Beyond Boundaries: Japanese Performing Arts for a New Generation A Talk by Atsushi Sasaki

Date: 1 February 2011, 6.30pm
Venue: Japan Foundation London, Russell Square House, 10-12 Russell Square, London, WC1B 5EH
Fee: This event is free to attend but booking is essential. To reserve a place, please email your name and the title of the event you would like to attend to event@jpf.org.uk
Web: www.jpf.org.uk
Organiser: The Japan Foundation

 The contemporary Japanese cultural scene has embraced a drastic change of direction since the beginning of the new millennium, largely due to the upsurge of Otaku culture and its influence upon many art forms including performing arts.

However, while we can observe a marked change in the cultural landscape during the last decade, the current batch of artists are the latest example of a generation in Japan exploring and creating a cultural scene which reflects their current reality.

In this illustrative lecture, Atsushi Sasaki, a Japanese critic whose interests and knowledge easily cross between many disciplines, from music and philosophy to theatre and subculture, will examine the most critical Japanese cultural scenes since the turn of the millennium and introduce the diverse forms and expressions used by Japanese performing artists such as faifai (pictured), an emerging performing arts group which aims to transform the perception of theatre into a type of pop culture.

This event will serve as a guide to the current frontline and emerging trends and players in Japanese performing arts, while also looking to what the future of where these new movements may lead.