Japanese traditional cart puppetry company Koryu Nishikawa Troupe to make Hong Kong debut in June (with photos)
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Different from the traditional bunraku-style puppetry, Kuruma Ningyo requires only one puppeteer who sits on a kuruma (cart) and controls the puppet in smooth and detailed movements with his own hands and feet. The Koryu Nishikawa Troupe, located in Hachioji, Tokyo, was established 150 years ago. Its founder created the puppetry performance form of "Hachioji Kuruma Ningyo", which has played an important role in the transition of Japanese puppet theatre, and has been designated as an "Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property" in 2022 by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japan.
The troupe will present three plays of traditional theatre repertoire of Japanese folk customs in Hong Kong. The opening performance, "Sanbaso", will feature a series of traditional dances for a good harvest and peace as well as success on the stage. "Tsurionna" tells the story of a daimyo and his servant who visit a Shinto shrine to pray for a good match. In their dreams they are given a fishing rod, which brings a surprise to everyone. As the finale of the programme, "Yajisan and Kitasan" (Excerpts) will lead audiences on a mysterious journey, as they take a trip to Kyoto and encounter all kinds of strange things when they walk near a graveyard.
"Hachioji Kuruma Ningyo" by the Koryu Nishikawa Troupe will be performed in Japanese with Chinese and English surtitles. It will be held at 8pm on June 16 and 17 (Friday and Saturday), and at 3pm on June 18 (Sunday) at the Theatre of Hong Kong City Hall. Each performance will run about one and a half hours with an intermission of 15 minutes. Tickets priced at $280 and $380 are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7323 or visit
www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/multi_arts/programs_1499.html.
Moreover, a workshop (conducted in Japanese and Cantonese) will be organised, in which the puppeteers of the troupe will introduce the history, puppet parts and control techniques of Hachioji Kuruma Ningyo. Participants can also experience the fun of controlling the puppets. The workshop will be held at 11am on June 18 at the Theatre of Hong Kong City Hall. Tickets priced at $150 are now available at URBTIX. For details, please refer to the above-mentioned website.
Ends/Thursday, May 4, 2023
Issued at HKT 10:30
Issued at HKT 10:30
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