A reliance on visual elements to create the world of performance in Japan traces back hundreds of years through kabuki dance-drama. Two new shows keep that tradition alive.
Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s Mitsukuni defies the skeleton spectre.
conjured up by Princess Takiyasha
(1845–46)
Art Gallery of NSW
An increasing amount of the BBC’s content comes via collaborations with international production houses.
Ballet should not need to be linked to narrow male stereotypes to appeal to boys. Pictured: UK company BalletBoyz.
AAP Image/Sydney Opera House, Michele Mossop
While male dancers in the US and Australia seek to combat bullying with #boysdancetoo, Japanese culture accepts and embraces male ballet dancing.
Japan’s new Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako make their first public appearance to at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan, May 4, 2019.
EPA-EFE/Franck Robichon
History tells us there were eight women who ruled as empresses of Japan, but since reforms of the constitution in 1947, only a man can inherit the throne.
Grill, a 19-year-old female California sea lion, holds a brush in her jaws after writing the calligraphy ‘Reiwa’ to mark the beginning of a new era for Japan.
EPA-EFE/Jiji Press Japan
Murasaki Shikibu, the author of The Tale of Genji, served in the Japanese imperial court. She transformed her experiences into an intricate narrative fusing fiction, history, and poetry.
US-Japan relations are under pressure. As leaders of the two countries meet this week, a scholar tells the story of the exchange program that made such a difference to American attitudes toward Japan.
An illustration of Japanese courtesans by Utagawa Toyokuni (1769-1825), with one courtesan showing another the
tattoo on her upper arm.
Prints of Japan