West Covina Cherry Blossom Festival
Topic: Event
Saturday, May 6, 2006
12 noon to 7:00 p.m.

Presented by the East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center

West Covina Civic Center Courtyard
1444 W. Garvey Ave.
West Covina, CA 91793
Free Parking at Civic Center

For more information, please contact the East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center at 626-960-2566.

LA as Offshore Japan, May 12, 13
Topic: University Programs
LA as offshore Japan
Transnational Networks and Cultural Entrepreneurship across the Pacific Rim

A two-day event to launch the project
?Made In Translation: LA-Tokyo Mobility Networks and the Emergence of Offshore Japanese Cultural Industries in Art, Fashion and Food?

Funded by SSRC/Japan Foundation Abe Fellowship, UCLA Center for Japanese Studies, and International Institute

Info: Adrian Favell (afavell@soc.ucla.edu) or Misako Nukaga (mnukaga@ucla.edu)
http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/soc/faculty/favell/TokyoLA.htm



Friday 12th May LECTURE
11am-1pm Bunche 10383 (International Institute)
LAURA MILLER, Anthropology, Loyola University Chicago
?Writing Gone Wild: Japanese Girls' Orthographic Rebellion?

This talk will introduce contemporary Japanese "Girl Characters" (gyaru moji), a writing practice that originated in cell phone text messaging and email, but is now found in other girls' media. Girl Characters are a straightforward syllabic graph substitution system combined with the use of deconstructed characters. Girls are awash in script overabundance, but rather than be overwhelmed by it, it is technological bounty they exploit and embrace.

When girls play with their writing system in this way, they are doing three things. One, they are refusing to be the caretakers of beautiful calligraphy and are rejecting their role as custodians of "correct" language.

Two, their use of Girl Characters also extends the boundary of what is considered written Japanese, thereby challenging the notion of written language as a standardized and shared system.

Last, by redefining the borders of linguistic possibility, girls are demonstrating resistance to the uniformity and predictability of standardized writing and print media.

Open to public




Saturday 13th May
PROJECT WORKSHOP
"LA as Offshore Japan"
Public Policy 5391 (5th Floor Lounge)

9.30 Coffee & Donuts
9.45 Welcome
10.00 Introduction to Project ADRIAN FAVELL & MISAKO NUKAGA
10.30 Japanese LA: Demographic & Social Profile MISAKO NUKUGA
11.00 Hypotheses and Methods ADRIAN FAVELL

12.00 Lunch
2.00 The New Young Japanese LA FUMINORI MINAMIKAWA, American Studies, Kobe City University
2.45 Tea and Gender in Translation KRISTIN SURAK, Sociology, UCLA
3.30 Japanese Children in LA Schools MISAKO NUKAGA, Sociology, UCLA

Afternoon Discussants:
LAURA MILLER (Anthropology, Loyola), MIZUKO ITO (Communication, USC), TAKEYUKI TSUDA (Political Science, UCSD)

4.30 Close

All interested welcome, but please register with afavell@soc.ucla.edu

In conjunction with the International Institute Working Group: The Human Face of Global Mobility: International Highly Skilled Migration in Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific

Now out as a book edited by Michael Peter Smith and Adrian Favell (New Brunswick: Transaction 2006)

Japanese art-theme festival in Central Valley, Apr. 30
Topic: Festival
HANFORD, California - The Ruth and Sherman Lee Institute for Japanese Art invites the public to its sixth annual Spring Festival on Sunday, April 30. The event will feature a wide variety of activities including tours of the new exhibition, Art Show & Sale featuring 18 California artists, bonsai demonstration by Bonsai Master Kenji Miyata, music performance by the Japan America Chamber Ensemble of Southern California.

There will also be a number of special ticketed activities including tours of the private garden, Japanese tea ceremonies, bonsai workshops by Hanford Bonsai Society, sushi demonstration by Chef Andy Matsuda, founder of Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles, sashiko (Japanese embroidery technique) workshops by mixed media artist Lucy Arai, and a lecture by internationally acclaimed Fresno architect Arthur Dyson.

Refreshments and bento box (picnic style) lunches will be available for purchase (reservation recommended).

Starting at 10 a.m. and running through the afternoon until 5 p.m., the institute gallery, library, and outdoor courtyard will be bustling with Japanese cultural activities. Admission to the Spring Festival is $7 per person for non-members in advance and $10 on the day of the event. Lee Institute members and children under 12 are admitted free.


Special ticketed activities: Reservations are required.

Sashiko (embroidery technique) Workshop
2 sessions: 10:15 a.m. and 3 p.m. in Tent A
Sashiko is a traditional Japanese embroidery technique based upon running-stitch designs of geometric patterns, and it flourished among the agrarian commoners during Edo period (1615-1868). The hand-sewn designs are complex geometric patterns borrowed from nature: waves of water, flowers, and birds. Participants will create two coasters using this sashiko technique. (120 minutes)
$20 for members: $25 for non-members (Fee includes material.)

Bonsai Workshop for kids
Noon in Tent B
Hanford Bonsai Society will conduct a bonsai workshop just for kids, ages 6 to 12. Explore the art of bonsai! (60 minutes)
$15 for members: $20 for non-members (Fee includes a bonsai tree.)

Bonsai Workshop
2 sessions: 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. in Tent B
Participants will learn the fundamentals of bonsai and leave the workshop with an actual bonsai they have created. Hanford Bonsai Society will conduct this workshop. (90 minutes)
$20 for members: $25 for non-members
(Fee includes a bonsai tree.)

?Drinking from the Cup of Humanity? Lecture by Arthur Dyson
4 p.m. in the Gallery
Internationally acclaimed Fresno architect Arthur Dyson who has received over one hundred and thirty professional design awards and honors, will share his distinctive approach to creative architecture for the 21st century. In this talk Dyson discusses the influence of Japanese aesthetics and philosophy, and traces the evolution of his work. Dyson makes a compelling case for multi-cultural modernism as a vital and flexible architectural language for our time. Always controversial, Dyson?s work was recently described as a ?fusion of Japanese Zen artistry and Star Wars technology?. (60 minutes)
$5 for members: $7 for non-members

?Art of Sushi and Japanese Cuisine?
Demonstration by Chef Andy Matsuda
2 sessions: 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. in the Library
Chef Andy Matsuda, founder of Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles will demonstrate how to make sushi and talk about Japanese cuisine. This is a great opportunity to gain knowledge in Japanese food. (60 minutes)
$7 for members: $10 for non-members

Tea Ceremony
2 sessions: Noon and 3:15pm
Enjoy the art of tea in the private garden. Kay Tokumoto, a master of the Ura Senke School, will perform a tea ceremony. Observe the graceful movements of Mrs. Tokumoto preparing and serving the tea in the serene setting of the Japanese garden. (45 minutes)
$5 for members: $7 for non-members

Garden Tours
8 tours: 10:15 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 1 p.m., 1:30 p.m., 2 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 4:15 p.m.
Landscape architect Bob Boro and docents will take you on a tour of the beautiful private Japanese garden. (30 minutes)
$7 for members: $10 for non-members


For more information, visit the website at www.shermanleeinstitute.org or call (559) 582-4915.

This event is sponsored by Land O'Lakes Foundation, The Bertha and John Garabedian Charitable Foundation, and Valley Public Television.

The Lee Institute is a public museum gallery and library study center dedicated to Japanese art located 6 miles south of Highway 198 in Hanford between Jackson and Jersey Avenues at 15770 Tenth Avenue.

(Photo)
Bonsai displays by Hanford Bonsai Society (Photo courtesy of Lee Institute)

Renowned Japanese Biogeneticist to Speak: Your Hidden Potential Lies Within Your Genes, May 17 & 18
Topic: Lecture
Dr. Kazuo Murakami will hold two public speaking events in Los Angeles as part of a U.S. tour in support of his new book, “The Divine Code of Life.”

Dr. Murakami is one of the top geneticist in the world, and Professor Emeritus at Tsukuba University, one of Japan’s leading research universities.

May 17 at Mokichi Okada Association
8564 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 657-7200
Free admission
Time: 7:30 – 9:00 p.m. (doors open at 6:30)

May 18 at Tenrikyo Mission Headquarters in America
2727 East First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90033
(323) 261-3379
Free admission
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. (doors open at 6:30)

UCLA Graduate Student Symposium, April 22
Topic: University Programs
UCLA Center for Japanese Studies presents
The 12th Annual Graduate Student Symposium in Japanese Studies

Transculturation and National Signifiers:
"Japan" In, After, and Via Diaspora and Return

Saturday, April 22, 2006
8am -5pm
Covel Commons West Coast Room

Late Yuji Ichioka, Apr. 22
Topic: University Programs
Late Yuji Ichioka, Asian American Professor of UCLA will be honored by scholars on Saturday, Apr. 22 at Senshin Buddhist Temple, 1311 W. 37th Street, Los Angeles. Contact: aascrsvp@aasc.ucla.edu, (310) 825-2974.

International symposium on the city of Nara, Apr. 21
Topic: University Programs
On Friday April 21, an international symposium on the city of Nara will be held at UCLA. The symposium with the title of “The Making of an Ancient Capital: Nara” will take place in the Downstairs Lounge at the UCLA Faculty Center from 9:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m.

Organized by Prof. Michael F. Marra of the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures, the event is sponsored by the UCLA Center for Japanese Studies and the Association for Commemorative Events of the 1300th Anniversary of Nara Heij?-ky? Capital.

Among the speakers are Mr. Tanigawa Masatsugu (executive director of the Nara Prefectural Government office), Prof. Nakanishi Susumu (President of the Kyoto City University of Arts), Prof. Terasawa Yukitada of Kei? University, and Prof. Kaya Noriko of Osaka Ky?iku Daigaku. Mr. Tanigawa and Mr. Yamashita Yasunori, project group leader of the committee celebrating the 1300th anniversary of the capital in 2010, will represent at the conference Mr. Kakimoto Yoshiya, Governor of the Nara Prefecture, who has recently bestowed on Prof. Marra the title of Goodwill Ambassador for Nara-Mahoroba.

For further information, e-mail to marra@humnet.ucla.edu.

(Japanese names appear in family name and given name order.)

City of Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival, Apr. 22, 23
Topic: Festival
The City of Monterey Park’s 9th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival will be held on April 22 and 23 at Barnes Park, 350 S. McPherrin Ave, Monterey Park. The festival will feature a wide array of Japanese cultural arts and entertainment, food, crafts, and games.

Among the highlights of the festival are renowned contemporary jazz musician, Keiko Matsui, KABC Channel 7 News Anchor David Ono, famed Koto player June Kuramoto and award winning Taiko group TAIKOPROJECT.

Admission to the Festival is free.

The Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival is a local community oriented celebration, which has a long history of being held in the City of Monterey Park, since the early 1970's.

Initially started as a fundraising endeavor by the Veterans for Foreign Wars Post as a carnival in the old Atlantic Square Shopping Center, it changed to include cultural promotion of the Japanese culture in the 1980s.

Discontinued shortly after, the Cherry Blossom Festival was resurrected by a group of community volunteers whose efforts were realized through the successful re-establishment of the Cherry Blossom Festival in April 1998.

The festival, which had over 8,000 attendees in 2005, coincides with the Nation’s annual Festival held in Washington, D.C. every spring to celebrate the 1912 gift to the city of 3,000 cherry trees from Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo.

This gift was to enhance the growing friendship between the U.S. and Japan and celebrate the continued close relationship between these two countries. First Lady Lady Bird Johnson accepted three thousand, eight hundred more trees in 1965.

In 1981 the cycle of giving came full circle when Japanese horticulturalists came to take cuttings from the trees growing in Washington, D.C. to replace some Yoshino cherry trees in Japan which had been destroyed in a flood.

This year’s Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Committee is led by Karen Ogawa and Dale Higashi.

Performances are scheduled to begin Saturday April 22, at 11:00 a.m. Additional information regarding this year’s festival is available on the festival website http://ci.monterey-park.ca.us

(Photo)
A taiko performance at Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival (Courtesy of Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival Committee)

Isamu Noguchi's Sculptural Design exhibition, Through May 14
Topic: Art
Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, presents Isamu Noguchi –Sculptural Design exhibition from Feb. 4 through May 14.

In a career that spanned six decades, Japanese American artist Isamu Noguchi (1904–1988) produced a groundbreaking body of work that encompassed multiple disciplines to break down the barriers between sculptural art and functional design.

Isamu Noguchi – Sculptural Design celebrates this legacy by integrating more than 75 of Noguchi’s works into a series of dramatic installations conceptualized by renowned theater designer and artist Robert Wilson.

The exhibition includes Noguchi’s portrait busts, unique stone sculptures, and set designs for the Martha Graham Dance Company as well his iconic furniture designs and Akari lamps, all arranged in thematic settings with bold lighting, visually striking tableaux, and evocative sounds.

This is the second exhibition at the Japanese American National Museum exploring the complex career of Isamu Noguchi.

Isamu Noguchi – Sculptural Design was organized by the Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany, in cooperation with the Isamu Noguchi Foundation Inc., New York. The exhibition design and visual concept by Robert Wilson were developed at the Watermill Center on Long Island, New York. The Japanese American National Museum is the only California venue after showings in London, Weil am Rhein, Madrid, Paris, Cologne, Rotterdam, Berlin, New York, and Seattle.

The Los Angeles presentation of Isamu Noguchi – Sculptural Design is made possible, in part, by the generous support of Ray Inouye, Chris Inouye, Steve Inouye, and Deena (Inouye) Lew; The James Irvine Foundation; Karen & Michael Schneickert; Prudential Financial, Inc.; George Takei & Brad Altman; and Gordon Yamate & Deborah Shiba, DDS.

Special ticket prices are $12 for adults, $9 seniors (62 years old over), $8 for students and youth (6-17 years old), free for children 5 years old and under and the museum member. Thursday evenings from 5–8 p.m. and all day on Feb. 18, March 16, and April 20: Adults, seniors, students, and youth are $4. During these times, admission to all other museum exhibitions is free.

The Japanese American National Museum is located at 369 East First Street in the historic Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles. For more information, call (213) 625-0414 or visit www.janm.org.

Photo
Isamu Noguchi with Tsuneko San (Head of Japanese Girl), 1931, plaster, mid-1960s.
(Copyright 2005 The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, New York/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York)

US Sumo Open, April 9
Topic: Sumo
Sumo originated over 1,500 years ago in Japan as an oracular ritual connected with prayers for the harvest. In spite of the fact that foreigners like Americans, Mongolians, and Bulgarians become top professional sumo wrestlers, including the current yokozuna (grand champion), professional sumo maintains most traditions, such as not allowing women to enter or even to touch the dohyo (sumo ring) in Japan.

Just like other Japanese martial arts spreading throughout the world, sumo is gaining popularity amongst an American audience.

The Sixth Annual US Sumo Open tournament will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Petree Hall on Sunday, April 9 from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Athletes are coming from Japan, Eastern and Northern Europe, Mongolia and from around the U.S., including a large portion from Southern California. Athletes from all walks of life, large and small, male and female face off at the yearly event.

The US Sumo Open was founded and organized by Andrew Freund, an English teacher to foreign students at Santa Monica College and UCLA Extension. The first US Sumo Open was held in 2001 at UCLA’s John Wooden Center gymnasium with former top-ranked professional sumo wrestler Konishiki and Japanese university champions.

It was 15 years ago when Freund was introduced to Sumo for his first time when he was teaching English in Tokyo. After coming across an advertisement in a local journal for a sumo tournament, Freund bought a ticket in the nosebleed section and spent the entire day, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., watching the professional sumo wrestlers go at it.

Upon returning to Japan in 1994 to again teach English, Freund was exposed to more sumo, but it wasn’t until he was living in Los Angeles in 1997 when he urged a friend to compete in a sumo exhibition at the Japan Expo that Freund got hooked. “He was a big guy, and I pushed him to try it,” Freund explained. “He said ‘I’ll do it if you do it.’”

After participating in the exhibition, Freund started the California Sumo Association at UCLA. CSA had three to four participants at the time and would practice from one to three times a week.

“In 2000, I ran into (Bulgarian) Svetoslav Binev, who won the ‘98 and ‘99 World Sumo Championships,” Freund said. “I got his input and philosophy in the club.” With Binev’s input, Freund organized the first US Sumo Open in 2001 at UCLA.

“Our first year, we had only 25 athletes and the level of competition was not very high,” Freund explained. “but Konishiki had such a big heart and was very energetic, so the event was a big success.” Each subsequent US Sumo Open has seen top-ranked guests from the world of sumo, including former Yokozuna Akebono, Yokozuna Musashimaru and the Japanese teams.

From the first US Sumo Open at a UCLA gymnasium to this year’s Los Angeles Convention Center, things have changed. With more foreign teams participating and the level of U.S.-based sumo athletes increasing with each passing year, Freund is looking for this to be the best tournament yet.

“Every year we’re trying to improve our level. Foreign teams are a big part of that. Athletes from Mongolia, maybe a team from Japan, European teams including teams from Bulgaria, Norway, and Germany all add to the quality,” Freund explained. “It’s really a step up when you bring over the foreign teams.”

In the past, Freund has recruited many teams from overseas to participate. While he has had success, there were visa issues for many of the invitees who ended up not being able to make it over. But this year, it was Freund who was approached by a team of Mongolian sumo athletes, who were already in Los Angeles, and who are also helping to invite more top sumo athletes from Mongolia.

“The Mongolians will be a very interesting story. Many are students here in the U.S. learning English,” Freund said. “Like the Japanese, their speed and techniques are great.”

But it’s not just the new foreign talent that sets the Sixth Annual US Sumo Open apart. According to Freund, it’s been the constant strong showing from Los Angeles and U.S.-based athletes. For example, 39 year-old LAPD officer Troy Collins, who has medaled in both the middle and open weight classes every year since 2002, will compete in this year’s US Sumo Open. “He’s been a really positive influence and a role model,” said Freund.

According to Freund, most of the U.S.-based sumo athletes practice and participate for fun, but with time, some learn about the tradition and the culture. “Most of the guys in the club (California Sumo Association), don’t watch sumo regularly,” Freund explained. “Most are guys with football or wrestling backgrounds who just like to compete.”

Another differentiating factor over the years has been the officiating. Last year, two officials came from the Shizuoka Sumo Federation, and played important roles as referees and judges in the tournament. According to Freund, their expertise on sumo brought more authenticity to the US Open.

“Japanese officiating is a big deal,” said Freund. “These guys have decades and decades of experience.” He is currently working to get last year’s officials to return.

Freund sees the tournament as changing the image of sumo wrestlers that the novice might hold. “One of the biggest comments that fans tell me is ‘Wow, that wasn’t what I was expecting at all’ or ‘They really are athletes.’”

The US Sumo Open tournament for both the men and women is broken into three different weight classes: lightweight, middleweight, heavyweight, along with an open weight selection, where all are able participate against each other. Those who wish to participate in this year’s competition can get more information by calling (310) 288-3641 or by logging onto www.usasumo.com.

Freund went on to explain that while he’s made mistakes in the past, and that the tournament has not always made money, particularly in the first few years, with each passing year the turnout has been getting larger, hence the move from UCLA to the L.A. Convention Center last year, and now to a larger hall this year, that can sit twice as many as last year.

“We want to make it (US Sumo Open) a standard, like the L.A. Marathon, as THE sumo tournament every year. We bring over the best from around the world every year,” explained Freund. “and we are building a good fan base.”

This year, ticket prices range from $15 for general admission to $45 for V.I.P. seating. For tickets, call (310) 617-3343. A free preview event will be held on Saturday, April 8 at Noguchi Plaza in the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, Little Tokyo. This event will run from 11 a.m.- 3 p.m.

Sogetsu 80th Anniversary Ikebana Display, April 1, 2
Topic: Ikebana
Sogetsu Ikebana (Japanese flower arranging) presents 80th anniversary display at Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo on April 1 and 2 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

The Sogetsu Display is free with paid admission to the museum

Japanese American National Museum
369 East First Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 625-0414
www.janm.org

Japan Family Day at Santa Anita Park, Apr. 1
Topic: Event
Tokyo City Cup Race Celebrates A Decade-Long Relationship Between Two Premier Horse Tracks

Santa Anita Park and Tokyo Ohi Race Track provide various Japanese cultural exhibitions to local community. Raffle drawing grand prize is a pair of airline tickets to Japan.

Santa Anita Park will host the annual Tokyo City Cup, in conjunction with Tokyo Ohi Race Track on Saturday, April 1. The annual spring event celebrates a 12-year-long partnership between two of the premier tracks followed with the presence of Soma Nomaoi samurai warriors, and a wide variety of cultural exhibitions and travel information on Japan.

The Tokyo City Cup has been upgraded to a Grade III since last year. The upgraded race, with their higher level of competition, appeals to even more horse race fans. In the 71-year history of Santa Anita Park, Tokyo City Cup is the sole graded stake race that has been named for a major city outside of the U.S. and no other prestigious race tracks have similar graded races.

“We are very proud of our decade-long partnership with Ohi Race Track and looking forward to developing a new level of relationship,” said Ron Charles, Santa Anita Park President.

Every year, Tokyo Ohi Race Track also hosts ‘Santa Anita Trophy’, celebrating its friendship with having Santa Anita Park representatives. Santa Anita Park and Ohi Race Track have been actively developing their partnership in each side. “While we are celebrating our partnership through Tokyo City Cup race, all of the Santa Anita Park staff are pleased to present Japanese culture to the local communities because it provides wonderful cultural exchange opportunities,” Charles added.

On the Tokyo City Cup day, the Soma Nomaoi samurai warriors from Fukushima Prefecture, a National Important Intangible Folk-Custom Cultural Property, will participate to the event for the fifth consecutive year. Soma Nomaoi is a festival that recreates a battle scene from more than 1,000 years ago. Between the races, mounted samurai in traditional Japanese armor with ancestral flagstaffs streaming from their backs, will ride across the track.

The Japan Day, which was held along with Tokyo City Cup and provided various Japanese cultural exhibitions, has been renamed to Japan Family Day. The upgraded cultural exhibition will showcase more Japanese cultural exhibitions such as Sado (tea ceremony), Kado (flower arranging), Koto (Japanese harp), Shodo (calligraphy), Karate and Shin Kendo (Japanese martial arts) and Wadaiko (Japanese drums).

Also, as a new addition, Japan Travel Expo provides tourism information to the event attendees, introducing Japan as a more attractive travel destination. The event will feature two fabulous raffles - one for a pair of round trip tickets to Japan and the other for a trip to Las Vegas. Event attendees will receive one free admission ($5 worth) with the event advertising included coupon for the event. Free admission coupon will be also available at www.tokyocitycup.com. The web site provides more information about the specific event schedule.

Santa Anita Park is located in Arcadia, California, a residential community 14 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. Santa Anita Park opens each year on December 26, with daily racing continuing through late April, from Wednesday through Sunday. On the Tokyo City Cup day, gates open at 10:30 a.m. and post time for the first race is 12:30 p.m. Please visit at www.tokyocitycup.com for more information.

(Photo)
The Soma Nomaoi samurai warriors from Fukushima Prefecture, a National Important Intangible Folk-Custom Cultural Property, will participate to the event for the fifth consecutive year.

Film Screening: Nobody Knows Mar. 30, 6:00 PM at Irvine City Hall
Topic: Film
The Irvine Multicultural Association and Japan America Society of Southern California present “Nobody Knows” film screening with introduction and discussion by Yuka Kanno Japanese contemporary film expert and UC Irvine Fulbright Scholar:

Time: Thursday, March 30, 6:00 to 8:45 pm
Place: Council Chamber, Irvine City Hall, 1 Civic Center Plaza, Irvine 92606

Free admission: 1st Come, 1st Served. Light Japanese refreshments prior to the viewing.

RSVP: fax 213-627-1353 tel 213-627-6217 x202 online www.jas-socal.org

Japanese director Hirokazu Koreeda's touching film follows the empty lives of 12-year-old Akira (Yuya Yagira) and his three younger siblings (Ayu Kitaura, Hiei Kimura and Momoko Shimizu) after their mother abandons them in a tiny Tokyo apartment. Pragmatic, determined and wise beyond his years, Akira manages the household as best he can--but eventually the money runs out, and the children must find new ways to survive. The movie is based on a real 1988 event best known as the "Affair of the Four Abandoned Children of Nishi-Sugamo". “Nobody Knows” was Japan's entry to the Academy Awards’ Foreign Language Film in 2004. Fourteen-year-old Yuya Yagira, who plays as Akira, won the "Best Actor Award" at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.

"Kore-eda is the most gifted of the young Japanese directors"
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

"Beautiful, elevating and achingly sad"
Sean Axmaker, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"It's a quietly powerful work, pulsing with gentle humor and a gripping sense of imminent calamity and dread"
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

MPAA Rating: PG-13 For mature thematic elements and some sexual references

April 8, 9 Orange County Buddhist Church Hanamatsuri Bazaar
Topic: Buddhist
Orange County Buddhist Church
909 South Dale Ave., Anaheim, CA 92804
(714) 827-9590

Saturday, April 8, 2:00-9:00 PM
Sunday, April 9, 2:00-8:30 PM

Cultural Exhibits: Kimekomi Dolls, Tea Ceremony, Fabric Dyeing, Sumi-e, Kimono Display, Bonai, Chigiri-e, Koi fish, Dharma School displays, Ikebana, Display of Sword, Japanese school displays, pictorial displays of Buddhists in Internment Camps, Books on Buddhism.

Stage Performances: Japanese Classical Dance, Aikido, Kendo, Karate, Minyo, Koto, Taiko Group.

Food: Chicken Teriyaki, Wontan, Sushi, Udon, Beef Teriyaki, Chow Mein, Teri-Burgers, Oden, Dango, Imagawayaki, Corn, Spam Musubi, and many more.

Games: For Youngs and old. Raffle prizes.

Modern Mode: Kimono for Japan's New Woman at Lee Institute, through Apr. 1
Topic: Kimono
Hanford, Calif. -- The Ruth and Sherman Lee Institute for Japanese Art presents the new exhibition Modern Mode: Kimono for Japanese New Woman from Dec. 6 through Apr. 1, 2006.

This past summer, over seventy modern-style kimonos have been incorporated into the Lee Institute Permanent Collection, allowing the institute to have its first kimono exhibition in its ten-year history.

The kimonos exhibited in Modern Mode are made from a type of silk plain-weave fabric known as meisen that owes much of its existence to Western technology.

Meisen is a commercial term used to describe a textile of inexpensive machine-reeled silk thread and colored with synthetic dyes that was developed in the 1880s. Western dye technology adapted to traditional Japanese dye methods resulted in new, cost-effective techniques and dazzling, multicolored pictorial designs resembling paintings.

Both traditional and Western-inspired motifs decorated the affordable meisen kimono worn by the upper and middle classes as everyday wear and by the working-class, such as the increasing number of women who worked in the new textile mills, as formal attire.

Meisen is often considered a fashion associated with Taishō period (1912-1926) Japan. Through those years, meisen remained affordable and the quality of the textile improved greatly. In addition, the Japanese women’s life style has immensely modernized.

Many women started working as office workers, store clerks or waitresses and the trend was to go window shopping in Ginza; the main shopping area in Tokyo which resembled that of Champs-Elys?es in Paris, France.

The iconic modern girl of that time wore meisen kimono with a bob style hair cut. It was only when wool and western clothing were introduced to Japan, that the popularity of meisen came to an end in the early Shōwa period (1926-1989).

These vibrant meisen kimonos reflect the stimulating changes that occurred in the lives of women living in a modern Japan. Along with twenty-five of the meisen kimonos and haori (short coat), the exhibition includes various objects from the Lee Institute Permanent Collection to enhance the world of meisen.

This exhibition has been curated by Sharon Sadako Takeda, Senior Curator and Department Head, Costume and Textiles at Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Ms. Takeda will also present a special opening lecture for members of the Institute.

The Lee Institute is located 6 miles south of downtown Hanford at 15770 Tenth Avenue. The gallery and extensive reference library are wheelchair accessible and open to the public Tuesday-Saturday from 1:00–5:00 pm. Entrance fees are $5 for adults, $3 for students with valid ID, members and children under 12 are free. Docent tours of the exhibition are held every Saturday at 1:00 pm and special pre-arranged group tours are available for an additional fee. For more information, see our website at www.shermanleeinstitute.org or call (559) 582-4915.

(Photo Caption)
Kimono with Lozenge and Triangle Designs (detail), artist unknown. Kimono, dye on silk. (Courtesy of Lee Institute for Japanese Art)

Huntington Library to host Bonsai show, Mar. 25, 26
Topic: Bonsai
The California Bonsai Society will present its 49th annual show on Saturday and Sunday, March 25-26, at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. More than 100 beautiful specimens will be on display, skillfully created by bonsai masters. Hours for the show are from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. both days in Friends’ Hall.

From its ancient origins in China and Japan, the art of creating miniature bonsai trees has grown in popularity to become an international hobby. Today, bonsai reflects the nationalities, philosophies, and regional plants of enthusiasts worldwide.

Included in the two-day show at The Huntington will be miniature maples, elms, and other deciduous trees in early leaf; flowering plants such as wisteria and bougainvillea; classic Japanese black pine and California juniper specimens, and beautiful examples of non-traditional bonsai styles.

Special displays, educational materials, and informal demonstrations of bonsai techniques will be offered throughout the weekend.

After seeing the bonsai show, visitors may want to take a short stroll across the grounds to the Japanese Garden area, where The Huntington’s own bonsai collection is showcased in the Bonsai Court. An extensive selection of books on the subject, for the expert or the beginner, can be found in The Huntington’s Bookstore and More.

The bonsai show is included with general admission: $15 for adults, $12 for seniors, $10 for students (12-18), $6 for youth (5-11), and free for children under 5. Members are admitted free. For information, call (626)405-2100

Bando Hidesomi's studio to showcase their dances with renowned masters from Tokyo, Mar. 4
Topic: Buyo
Bando Hidesomi Nihon Buyo Class and Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Los Angeles will present The Four Seasons of Japan: Through the Art of Nihon Buyo on Saturday, March 4, from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. at Aratani/Japan America Theatre, 244 South San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012. Tickets are $25 for general, ($23 in balcony), $22 for students, senior citizens and members of JACCC ($20 in balcony). Tickets are available at the box office, (213) 680-3700; Bando Hidesomi, (323) 269-3119; Hirata Camera and Sound, (310) 329-4911. (The related story appears on the page 1)

The program of The Four Seasons of Japan: Through the Art of Nihon Buyo is following:

Tsurukame Crane and Turtle (Nagauta)
Performed by Bando Hideko, Bando Mitsuhiro and Bando Hidesomi
Tsurukame is a very popular Nagauta dance performed for congratulatory occasions. It is choreographed and composed directly to the lyrics chanted in the Noh song of Tsurukame. The emperor received greetings by his people in the beginning of the new year. It was a custom for a crane (Tsuru) and a turtle (Kame) to dance for the emperor in his beautiful royal garden, praying for his longevity.
It is believed that a crane can live 1,000 years, and a turtle can live 10,000 years. The emperor overcome with emotions, starts to dance,
praying for his country to be peaceful and prosperous. The Noh origin fills the dance with solemnity and elegance.

Ehigasa Parasol with pictures (Kayou shoukyoku)
A little girl is enjoying her playtime under the blue skies with her colorful parasol, sharing the sunny day with the butterflies.

Sakura Emaki Cherry blossom picture scroll (Nagauta)
Originally a song with lyrics filled with various kind of cherry blossoms, this particular dance piece portrays a group of young girls at a cherry blossom viewing, celebrating the spring season.

Ayame Uri Iris Vendor (Tokiwazu)

Danjuro Musume Danjuro maiden (Yamatogaku)
This light spirited piece portrays a young daughter of a wealthy merchant, who is a fan of Danjuro, a very popular kabuki actor. She has just come out of the theater after seeing Danjuro perform one of his most
known role, Sukeroku.
As she is imitating Sukeroku, a young servant sent by her father arrives. The daughter refusing to go home, the servant comes up
with a plan. The servant calls to her as if she was Sukeroku. The daughter, without hesitation starts pretending to be Sukeroku. While she is doing so, the servant prompts her into going home.

Fuji Musume Wisteria maiden (Nagauta)
Fuji Musume was originally one of five quick-changes in the dance Kaesu Gaesu Onagori Otsu-e first performed in 1826 at the Nakamura-za, Edo (present day Tokyo). Otsu-e were hand painted folk prints made as
souvenirs in Otsu, Oomi province (currently Shiga prefecture near Kyoto).
Fuji Musume belongs with a small group of other dances, all depicting characters from pictures which come to life. In this dance, a young maiden, personifying the wisteria expresses her feeling toward the noble pine
tree. The sweet and lovely dance pose of a young girl wearing a headpiece with red threads and holding a wisteria branch over her shoulder is a familiar image known to many. Fuji Musume is also one of the most
popular dance performed in dance recitals.

Kikuzukushi Chrysanathemum dance (Nagauta)
This song was created by the first generation Hanayagi Jusuke from a verse written on a folding screen, expressing the beauty and splendor of the colorful chrysanthemum blossoms. In many of the dance schools,
this piece is used to teach the basics of traditional Japanese dance.

Yashiki Musume Mansion maiden (Tokiwazu)
In order to prepare for marriage, daughters of wealthy merchants were usually sent to a lord's mansion to learn proper etiquette and social grace. The training is hard and strict. The young maiden is given some
free time when she is allowed to return to her home for a brief vacation. This dance portrays the joy she feels on her way home during a clear autumn day.

Seigaiha (Kiyomoto)
Performed by Bando Mitsujiro
This ceremonious dance sings of the various famous places during the four seasons of Japan. Seigaiha, which exhibits Kiyomoto style's distinct
characteristics is known to be one of the masterpieces of its kind.

Kurokami Black hair (Nagauta)
Performed by Bando Hidesomi
Accompanied by Kineya Minnosuke for singing and Kineya Yakouji for shamisen.
The Nagauta version of Kurokami is based on a Kabuki act in which Tatsu Hime (Princess Tatsu) sacrificially gives the person she loves away to Masako (Daughter of Hojo Tokimasa) for political reasons.
She suppresses her feeling, but as she is brushing her black hair in front of the mirror, she is troubled by the feeling of envy slowly arising in her heart. Though this Kurokami is a Nagauta version, this particular piece was choreographed by the 8th Headmaster Bando Mitsugoro into Jiutamai style dancing, which delicately expresses the heart of a woman who must hold her feelings back from the person she loves. As the sound of the temple bell penetrates into the night, her feeling of longing piles up like
the white snow gently falling down in the quite night.

(Photo)
Bando Hidesomi

Tea ceremony at Descanso Gardens, Feb 23
Topic: Tea Ceremony
Tea, and the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, will be featured during a special class at Descanso Gardens in La Ca?ada Flintridge. The class will meet from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 23.

Rieko McMillan will discuss and demonstrate the Japanese tea ceremony during this introduction to the Way of Tea - an Art of Living.

Participants will have the opportunity to sample the tea and sweets that are part of Chaji tradition. Chaji, a full tea gathering in the Urasenke chado tradition, incorporates rules to capture the spirit of the season, the occasion, the time and place.

Principles underlying the tea ceremony are harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility. Rieko McMillan is chief administrator of the Urasenke Tankokai Los Angeles Association, and an instructor in the Way of Tea.

This class coincides with Descanso Gardens’ annual Camellia Festival, appropriate because true teas worldwide are made from the leaves of Camellia sinensis plants.

Fee: $35 ($30 members). Early reservations are recommended. Because of space limitations, this class is limited to 15 students, and walk-in space may not be available. To register, call (818) 949-7980. www.DescansoGardens.org.

(Photo)
Reiko McMillan

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library?s Cherry Blossom Festival, Feb. 24
Topic: Event
“The people of Japan and the people of America are friends of separate pasts. We have a different language, different ancestry, and yet together, our actions have helped to shape the future. Today we have a chance to bring freshness and a new direction to the deep friendship between our two peoples.” - Ronald Reagan, May 7, 1981

To continue this friendship, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library announces the debut of its Cherry Blossom Festival on Friday, February 24th from 10:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.

The festival will focus on the beginning of Spring and includes programs fun for the entire family. All activities and events relating to the Festival are free to attend, regular admission rates apply for Museum entrance. For more information, call 805-522-2977.

PROGRAM:

10:30 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. (in the Library’s main courtyard):

Opening Remarks
Traditional Japanese Shinto Rite, conducted by Rev. Tsuyuki
Kendo Performance (Japanese Fencing Demonstration)
Japanese Harp Koto Music Performance
Samurai Sword Demonstrations
Taiko Drums

11:20 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (in the Library’s Presidential Learning Center):
Japanese Odori Dance Performance
Traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony
Art of Japanese Brush Calligraphy Demonstration
Japanese Art of Flower Arrangement Presentation

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, 40 Presidential Drive, Simi Valley, California 93065

The Reagan Library and Museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.

The Museum admission fees are $12.00 general admission, $9.00 for seniors 62 and over, $3 for children 11-17, and free for children 10 and under. For more information, please call (800) 410-8354.

Cultural Twist, Feb. 23
Topic: Music
“Cultural Twist” will be held at The Second Street Jazz, 366 Second Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (Little Tokyo) 213-680-0047, on Thursday, February 23 at 9 p.m.

It will be a variety of music from Taiko Drums, Enka, J-pop, moving towards Contemporary Jazz to American Music Comedy and finally Psychedelic Hip Hop...

Performing artists are: Shin3, Kiyu, Milk:Blood, Heaven Bound Train, Webb, Christal, Herbal Influence.

Door Open at 8:30 p.m. Cover charge: $3 Drink special price between 8:30-9:00 p.m.

Fen-X Productions presents CULTURAL TWIST

By Marisa Kosugi - Doozo Yoroshiku Onegaiitashimasu!
aka: Lisa Ishikawa - Whassup, ya'll !! Come down and chill!

We would like to welcome you and your friends to this event. The theme is CULTURAL TWIST and by reading the performer's info, you will understand why!

The opening of this program will start with sounds from the Far East? The pounding beats of the Taiko Drums by Shin3, celebrating tonight's event with true spirit by 3-performers who believe in the value of 'Shin to the Power of 3'- the Heart-Mind, Truth & Trust}, you will definitely feel their energy so go on and stomp your feet and bob your head to the beat!

We will then sway your mood into a calm but mysterious way of this beautiful artist, Kiyu, who will sing Enka & Pop. She carries a true sexiness & soulfulness in her every movement which will capture your emotions with her voice that will be irresistible.

It is intriguing to say that being caught between cultures is a blessing and Webb, Christal is proof of this. After living in Japan for two years, she has been inspired to challenge of embracing and performing a whole new culture of songs. The uniquely composed pieces will share an amazing transition from Pop to R&B, as well, the natural flow from Japanese to English.

The uniqueness of Heaven Bound Train, an alternative indie band, carries a passionate, powerful and honest blend of worldly sounds with American, Carribean and Japanese Influences. This creation of music will make you want more but not in an aggressive way. Their energy will flow in your heart and you will remember.

Now, moving towards the West Side, you?ll need to hold on to your seats or is this possible? Milk:Blood will definitely pull you away from the monotony of life. A world unknown and sometimes misunderstood, but if you open your hearts and drop your masks, you will understand the meaning of Freedom in their music.

Have you heard of Psychedelic Hip Hop? Not only will you exist in a dream world of heavy based beats with Herbal Influence, their message is to keep it real, straight forward and to the point!

Looking forward to see everyone.. Peace!