Shortly after 8 p.m. in the streets of Tokyo’s Asakusa area, a small stage comes alive with dancers in historic Japanese costumes reimagining red-light districts known as “yukaku” that flourished in the Edo (1603-1868) and Meiji (1868-1912) periods.
In the show called “Kaguwa,” performers dressed as courtesans, geishas and samurai entertain patrons with a dazzling array of dances and stage shows, all without uttering a word.
But this “neo-Japanesque” show, which began some two decades ago and was once a major draw for overseas visitors, only exists today because of lead dancer and producer Kazumi, who brought it back from the verge of disappearing for good after the coronavirus pandemic.