Yodogawa Riverside Festival
Osaka Oct. 2
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Yodogawa-ku,
this event which usually takes place three times a year will have
an extra special celebratory feel to it. For starters, there will
be hot-air balloon rides as well as many booths and entertainment,
that people of all ages and from all background can enjoy.
The organizers and participants have developed
inventive ways to make full use of the natural location along the
Yodo river. There will be a ship made from the reed that grows in
the river, toy-making, games and art stalls where the emphasis is
on harmony with nature. As with all cultural festivals there will
be an abundance of traditional foods such as rice balls and miso
soup to be tasted, and you can enjoy drinking green tea while listening
to music being played on the koto. A music parade and flea market
are also planned.
Yodogawa
2-min walk from Nishinakajima-Minamigata station (Subway Midosuji/Hankyu
Kyoto line)
Time: 10:00-17:00 • Admission: Free (Reservation required to
ride the hot air balloon)
Volunteers are needed to serve green tea and make traditional sweet-cakes.
For more info, contact Hidemi Suzuki • E-mail: mo-mi-ji-@nifty.com
Tel: 090-5063-3688
Maidaiko Aska-Gumi Drum Group
Nara Oct. 9
Formed in 1990 by Daigoro Aska, Maidaiko Aska-Gumi
is a taiko drum troupe that regularly give performances in Japan
and overseas. Fusing the power of the taiko drum with the grace
of Japanese dance, the players create stage pieces that encourage
a fresh discovery of the Japanese esthetic. Solos will be played
on the giant drum as well as powerful drum ensembles. Instruments
traditionally used as accompaniment to Japanese folk songs, such
as the shakuhachi, a vertical bamboo flute and the shinobue are
used to blend in with the elements of kabuki, noh and kyogen theater.
Each work constitutes a highly individual staged spectacle in which
formal beauty, breath-taking skill and dashing display has brought
past audience to its feet wherever they have performed. The upcoming
concert promises to deliver the same adrenalin-packed excitement.
Nara Prefecture Bunka Kaikan Kokusai Hall
Time: 18:30 • Getting there: 5 mins walk from Nara Kintetsu
station
Addmission: ¥2,500/¥3,500
Tel: 0742-22-0200
Ishinha — Keaton
Osaka Oct. 8-25
Truly accessible Japanese theatre is hard to find
but this month Osaka's Ishinha company will stage Keaton —
inspired by silent movie legend, Buster Keaton, in Osaka South Port.
If you are worried about following the action, relax. The show is
set in the silent movie era so, happily for foreigners, there is
no dialogue, you follow the story of cinema's classic clown through
the dynamic visuals and rich rhythms of music and performer. Starting
in an abandoned cinema on the edge of town, a young boy, is shown
a silent movie by the street children who live there. The show really
begins when the child-ren enter into the silver screen and invite
the boy to join them.
International touring company Ishinha is highly regarded for its
physical style and exciting stage designs, especially built by the
performers, as is the open air theatre itself. Although Keaton is
the focus in Ishinha's Nanko village, a variety of additional entertainment
starts early in the evening and carries on after the performance
making this a truly unique theatrical and cultural experience that
could well run late into the night.
Osaka South Port
Time: open 19:00, start 19:30 (Special entertainment arcade at 17:00)
Price: ¥4,500 in advance / ¥4,800 at the door
Getting there: 10 min from Cosmosquare Stn. on Subway Chuo line
Email: info@ishinha.com •
Tel: 06-6763-2634
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GIVEAWAY
Ishinha is giving away three pairs of tickets of their upcoming
show of 20th Oct. In order to win these free tickets email
your name and nationality and stating which article of this
issue you enjoyed most. By 15th October email to: mailbox@kansaiscene.com
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Jidai Matsuri
Kyoto Oct. 22
Known as one of the big 3 festivals (Aoi &
Gion) of Kyoto and the most specta-cular autumn parade. Dedicated
to Emperor Kammu, it was first held in 1895 to commemorate the 1100th
anniversary of the founding of the capital in Kyoto.
Today this panoramic procession has grown into
a grand affair involving some 2500 paraders dressed in costume representing
figures from Japanese history. Each garment worn has been finely
reproduced down to the minutest detail to faithfully reflect the
different styles of dress representing the different historical
eras during which Kyoto was the capital of Japan, namely from 794
to 1868, hence the name, Jidai (era/age) festival. This huge, magnificent
pageant depicts Japan's history and culture. Heading the 2m long
parade are Royalists from the Meiji era, working its way back through
the ages with the Heian period as the grand finale.
Remaining true to history, animals play a part too. Some 70 horses
and carriages pulled by cows can also been seen walking the 4.5m
to Heian Shrine.
Noon: The parade leaves the Kyoto Imperial Palace and takes
about three hours to reach Heian shrine. Best vantage point: Marutamachi-dori,
Karasuma-dori, or Sanjo-dori.
Getting there: From Kyoto station, take
the subway to Marutamachi station.
Events compiled by Mylene Oishi
Kansai Event Listings
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October 1-5
Zuiki Matsuri
This ancient harvest thanks giving festival is nearly one
thousand years old. Among a parade of floats, one is decorated
with the stalks of zuiki, a taro plant.
Kitano Temmangu Shrine, Kyoto
Time: 9:30
Getting there: Bus from Kyoto station to Kitano-Hakubai-cho
Tel: 075-461-0005
October 3,10,11,17,24 & 31
Shika no Tsunokiri
Only place in Japan where you can enjoy a deer antler-cutting
ceremony, which dates back 300 years. As the deer roam freely
in the park, the objective of the cutting is protecting people
from injury. The antlers are then finely and delicately carved,
a handicraft specialty of Nara.
Nara Park (Sundays and public holiday)
Getting there: Bus from JR/Kintetsu Nara stations to Kasuga-Taisha-mae.
Tel: 0742-22-3900
October 4-5
Shinto Dancing Festival
This festival has been held for 700 years and preserves the
remnants of medieval days. Various dances that are said to
have their origin in the traditional art of Noh are performed
to pray for health and a good grain harvest.
Kamikamo-gawa Sumiyoshi Shrine, Hyogo
Getting there: Sumiyoshi-Jinja bus stop
Tel: 0795-42-3301
October 7
Concert Enishi
This is a joint venture with accomplished musicians from Switzerland
and Japan coming together to perform a classic ensemble concert,
comprising of modern, traditional and classic music.
May Theatre, Osaka
Time: 19:00, Entry: ¥2,500
Getting there: 10mins from JR Shin Osaka station
http://www.maytheater.jp/
Tel: 06-6380-2221
October 9-11
Pet Expo 2004
The biggest pet event in West Japan featuring a variety of
animals, even rare kinds of dogs, cats, and smaller creatures.
Sale of pet-related goods and various other attractions planned.
Intex Osaka
Entry: ¥1,200 (advance ticket ¥1,000).
Getting there: Nanko Cosmos Square
Tel: 06-6947-1912
October 10
Grand Tea Ceremony
A traditional event that has continued for over 700 years
in which participants drink powdered green tea from a giant
tea bowl so big that several people have to hold it while
one person drinks.
Saidaiji temple, Nara
Getting there: Yamato-Sadaiji station on the Kintetsu line
Tel: 0742-22-3900
October 11
Shamenchi-Odori
An unusual ritual wherein boys dressed in female attire carry
on their heads spectacular lanterns decorated with warriors
and animals. Together they march with beautifully dressed
girl dancers to Akimoto Shrine. The dances are a dedicated
to this shrine.
Akimoto Shrine, Kyoto
Getting there: Bus to Furusato-mae
JR Kyoto station.
Tel: 075-791-8755
October 13
Midosuji Parade
Started in 1983 it was the first step of an extensive, long-term
plan aimed at creating an international, cultural-oriented
Osaka City for the 21st century. This grand parade along Osaka's
main street features music, dance, costumes and entertainment
not just from Japan, but from all over the world.
Along Midosuji Avenue, Osaka
Time: 13:00-18:30
Getting there: Shinsaibashi station on the Midosuji line
Tel: 06-6643-2125
October 14-15
Nada Fighting Festival
Over the course of these two days, Nada's serene neighborhoods
are suddenly overwhelmed by no less than 15,000 sake-swilling
spectators eager to participate in this big autumn festival
where physical prowess and hot-blooded machismo are the trademarks
of the men who have a good rumble after carrying a heavy portable
shrine through the village streets.
Near Himeji City
Time: 9:00-21:00
Getting there: 30mins from Shin Osaka station by Shinkansen
Tel: 0792-85-3792
October 16-17
Verdi
I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata, a long verse epic opera set
in Milan and Jerusalem. The list of characters gives an insight
of what to expect: priests, Muslims, crusaders, knights, soldiers
and pilgrims. Not purely about religious warfare though, it
is also a tale of romance, friendship, treason and loyalty.
Biwako Hall, Shiga
Time: 14:00
Entry: ¥9,000-¥16,000
Getting there: 5mins bus ride from Otsu
http://www.biwako-hall.or.jp/
Tel: 077-523-7133
October 20-23
Food Tech 2004
Features the biggest international trade fair in West Japan
exhibiting food processing machinery and tools as well as
processed food.
Intex Osaka
Time: 10:00-17:00
Tel: 06-6612-1757
http://www.fair.or.jp/food/2004/english_top.html
October 22
Kurama Fire Festival
Four huge kagura torches weighing over 100 kilograms and measuring
4-5 meters in length, complemented by 500 small to medium
sized torches march towards the main gate of Kurama Temple
throwing a shower of sparks in this unique Shinto ritual to
expel evil spirits and epidemics.
Yuki Shrine, Kuruma, Kyoto
Getting there: Kurama stn on Eizan line.
Tel: 075-741-1670
October 27
An Evening of Noh & Kyogen
Sengoro Shigeyama, recognized as an Intangible Cultural Property
features in the Kyogen play, Futaribakama (Two people in one
hakama) while Kyoshi Katayama, recipient of several cultural
awards, will perform in the Noh play, Atsumori Nidan-no-mai.
Kyoto Kanze Kaikan
Time: 18:00
Entry: ¥2,000/¥3,500
Getting there: Bus to Bijutsukan-mae from Kyoto station
Tel: 075-771-6114
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