Author: Kanariya Eishi

English Rakugo performer and actor based in NZ. A full-time rebel with common sense. A lover of art, books, comedy, Japanese culture/ language, music, peace, positivity, theatre, and trivia. Idealistic, but ain't no saint. 鹿鳴家英志（本名：中辻拓志）。ニュージーランドを拠点とする役者・英語落語パフォーマー。アメリカへの演劇留学をきっかけに、気付くと海外滞在20年。現在ニュージーランドに永住中。アメリカの4大卒業後は日本で英会話講師を経験、その後ニュージーランドの高校教師資格を取得する。ニュージーランドでは英語にてスタンダップコメディーを行い、2005年ニュージーランド国際コメディーフェスティバルの新人大会にて全国優勝を果たす。その後、テレビドラマ、CM等に出演、テレビのレポーターも勤める。

Haruki Murakami- Manga Stories

On By Kanariya EishiIn Japanese Culture, Japanese Language, literature, Manga3 Comments

I am a hardcore Haruki Murakami fan since I was 11 or 12.

Maybe this is because the first book I’d ever read from cover to cover was his ‘Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World’. This cult literature was a bit too nihilistic to a primary school kid like me, and it literally haunted me for years- definitely not recommended to first-time Murakami readers along with ‘The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle’.

I recently read the manga adaptations of Haruki Murakami’s short stories. I’d always thought it’d be nearly impossible to capture the essence of the Murakami world in pictures, but I reckon this one just did that!

Some characters reminded me of Issey Ogata (en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki…), one of my favourite actors. I wonder the author actually used him as a motif! They really look alike.

A light-read with deep themes 🙂

Goodbye Twitter!

On By Kanariya EishiIn Notice, Uncategorized, UpdatesLeave a comment

After long thought, I have finally decided to say goodbye to my favourite SNS, Twitter… or whatever you call it.

I was a big Twitter fan and used it as my main SNS platform since the early days of my English Rakugo career in New Zealand. It was there that I met many invaluable friends who have inspired and encouraged me to carry on this rather lonely journey. For this, I am eternally thankful to you all!

This decision was made largely due to the new owner of the platform and the increasingly divisive contents that people post on the once-friendlier space (I am also guilty of occasionally posting progressive left posts myself, though! 😁).

So… Threads, Instagram, and Facebook will be my SNS platforms from now on. I like the Twitter format, so Threads will probably be my main platform. Sorry Mastodon, I’ve tried, but I still don’t know how it works…

[Notice] Storytelling Group Meeting NO.2!

On By Kanariya EishiIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

We are currently planning our 2nd storytelling group meeting. The venue will be Ōtāhuhu Library again, and the timing is likely to be 2:30-4:00PM on a Sunday this month.

If you are planning to attend, please let me know which of the following dates suits you better:

SUN 12 Nov
SUN 26 Nov

If you’d like to find out what we did at our first meeting, please refer to this article.

Hope to see you there!

[UPDATE] The Storytelling Group Launched!

On By Kanariya EishiIn Notice, Updates6 Comments

On Sunday 22 October 2023, our first storytelling group meeting was held at Tōia (Ōtāhuhu Library).

We had a cozy group of three and shared many stories ranging from the revival of a Māori instrument called kōauau, a childhood in the house where four generations shared, breadfruits and slavery, Pitcairn Islands ancestry, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Dr. Seuss, to a Japanese myth about how a rabbit ended up on the moon!

To me, the most exciting part was that we straightaway established a safe environment to open up, share and enjoy one another’s stories. Many, many more stories to follow!

The picture above was taken by one of the participants, Chris.

What an ingenuity to capture this special occasion with a polaroid camera! Unlike digital photos, this is the only copy that exists in the world. Isn’t that so beautiful?

There were a few other people who couldn’t make it on the day, but they sound really amazing, too! An aspiring comic book writer, a stand-up comedian, and a photographer/ artist!

I’m really looking forward to the next meeting!

Keep an eye out for the details for the next one here or on one of my SNS’s!

The FIRST Storytelling Group Meeting!

On By Kanariya EishiIn Notice, UpdatesLeave a comment

It has been a while to update this blog, but hope everything is well with you!

Some people have expressed their interest in starting a storytelling group with me, but it has been a bit of a mission to find the time and venue that are suitable for everyone.

So… to move this project forward, I have set the time and venue to see if what happens. We can always change them after the first meeting if needed. I will be there even if it’d be just myself 🙂

TIME: 2:30-3:30 PM, SUN 22 Oct, 2023

VENUE: Ōtāhuhu Library (Tōia)

I have talked to a librarian there, and he said at this timing the library would be pretty quiet and we don’t need to book a room. There is plenty of room there, so we can always find our space.

Please RSVP here or via one of my SNS’s.

You can read this blog article if you want to know a bit more about this group.

I’m very much looking forward to meeting you next month!