Japanese tradition of comic storytelling now with global profile  

This Plzeň date came as part of a European tour by rakugo performer Irifunetei Sentatsu also taking in Riga, Latvia; Stockholm, Sweden; and Trier, Germany. In the rakugo art of storytelling, the performer acts all the roles to create the richly varied worlds of his tales while skillfully wielding a fan or a hand towel. Irifunetei preceded his performance with a lecture on the techniques of rakugo, the product of a long and continuous tradition of 200 years, mixing in brief examples for illustration. Czech subtitling was employed during the performance to make this piece of traditional culture more accessible for the local audience. Irifunetei’s expert performance, tour leader Petr Holy’s careful translation and the staff’s teamwork combined for performances that evoked a tremendous response and filled the hall with laughter. The Plzeň performance drew the first standing ovation of this European tour, and the European Capital of Culture proved occasion for heightening interest in rakugo as some spoke hopefully of looking forward to the next performance.

Date:

8 Jun. 2015

Venue:

Mestanska Beseda – JoNas Theatre

Artist:

Irifunetei Sentatsu – Rakugo Irifunetei Kotatsu – Shamisen