Culture
Manga & Anime
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Ex-Combat Agent Strives to Find a Peaceful Life
All over the world, particularly in Africa, there are cases of armed terrorist organizations kidn...
March 16, 2024
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Nintendo Announces Production of New Animated Film Featuring Mario; Miyamoto Wants ‘To Expand the World of Mario’
Nintendo Co. has announced that it is coproducing a new animated film based on the world of Super...
March 11, 2024
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At 83, Filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki Earns Historic Oscar for ‘The Boy and the Heron’
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hayao Miyazaki, the legendary Japanese filmmaker whose anime classics have enc...
March 11, 2024
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Director Hayao Miyazaki’s Latest Film “The Boy and the Heron” Wins an Oscar for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film.
Director Hayao Miyazaki's Latest Film "The Boy and the Heron" Wins an Oscar for the Academy Award fo...
March 11, 2024
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Gunma Hotel Offering ‘All-You-Can-Read-Manga’ Rooms; Goku, Luffy, Doraemon and More Greet Guests
TSUMAGOI, Gunma — Guests at this hotel might spend their whole night reading and barely scratch t...
March 10, 2024
Film & TV
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Godzilla Director Takashi Yamazaki Returns to Japan with an Oscar in Hand; Wants to “Take On Many More Challenges”
The director of “Godzilla Minus One,” Takashi Yamazaki, who returned to Japan on Tuesday with the...
March 13, 2024
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Japanese Films’ Success in U.S. Likely to Spur Overseas Strategy among Japan Firms; Movie Exports up 600% over Decade
The success of Japanese films “Godzilla Minus One” and “Kimitachi wa Do Ikiruka” (“The Boy and th...
March 12, 2024
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Double Oscars Shows Power of Visual Imagery in Japanese Films; Miyazaki Revels in Win
LOS ANGELES — The triumph of two Japanese films at the 96th Academy Awards showed Japan can compe...
March 12, 2024
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Godzilla, Hayao Miyazaki Both Take Home Oscars; First Double Win for Japanese Films Since 2009
LOS ANGELES — “Godzilla Minus One,” directed by Takashi Yamazaki, won Best Visual Effects at the ...
March 11, 2024
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Veteran Action ‘Suit Actors’ Are Like Living Cultural Treasures
In February, I organized a Kanreki Matsuri (a festival celebrating the age of 60), which was attende...
March 8, 2024
Kabuki / Noh / Rakugo
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Kabuki Stars Nakamura Tokizo, Nakamura Baishi to Change Names in June
Kabuki actors Nakamura Tokizo V, 68, will change his name to Nakamura Manju and his first son, Nakam...
January 23, 2024
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Bunraku Puppet Plays Get National Treasure Treatment, with Puppeteer Kanjuro Kiritake, Historic Shokoji Temple
Two bunraku puppet plays, featuring living national treasure and puppeteer Kanjuro Kiritake, were pe...
November 29, 2023
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Famed Storyteller Shinsho Still Draws Fans after 50 Years
Fifty years have passed since legendary rakugo storyteller Kokontei Shinsho V died on Sept. 21, 1973...
October 29, 2023
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Kabuki Firm Shochiku Offers English Audio Guides in Tokyo, Interpretation Event in Osaka to Draw Foreign Visitors in Japan
As foreign visitor numbers continue to recover, efforts to attract tourists are increasing, such as ...
October 22, 2023
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‘Demon Slayer’ Kabuki Production Canceled
A kabuki adaptation of the popular manga “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” has been canceled, accordi...
August 3, 2023
Performing Arts
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Local Puppet Theater Group in Miyazaki Pref. Wins Award for Traditional Culture
MIYAKONOJO, Miyazaki — A group preserving local ningyo joruri puppet shows in Miyakonojo, Miyazaki P...
February 11, 2024
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Ichiryusai Teikyo Follows Father’s Form on Kodan Stage, Stays Faithful to Tradition
Popular kodan storyteller Ichiryusai Teikyo, who maintains a confident and dignified posture on stag...
December 17, 2023
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New National Theatre’s ‘Simon Boccanegra’ Brings Doge’s Tale to Tokyo
Opera is an all-embracing spectacle, uniting music, art and theater. With such breadth, even the mos...
December 10, 2023
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Indian-Inspired Play Performed in Front of Tokyo Station; Outdoor Spectacle Part of Ongoing Tokyo Festival 2023
In broad daylight, visitors from a totally different world suddenly appeared in an office district o...
October 21, 2023
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Treasured Temple, Puppet Master to Enrich Toyama Staging of Bunraku Plays; Kanjuro Kiritake, Others to Perform Bunraku Puppet Plays
Living national treasure Kanjuro Kiritake and others will perform bunraku puppet plays at Shoko-ji t...
October 10, 2023
Art
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Okinawa Artifacts Missing during WWII Return Home after Being Found in U.S.
NAHA — Cultural artifacts from Okinawa Prefecture that had been missing for nearly 80 years since...
March 17, 2024
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Exhibition Shines New Light on Edo Period Crafts Updated with Artist’s Innovative Take
Taiko drums painted with lightning bolts and haute couture heelless shoes inspired by geta sandal...
March 6, 2024
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Ito Jakuchu’s Forgotten Picture Scroll Discovered, Going on Display at Art Museum in Kyoto in October
A forgotten picture scroll by Ito Jakuchu (1716-1800), which colorfully depicts fruits and vegeta...
March 6, 2024
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Saving Kotaro Takamura’s Tokyo Atelier; Preserving Connection with Artists for Future Generations
A movement has begun to preserve the atelier of poet-sculptor Kotaro Takamura (1883-1956), known ...
February 28, 2024
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Elaborate Godzilla Statue by Hakata Doll Artist Represents Monster as Spiritual Being
FUKUOKA — Doll artist Hiromine Nakamura, 37, has created a small, elaborate statue of pop culture ic...
February 25, 2024
Fashion
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2024 Autumn/Winter Tokyo Fashion Week Kicks Off in Shibuya; Event Held Through Saturday
The 2024 Autumn/Winter Tokyo Collection kicked off Monday. Pays des Fees, known for its strangely...
March 11, 2024
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The Revival of West Japan’s Kokura-ori and Its Beauty of Vertical Stripes
FUKUOKA — Kokura-ori is a cotton fabric that was once used to make samurai hakama pants and other...
March 10, 2024
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Anna Wintour and the World of Fashion
A biography of famed fashion editor Anna Wintour, “Anna: The Biography” by Amy Odell, was translated...
March 2, 2024
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Giorgio Armani-Yuichi Toyama Eyewear Collection is Elegant and Timeless
The year 2024 started with the Noto Peninsula Earthquake on New Year’s Day, a catastrophic disaster ...
February 3, 2024
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Made-in-Japan Clothing Makes Debut During Men’s Fashion Week in Paris
PARIS — In a bid to promote high-quality clothing made entirely in Japan to a worldwide audience, a ...
January 22, 2024
Music
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Yama Explores Music Despite Fear of Public Performances; Masked Singer Talks about New Album
Yama began to be active as an “utaite” singer in 2018, posting their covers of songs and uploadin...
March 15, 2024
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Japanese Pianist GoJoin Ryo’ Heartfelt Performances Free Fans’ O-souls; Repertoire Includes Originals and Covers
Pianist GoJoin Ryo has pursued what she calls “piano beat music” with dramatic performances and supe...
March 8, 2024
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Sony Music Acquires Half of Michael Jackson’s Catalog
Los Angeles (Jiji Press) — Sony Music Entertainment has acquired half of the music catalog of the la...
February 11, 2024
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Dance-Vocal Group Atarashii Gakko! Represents a New Generation of Japanese Youth
Dance vocal group Atarashii Gakko! is known for performing in distinctive sailor-style school unifor...
February 2, 2024
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Hitsujibungaku Releases New Album ‘12 hugs’
Alternative rock band Hitsujibungaku recently released its third major-label album, “12 hugs (like b...
January 26, 2024
Books & Literature
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Japan’s Economy Ministry Project Team Strives to Make Bookstores into Cultural Meeting Points in Local Communities
The Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry established on March 5 a project team under the direct c...
March 14, 2024
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Beloved Bookstore Lives on Under New Management; A Fixture of Tokyo’s Literary Asagaya Neighborhood
The last remaining bookstore in front of JR Asagaya Station in Suginami Ward, Tokyo — a neighborh...
March 6, 2024
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Haruki Murakami Unveils His New Short Story at a Tokyo Literary Event
TOKYO (AP) — Only 1,100 lucky audience members were there to hear the yet-to-be published short s...
March 2, 2024
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EU Works to Find More Readers for Its New Fiction in Japan; Translators of Lesser-known Languages Face Tough Market
The European Union has launched a new campaign to promote literature from the bloc among booklovers ...
February 7, 2024
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Tetsuko Kuroyanagi’s Childhood Memoir Sets Guinness World Record for Most Published Autobiography
Actor Tetsuko Kuroyanagi’s memoir “Madogiwa no Totto-chan” (Totto-chan: The Little Girl at the Windo...
December 18, 2023
Museums
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Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum to Introduce Online Ticket Service; Record Breaking Number of Foreign Visitors
The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, located in Hiroshima City’s Naka Ward, will introduce an online...
February 13, 2024
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Museums Nationwide Struggling with Chronic Shortage of Storage Space
Museums across the country have been troubled by a chronic shortage of storage space for their colle...
February 4, 2024
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Imperial Cllections Museum Shares Treasures
A museum that houses and exhibits art and crafts associated with the Imperial family has been rebuil...
January 7, 2024
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75th Annual Exhibition of Shoso-in Treasures Ends in Nara; Over 115,000 Visitors Flock to Nara National Museum
NARA — The 75th Annual Exhibition of Shoso-in Treasures ended Monday at the Nara National Museum in ...
November 14, 2023
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Mincho Identified as Painter of Centuries-Old ‘500 Arhats’; Name on Wooden Stick Provides Vital Evidence
The recent discovery of a wooden stick that was used to turn paintings into hanging scrolls has she...
October 21, 2023
"Culture" POPULAR ARTICLE
- “Fist of the North Star” Writer Buronson Celebrates Completion of Educational Hub for Aspiring Manga Artists
- Beloved Bookstore Lives on Under New Management; A Fixture of Tokyo’s Literary Asagaya Neighborhood
- Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘The Boy and the Heron’Strikes Chord Globally With Deep Messages
- Akira Toriyama Created Beloved Characters Goku, Arale-chan; Death Mourned by Fellow Mangaka Eiichiro Oda, ‘Dragon Quest’ Game Designer
- Godzilla, Hayao Miyazaki Both Take Home Oscars; First Double Win for Japanese Films Since 2009
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