Hanagasa Odori Workshop

Every 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month.
2:00pm - 3:00pm

Hanagasa dance workshop by New York Hanagasa Kai. Hanagasa Odori (Hanagasa means Flower Hat and Odori means Dance in Japanese) is the traditional Japanese festival dance practiced in Yamagata Prefecture in northern Japan.

New York Hanagasa Kai (Kai means Group in Japanese) is a mixed group of all ages and nationalities, that gets together to parade at festivals and other events. Anyone can join the group and It is an opportunity for Japanese and Americans to mutually enjoy the Flower Hat Dance

Their most popular event is the flower hat dance parade which is performed at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s “SAKURA MATSURI”.


CAST IRON GALLERY
159 Mercer St. 4th Floor
Fees: $7 per class

R.S.V.P.: Momo Suzuki at Tel (212) 982-6952 or MomoSuzuki@nyc.rr.com


For more info:
New York Hanagasa kai
http://www.japanesefolkdance.org

Lecture: The Aesthetics of Kawaii (Cancelled)

There will be a free lecture by Inuhiko Yomota (Professor, Film and Media Studies, Meiji Gakuin University) about the aethetics of the Japanese word "Kawaii"

The Japanese word "Kawaii" can be translated to the English word "cute," but with a lot of underlying meanings attached to it. Young girls and women started using it a lot and now even young men use the word to describe something likable.


At:
403 Kent Hall, Columbia University
(116th St. and Amsterdam Ave.)
http://www.columbia.edu/about_columbia/map/

For reservations and for more info:
Donald Keene Center of Japanese Culture :
http://www.donaldkeenecenter.org/

"Lecture: The Forefront of Japanese Pop Literature and Criticism: "Light Novels", Games, and Otaku Imagination

There will be a free lecture by Hiroki Azuma, an author and Otaku culture critic, about Japanese pop literature specially light novels, games, and Otaku.

In Japan "Otaku" is someone who is enthusiastic about a particular culture form, often synonymous with the English word "mania." But, the cultural form is usually sub-culture such as Anime (Japanese animation) and Manga (Japanese comics). In recent years, "Otaku" became a very popular word, Japanese people use it as in I'm a Green Tea Otaku (meaning loves anything green tea) or as in I'm an American Movie Otaku (meaning American movie enthusiast).


At:
403 Kent Hall, Columbia University
(116th St. and Amsterdam Ave.)
http://www.columbia.edu/about_columbia/map/

For reservations and for more info:
Donald Keene Center of Japanese Culture :
http://www.donaldkeenecenter.org/