When the Kabuki-za Theater in Tokyo's Ginza district closes its doors Friday after nearly 60 years, its floor manager will be bidding farewell to a place where he was devoted to providing the best of hospitality for the past 13 years.
"Kabuki is a living museum with about 400 repertories in which actors beautifully embody the lifestyles and relationships of Japanese people from the past. . . . I want more people to know that splendor,"said Simon Yoshizumi, 37, the floor manager of the Kabuki-za who will move on to another line of work when the theater shuts its doors.
The Kabukiza Theater, a registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan, will be demolished and replaced by a new high-rise office and theater complex scheduled to open in 2013.