As part of this year’s Gifu, Land of Clear Waters Ji-Kabuki All-Star Performance 2020, Gifu Prefecture has posted a special commentary video over on the official YouTube channel of Gifu Seiryu Bunka Plaza which combines footage from two local kabuki plays held this year.
The local kabuki of Gifu
Japan is home to 200 jikabuki, or ‘local kabuki,’ preservation organisations, 30 of which can be found in Gifu Prefecture. Gifu is one of the most active regions for jikabuki in the whole of Japan. The prefecture also has 9 historical shibai-goyas, or playhouses, some of which are over 100 years old.
Gifu, Land of Clear Waters Ji-Kabuki All-Star Performance 2020
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx_NJKW7JOicMjhzfqBC1hQ
Gifu Seiryu Bunka Plaza made the decision to postpone the 11 jikabuki performances that were scheduled to take place January to July 2020 this year. They are being rescheduled for 2021, so for now people can enjoy the content over on their official YouTube channel.
Information
Gifu Seiryu Plaza
Official Website: https://www.seiryu-plaza.jp/
Gifu Jikabuki
Official Website (English): https://www.jikabuki-gifu.com/
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Hoshinoya Tokyo, a traditional ryokan in Otemachi, has announced the New Year’s Kabuki Plan, a two-day, one-night stay from January 5 until January 7, 2023. During the Edo Period, citizens enjoyed watching Kabuki plays during the New Year’s holidays, often sipping tea at connected teahouses. This event will invite visitors to experience what this was like, complete with traditional food and decorations. Watching Kabuki was a chic way for those in Edo to ring in the new year. Theater teahouses were also a popular gathering place–along with arranging tickets, the teahouses offered plot notes, tea, sweets, boxed lunches, snacks, and other drinks.**Hiroshi Fujita, Yoshihide Tomizawa (2012) / The Updated Kabuki Dictionary, Kashiwa Shobo
Relax Before Enjoying Tea and a Play
Guests are invited to relax in the Ochanoma (Living Room) Lounge, decorated to look like a traditional teahouse with fans, ukiyo-e prints, and formal curtains. Hanabiramochi, or rice cakes with flower petals, will be served with green tea. These rice cakes are said to date back to the New Year’s tradition of eating hard foods like daikon and rice cakes in the hopes of prolonging one’s life. Characterized by its curious burdock root aroma, the cakes are sweetened with white miso bean paste. Enjoy a Post-Viewing Mont Blanc Shaped like Soba with Sweet Dessert Wine
At theater teahouses in the Edo period, sake, snacks, and desserts were served one after another. During this special event, a menu inspired by this practice and prepared by Hoshinoya Tokyo Executive Chef Noriyuki Hamada will be served! Soba noodles were often served after a play in the past. Inspired by this tradition, Mont Blanc made with chestnut paste and sponge cake will be served up to look like this popular dish. Paired with a dessert wine aged in oak barrels, the sweet will be served in a traditional lacquerware basket. In addition, the dish will be paired with Wasabi Pralines, Shichimi Meringue, and Ginger Pate de Fruits.Take a Rickshaw to the Kabuki-za Theater
Guests will be taken on an Edo-style tour on their way to the Kabuki-za Theater. Passing through the Nihonbashi area, the first stop will be the Fukutoku Shrine. It’s said that Hidetada Tokugawa paid a visit to and praised the shrine on New Year’s Day in 1614. The next shrine on the docket, Hodo Inari Jinja, was enshrined in Edo Castle during the Edo period to protect the heir to the Tokugawa family. It’s said that the shrine provides blessings for child rearing, matchmaking, and business prosperity. This tour will provide a more elegant way to explore Tokyo as guests enjoy exposition from their chauffeur. To make the rickshaw ride even more enjoyable, guests can rent kimonos for an extra charge. Would you like to take a step back in time this New Year?Information
New Year’s Kabuki Plan
Running: January 5 – January 7, 2023
Capacity: 1 couple per day (1-2 people)
Price: ¥110,000 per person, ¥180,000 for 2 people (Including Tax & Service charge, excluding accommodation charge)
Reserve/Details – Official Site: https://hoshinoya.com/tokyo
*Reservation required at least 14 days in advance
**Exclusive experience for Hoshinoya Tokyo guests
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The 89th Tokyo Yushun, or Japanese Derby, is scheduled to take place on May 29, 2022. Ahead of the event, a special site featuring Kabuki actors Onoe Matsuya and Ukon Onoe was opened on May 12. That’s right–it’s time for the Kabuki Derby! Celebrating its 89th year, the Japanese Derby is considered one of the finest horse races in the world. To make this traditional and prestigious event even more exciting, a collaboration with the traditional Japanese performing art of Kabuki is getting people talking. Tokyo Yushun Kabuki Simulation Game
In the Kabuki Derby, visitors can enjoy tons of unique content made with Onoe Matsuya and Ukon Onoe. The site’s racing game even has a completely original story! Trivia quizzes related to the Derby and obstacle courses will also provide hours of fun. Special Video: Home Horse Racing! Special Video: Instant PAT! Special Video: Full House Derby In the original videos, both Kabuki actors appear as brothers in the Edo Period. The two are sure to make you smile with their performances, as they explain what they do on their days off and show off how fun horse racing can be. Horse Designer There will also be a Twitter campaign where you can win prizes depending on the results of the Japanese Derby. Be sure to tune in and root for your favorite horse! Information
Kabuki Derby
Available May 12, 2022
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Shu Uemura Japan has announced that Kabuki actor Somegoro Ichikawa VIII will be the brand ambassador for its popular cleansing oil and other cosmetic items. Shu Uemura products are all crafted in Japan and the brand exemplifies the Japanese spirit of perfection, care, and tradition. This advanced technology and cutting-edge design philosophy is a perfect match for Somegoro Ichikawa, who is incredibly passionate about Japanese artistry through his work in kabuki theater. This collaboration is bringing kabuki, a 400-year-old art form, to the mainstream, infusing it with modernity.
Comment from Somegoro Ichikawa
“I’m honored to have been chosen to serve as an ambassador for Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil, which I personally use on a regular basis. What can we do to pass on Kabuki and other Japanese traditions to future generations? I feel a strong connection between my own ideas and challenges and those of the Shu Uemura brand.” -
Tohouen, a Japanese confectionary maker in Gifu Prefecture, has begun selling a springtime version of its popular cat-inspired manju. Inspired by the many cats that like to stroll around the shop’s headquarters, the new release includes cherry blossom-colored cat paws. A traditional sweet in Japan, Manju is made from flour, rice powder, and buckwheat, with a tasty sugar and anko (red bean paste) filling.
Do you think these are too cute to eat? Information
Cherry Blossom Cat
Release Date: March 2, 2022
Where to Buy: Tohouen Stores, Tohouen Online Shop
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Takayama Hotel Zenko-ji isn’t your typical hotel: this Buddhist temple invites anyone, regardless of faith or nationality, to stay in one of its five rooms. The property has now opened the ‘Activity Cafe Zenko-ji,’ a place to rest and relax while learning more about various cultures and, of course, traditional Buddhism.
The well-ventilated and airy temple. All drinks, including coffee and tea, are free of charge. The Takayama Zenko-ji Lounge AreaEnjoy free Wi-Fi, ample power supplies, and clean restrooms. Feel free to work remotely and have meetings in the main hall. Being in a new space will open up your mind and expand your creativity. The cafe was first opened for a limited time beginning in April 2021, inviting locals and tourists alike to come and find stress relief while praying for an end to the Coronavirus pandemic. However, given the location’s immediate popularity, it will now be open for good. In the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, an increasing number of people have lost their physical and mental balance. For both the locals and visiting tourists, the temple is meant to be a place where anyone can find a sense of calm and peace of mind. Deep in the city of Takayama, this is where people are meant to relax, feel energized, and regain who they used to be before this stress became the new normal. Hiroshi Yamamoto, a Buddhist priest who works as the manager at Temple Hotel Zenko-ji, is the founder of the Activity Cafe. Hoping to help bring back the bustling tourist atmosphere of Takayama, he intends the space to be a meeting ground for locals and visitors from around the world to interact naturally. After graduating from an American university and working as an English teacher, Yamamoto became ordained as a Buddhist monk. Now a certified meditation instructor, he specializes in teaching meditation and Buddhist programs in English. Those utilizing the cafe can experience asceticism by walking through a dark tunnel to help find their inner peace, and can also try their hand at sutra-writing! How would you like to spend some time at the Activity Cafe in Takayama? Information
Activity Cafe Takayama Zenko-ji
Address: 4-3 Tenma-cho, Takayama, Gifu
Phone: 0577-32-8470
Reservations not needed
Official Site: https://oterastay.com/zenkoji/cafe/
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GALLERY COLLAGE is the name of the new contemporary art gallery that recently opened at NIPPONIA Mino Shokamachi, an accommodation housed in a remodelled townhouse that's situated in a place famous for its mino variant of Japanese washi paper. 1. Raising local value with contemporary artThe world of local culture, such as local business and customs, has been abandoned in favour of rapid economic growth and globalisation. But those halcyon days and their background, which are rooted in their respective local history, culture, and nature, have once again come to be of huge importance to many people. It's in these times that things like the sounds of insects in the evening that are local to the area should serve as the direction that people move forward in. The artwork showcased at GALLERY COLLAGE will depict scenes familiar to locals to show them in a new light. In doing so, NIPPONIA Mino Shokamachi hopes that connecting contemporary art with washi paper will promote and raise the value of the local traditional industry.
2. Season Lao's "Mino - blank-leaving" exhibition on showContemporary artist and photographer Season Lao is currently holding his Mino - blank-leaving exhibition at the site. He has used his unique approach to utilise mino paper, a type of Japanese washi paper with a history spanning 1,300 years and is also registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Property. An online talk will take place on May 22 hosted by participants of Lao's photography workshop that was held for the event's opening. It focuses on photos taken by locals, including pictures from their high school days. 3. Season Lao's Accommodation PlanWith support from NIPPONIA Mino Shokamachi, the Season Lao Accommodation Plan will see guest rooms decorated in numerous artworks by the artist, and guests will be given a tour of the mino paper factory amongst other exciting things. Information
GALLERY COLLAGE
Location: NIPPONIA Mino Shokamachi
Address: 1912-1 Motozumichō, Mino, Gifu 501-3728, Japan
Facilities: GALLERY COLLAGE / Washi-narySeason Lao Accommodation Plan Bookings: https://www6.489pro.com/asp/489/Ex.asp?p=Ax9TBvFz41
Season Lao: http://www.season-lao.com/art-photo/?p=2766
Official Website: https://nipponia-mino.jp/?_ga=2.217144146.57539692.1620165152-665458390.1620165152