Category: Notice

‘An Ordinary Life’ at Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art

On By Kanariya EishiIn Japanese History, Life, Notice, UpdatesLeave a comment

As we mark the 80th year since the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, An Ordinary Life— a video installation created by Fiona Amundsen and me for Christchurch Art Gallery—is currently on display at the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art.

The work reflects real and imagined conversations with my late grandfather, an eyewitness of the destruction of the Nagasaki atomic bomb. We used rakugo as our medium of storytelling, incorporating zanshin, a concept from aikido, which Fiona practices (2nd dan black belt).

The exhibition runs until 15 September. If you happen to be in the area, please visit and take a moment to reflect on the importance of peace.

The world we live in, I believe, is not the kind of world those who departed in WWII envisioned. It feels overwhelming to try to change the entire world—but I can change myself, and perhaps a few people around me.

Am I walking a path of peace?

I want to become a more peaceful person, so I won’t disappoint my grandpa when I see him again in the next world—if such a place exists.

* Photos were kindly provided by my rakugo master, Kanariya Eiraku, who visited the museum during his recent trip to Hiroshima.

How to use chopsticks properly?

On By Kanariya EishiIn Japanese Culture, Notice, Random, Trivia, UpdatesLeave a comment

Did you know how to use chopsticks properly?

More importantly, did you know how to split ‘waribashi’ or the disposable chopsticks correctly?

Here‘s a video that I made to explain just that with a bit of humour: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1665815060994430/

It’s for St Pierres Sushi, which I’d been a big fan of since before this project. It’s a fun project to work on, so hope it will go on for a bit.

Please like/ comment to let them know what you think!

Rakugo Performance/ Workshop at “World of Cultures Japan”!

On By Kanariya EishiIn Notice, UpdatesLeave a comment

Kia ora!

I’m thrilled to share some exciting news about an upcoming event that celebrates the rich tapestry of cultures in our vibrant city—”World of Cultures”!

I will be doing a rakugo performance/ workshop at the event, but there will also be a taiko performance and an origami workshop on the day!

Join me on Saturday, 5 April 2025, at Epsom Library for a day filled with the enchanting traditions of Japan. I am still not sure about the exact timing of the rakugo performance/ workshop, but I will post it here and my SNS once confirmed.

You can find more information on Our Auckland 😊

Happy New Year 2025!

On By Kanariya EishiIn Goals, Notice2 Comments

Happy New Year! 新年あけましておめでとうございます！

Hope you had some good breaks during the Christmas and New Year holidays!

As a heavily Kiwi-fied person, I am finally kicking off my work year today after the 3 weeks of summer holidays… Perhaps, it is not appropriate to call it ‘summer holidays’ as I spent the most of it in the icy cold Japan. Anyway, I feel very stagnant, and it’s about time to get on with my creative projects!

During my stay in Japan, I got to perform rakugo in English three times; twice at Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center and once with my master’s rakugo family. It was especially a huge privilege for me to perform with my rakugo family, who are basically some of the top “English Rakugo” performers in Japan.

The photo above is from the performance with my rakugo family. (From the left, Eishi, Showman, Eiraku, Ichirin, Panda, and Koraku). Eiraku (my master), Ichirin, and Koraku are the founders of the English Rakugo Association.

There are some exciting projects coming in, but one of the biggest news so far is that the rakugo-inspired artwork that was exhibited at Christchurch Art Gallery (New Zealand) and Tampere Art Museum (Finland) will be displayed at an art museum in Hiroshima, Japan! More information to follow. (If you are interested in this art project, you can read my past entry here.)

I will also resume school visits if my funding application is approved. I will probably be able to offer 5-10 free performance-workshops. Keep an eye out for this page and/ or my SNS.

There will be an open performance/ workshop at Epsom Library on Saturday, 5 April 2025 as a part of the World of Cultures celebrations.

Also, I am planning to stay in Japan for a longer period at the end of this year, and I would like to expand my performance opportunities there. Please contact me if you are interested in collaborating with me sometime between November 2025- January 2026 in Japan.

Finally, though I have said this over and over… I really want to make my YouTube work this year! Please follow my channel if you still haven’t and also give me suggestions to make it work.

Have a fantastic year, everybody!

A Possibility of Reviving the Rakugo Club?

On By Kanariya EishiIn Notice, Updates2 Comments

Kia ora!

As a few people have asked me if I am willing to revive the rakugo club, I am writing this to suss out if there is enough interest out there to resume the group.

Learning from my past mistakes, I will approach it a bit differently this time if you are interested in participating in this only rakugo community in New Zealand.

  1. As it is the traditional way, I am still willing to teach rakugo free of charge. However, this time I’d like the participants to organise a venue for me. I want to focus on just teaching rakugo (in the past, I had to do most of the admin myself).
  2. This time I will make, for example, a 10 week-long curriculum to end the term with a public performance. I’d like students who actually want to perform at the end of the programme.
  3. The problem of a free programme was that many people didn’t show up regularly, but this time I’d expect participants to show up at least 80% of the sessions.
  4. I have a few women’s kimono donated to the club for you to use, but otherwise you will need to organise your own kimono. A very cheap ones can be purchased for $30-50 at Asia Gallery Kimono Emporium.
  5. If you don’t live in Auckland, please do not contact me regarding this (as it happens a lot!). If you do, I am sorry but I will disregard your message!

If you are interested in getting involved, please message me via the contact page or one of my SNS.