WATOKU UENO
Secret
Poetic fantasy based on Japanese folktale “The Crane Wife” with dance, live music and shadow puppetry.
Brother Ken-A Night of Tanabata
At Brother Diner, on the hot summer night of Tanabata, while people enjoy eating crushed ice with sweet syrup, something unusual happens…
Tanabata is the star festival in Japan. This is also a celebration of a love story between Vega and Altair, who are separated by The Milky Way. The lovers only meet once a year, on July 7th, the Night of Tanabata. People celebrate their rendezvous by displaying bamboo branches with strips of paper and ornaments. Wishes are written on these strips of paper, because on the night of Tanabata these wishes come true.
“Brother Ken (meaning Brother Diner), is one of the songs sung by Wataru Takada, a unique voice in the Japanese folk song movement of the 1970s. He was influenced by American folk songs and protest movements. The lyrics are by Katumi Sugawara.
Tanabata is the star festival in Japan. This is also a celebration of a love story between Vega and Altair, who are separated by The Milky Way. The lovers only meet once a year, on July 7th, the Night of Tanabata. People celebrate their rendezvous by displaying bamboo branches with strips of paper and ornaments. Wishes are written on these strips of paper, because on the night of Tanabata these wishes come true.
“Brother Ken (meaning Brother Diner), is one of the songs sung by Wataru Takada, a unique voice in the Japanese folk song movement of the 1970s. He was influenced by American folk songs and protest movements. The lyrics are by Katumi Sugawara.
John Man:On The Waves
A story inspired by the biography of John Manjiro (1827-1898), the first Japanese person to step foot on America soil. When Manjiro was 14 years-old, his fishing boat was wrecked, and he was rescued by an American whaling ship.
John Man: On The Waves.
Curious Case of a Sidewalk Tree
A captivating story of a tree in love with a woman...
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Music in the Woods
The original story, “Musical Tree," was written by Luige Dal Cin, an Italian environmentalist/fairytale writer….. Long, long ago there was a hill where fairies lived. They played enchanted music with animals and other living things. After the fairies were gone, the tree grew and sang the music of the fairies when the wind blew. Time passed, and a city grew around the tree. The people found about the tree’s music, and gathered around it to enjoy its song. But this didn’t continue for so long. The selfishness of the people eventually led to a tragic ending...
Sundown
A theatrical reflection on the life and work of the father of Japanese photography, Hikoma Ueno (1838-1904),
Gorsch the Cellist/Illumination
The story based on a novel by Kenji Miyazawa.
A struggling cellist finds a way to understand and feel the music thanks to his interactions with animals, who visit him at night.
A struggling cellist finds a way to understand and feel the music thanks to his interactions with animals, who visit him at night.
