TV | CULTURE NOTES Dec 6, 2019
by Patrick St. Michel
With Marie Kondo's new online store garnering mixed reactions, the year ended almost as it began, with people arguing about the tidying consultant.
Culture | CULTURE NOTES Oct 17, 2019
Japan's 'Beyonce' makes her mark, as the nation's influencers are revealed
by Alyssa I. Smith
With a list of the top social media influencers in Japan having been released, it appears Cool Japan is making its mark on pop culture in the country
Stage | CULTURE NOTES Aug 22, 2019
Aichi Triennale: Our freedoms are not dead just yet
by Nobuko Tanaka
The sudden Aug. 3 closure of "After 'Freedom of Expression?'" — a multiartist exhibit at the Aichi Triennale 2019 — clearly highlighted the ongoing struggles some people have with that very issue of freedoms in Japan. Ironically, too, that exhibit comprised contributions that, according to ...
Stage | CULTURE NOTES Jul 25, 2019
by Chiho Iuchi
Among the many absurdist opera stories in existence, nothing is more preposterous than the happy ending generally used for Giacomo Puccini's final opera "Turandot," in which Princess Turandot suddenly accepts Prince Calaf's wooing right after the suicide of Liu, a slave, as if her ...
Culture | CULTURE NOTES Mar 14, 2019
Marie Kondo and Momo: The new faces of Japanese culture
by Patrick St. Michel
Japanese soft power has seen two faces in 2019. One is that of tidying guru Marie Kondo. The other is the horrifying visage of Momo, an unsettling sculpture turned viral hoax. The two couldn't be more different — Kondo encourages viewers to de-clutter their closets, ...
Culture | CULTURE NOTES Feb 28, 2019
Will 'Queer Eye' show a different view of Japanese culture?
by Patrick St. Michel
Netflix's popular reality series "Queer Eye" recently wrapped up filming for a number of special Japan-based episodes. The footage from the recent trip to the country won't air until later in the year, so curious viewers will have to wait to see just how ...
Culture | CULTURE NOTES Sep 13, 2018
Could Domo-kun at 20 mean Domo-kun 2.0?
by Austin Freeman
Whatever happened to Domo-kun, the furry brown monster with the jagged maw? When I first got to Japan I used to see him everywhere. Now Chiitan, the masochistic Otter who reps the city of Susaki in Kochi Prefecture, stacks my social media feeds with ...