!” and with that simple act, all of my tiredness disappeared!
We will use the all the smiles and cheer that we received from these school performances as energy for our five days of performances at Asakusa Public Hall.
Photos: Takashi Okamoto
About Kodo’s School Workshop Performances
http://www.kodo.or.jp/koryu/index_en.html
“Shishimai” by Kosuke Urushikubo
Shishimai
For our production “Kodo One Earth Tour: Mystery,” which is currently on tour, Kodo has arranged various regional folk performing arts for the stage, including the serpent dance Jamai and the demon-like beings known as Namahage.
Another folk art featured is a Japanese lion dance, Shishimai, and I am in charge of moving the lion’s head for this piece. Shishimai is found at festivals all over Japan and the style varies from place to place. For example, regional differences can include the number of people inside the lion, the expression of the lion’s face, the patterns on the lion’s body, and the movements of the lion.
I had never experienced Shishimai firsthand because there wasn’t a local festival with a lion dance where I grew up, so for this production I had to study about it. I watch the video recording after each performance to check how the dance went. I look to see how I can move the lion’s head, with its static facial expression, to make the audience feel its emotions and also how this lion is reacting and interacting each time with the female performers it meets on stage.
The spring tour of “Mystery” will continue until July 19.
I look forward to seeing you all at one of the theaters nationwide!
“Kodo One Earth Tour 2014: Mystery” Asakusa Performances
June 21 (Sat) – 25 (Wed) Asakusa Public Hall, Tokyo
▼About the Performance
Kodo One Earth Tour 2014: Mystery
▼Performance Dates & Times
June 21 (Sat) 16:00
June 22 (Sun) 15:00
June 23 (Mon) 15:00
June 24 (Tue) 18:00
June 25 (Wed) 14:00
▼Ticket Outlets
Asakusa Public Hall Tel. 03-3844-7491
tvk Ticket Counter Tel. 0570-00-3117 http://tvkcom.net/
“Mystery” by Koki Miura
I think that one of the highlights in “Kodo One Earth Tour: Mystery” is the lion dance, Shishimai. The head is operated by Kosuke Urushikubo, who was an apprentice with me.
To sum it up in one word, it’s “cute.”
When you think of a lion dance in Japan, it may conjure images of a valiant beast dancing at a festival… but this Shishimai is a little different to that… or perhaps it’s quite different?
Please come along and see how Kosuke’s Shishimai interacts with the four female performers on stage.
Another piece to watch for Ajara, which I perform with Tetsumi Hanaoka, who is one year my senior, and Jun Jidai, who was an apprentice with me. In fact, the three of us have known each other since our high school days, so we know & understand each other very well. I would like to show you our trio’s synchronization in this piece. I think you’ll also enjoy seeing the performers operate the lighting under the new artistic direction of this piece!
“Kodo One Earth Tour 2014: Mystery” Asakusa Performances
June 21 (Sat) – 25 (Wed) Asakusa Public Hall, Tokyo
▼About the Performance
Kodo One Earth Tour 2014: Mystery
▼Performance Dates & Times
June 21 (Sat) 16:00
June 22 (Sun) 15:00
June 23 (Mon) 15:00
June 24 (Tue) 18:00
June 25 (Wed) 14:00
▼Ticket Outlets
Asakusa Public Hall Tel. 03-3844-7491
tvk Ticket Counter Tel. 0570-00-3117 http://tvkcom.net/
“Asakusa” by Shogo Komatsuzaki
Asakusa
The scent of Japanese traditions from the good old days and craftsmen at work never fades in Asakusa. Brimming with life, pumping with a never-ending flow of people, it’s like a festival every day in this town. Last year when I came to perform in Asakusa for the first time, I felt a kind of culture shock in this constantly-bustling downtown hub.
The main shopping street in Asakusa that leads up to Senso-ji Temple is jam-packed with people every day, so it made me wonder why this town is so lively and why it attracts so many people. I think it’s thanks to the strong, passionate hearts of the locals of Asakusa, who take pride in the town’s cultural heritage, traditional arts and local specialty goods and both uphold and hand down those traditions with versatility.
The people of Asakusa have tremendous confidence and pride in their town and they are constantly thinking and passionately talking about the future of Asakusa. By meeting these people, I reaffirmed that people’s hearts uphold traditions, connect people, and bring people together. I felt really grateful to learn that it’s people like this welcoming Kodo to Asakusa. I really want many others to feel those hopes for the future of Asakusa through Kodo’s performances here.
This year is the second time for Kodo to hold consecutive performances here, and I think that “Mystery,” with its nostalgic atmosphere, truly suits the feel of the Asakusa township. Our performance is live, so I’m really looking forward to seeing how Asakusa and “Mystery” will come together and how the performances will be received by our audiences. We will do our utmost to let you experience a “Mystery” that is unique to Asakusa, so please come along!
On a more personal note, I love Asakusa’s Senso-ji Temple and shopping street by night. You might hear the sound of “Mystery” around here from this weekend…
“From Hawaii” by Yoshikazu Fujimoto
Hanayui Hawaii Tour
I visited Hawaii with the “Hanayui Hawaii Tour”!
On May 31, we were reunited with Faye Komagata and her husband at the theater in Honolulu. We’ve been friends since the early days of Kodo.
On June 2, I left the 3 girls (Chieko, Yoko & Mitsue) and went to Hawaii Island by myself. There, I taught taiko workshops from 5pm on June 2 and 3.
I stayed at James McCully’s house. He runs an orchid nursery, so he showed me around inside. I played the music for demon sword dance Onikenbai on my bamboo flute.
I also enjoyed sightseeing around Hawaii Island with the young members of Puna Taiko.
With Kenny & Chizuko Endo at the airport. They looked after us for our performance and workshops in Honolulu.
On June 4, I joined the three Hanayui girls on Maui Island as planned. We performed with the children of Zenshin Daiko and we gave a workshop there, too. Everyone had a lot of fun and did their best!
Macadamia nut fields as far as the eye can see
“Fujimotomida” Concert
Now I am back in Japan and later this month I am going to perform with Kazuaki Tomita in our “Fujimotomida” Concert.” I will do my best. I hope to see you all at the theater.
June 20 – 22, 2014
Yoshikazu Fujimoto Appearance in “Fujimotomida” Concert
Yoshikazu Fujimoto will join Kazuaki Tomida of Uchigumi for their first ever two-man taiko performance. They first met 37 years ago when Tomida joined Kodo’s antecedent group “Sado no Kuni Ondekoza” and it was Fujimoto who helped with his initiation, teaching him the basics of taiko. Don’t miss this special chance to see them perform together!
June 20 (Fri), 21 (Sat), 22 (Sun), 2014
Tiara Koto Sho-Hall, Koto Ward, Tokyo
Appearing: Yoshikazu Fujimoto (Kodo), Kazuaki Tomida (Uchigumi)
Doors Open:30 mins. before each performance.
Start: June 20 (Fri) 19:00 June 21 (Sat) 17:00 June 22 (Sun) 15:00
Ticket Outlet: Tiara Koto Ticket Service Tel. 03-5624-3333
“Looking Forward to the Asakusa Performances” by Tetsumi Hanaoka
This month, “Kodo One Earth Tour: Mystery” will give five performances at Asakusa Public Hall, from June 21 through 25. Last year I performed in back-to-back concerts in Asakusa during my first tour, “Legend.” One year has passed and I am really looking forward to the opportunity to show an even more powerful Kodo performance here this year!
This time, the production incorporates the great serpent dance from Iwami Kagura*, upheld in the Iwami Region of Shimane Prefecture. We have been learning this folk art since April 2013 through visits to Shimane and we spent a year creating the stage piece featuring the dance, Jamai.
*Kagura: dance and music for the kami, or deities
Our Iwami Kagura teacher Mr. Taizo Kobayashi, who also made the serpent heads for us to use on stage, said, “No matter how simple thing the task, it’s important to do it everyday and do it properly.” I took this advice for my daily habits, both on and off stage. I am striving everyday to make each performance better than the last. Please look out for Jamai on stage when you come to see “Mystery”!
Also, “Mystery” is filled with scenes of darkness. I think that mysterious things and darkness have a deep relationship. I experienced this living on Sado Island, for example when I saw Kodo Village by moonlight, far away from the lights of the township, or at the climax of a festival in the pale light of paper lanterns.
Darkness conjures fear at first glance, but mysterious things are created in such darkness. I hope you will come and watch, hear, and experience that kind of magical world in our performance of “Mystery.”
Photos: Takashi Okamoto
Kodo One Earth Tour 2014: Mystery
June 21 (Sat) – 25 (Wed) at Asakusa Public Hall, Tokyo
June 21 (Sat) 16:00
June 22 (Sun) 15:00
June 23 (Mon) 15:00
June 24 (Tue) 18:00
June 25 (Wed) 14:00
Doors open 30 min. prior to each performance.
All seats reserved. General 7,000 yen, Students (aged 6-24) 3,000 yen
◆Ticket Outlets◆
tvk Ticket Counter Tel. 0570-00-3117
Asakusa Public Hall Tel. 03-3844-7491
Ticket Pia Tel. 0570-02-9999
Ticket 6 (Roku) Tel. 03-5826-0315 (English assistance available)
“With Burikatsu-kun” by Yosuke Oda
Everyone, summer means “Earth Celebration,” right?
Both Burikatsu-kun* & I are waiting for you on Sado Island!
It’s all happening on August 22, 23, and 24!
*Burikatsu-kun is a character based on Sado’s delicious specialty burikatsu-don: yellowtail cutlet rice bowl.
