Utazo Katsura, a master of the traditional Japanese entertainment Rakugo, will perform in Hanoi at the Dance and Light Music Theatre and the Hanoi University of Social Sciences and Humanities on October 19 and 20.
The events, held by the Japan-Vietnam Culture Exchange Centre, will offer Vietnamese audiences the opportunity to explore Japanese traditions as well as watch a Rakugo performance.
Rakugo stories such as “Time Noodle” (Toki-sob), “Gonsuke’s Fish” (Gonsuke-zakana) and “The Tree-Head Man” (Atama-yama) will be told with rock music playing and a combination of traditional and modern features.
Rakugo consists of a solitary storyteller, sitting on stage, equipped with only a paper fan sensu and a small cloth tenugui as props, as they recount stories while sitting down.
Utazo Katsura, who has practiced the art since 1991, is one of the two leading artists of this kind in Japan. He also tells funny stories in English or in Japanese with English sub-titles, helping foreigners to fully enjoy Rakugo performances./.
