comedy

I'm stalking one of the Comedy Store guys, per his request. This means that, after the British Embassy Choir's Friday concert in Kamiyacho I have to do cartwheels all the way down the Hibiya line to Footnik in Ebisu for the stand-up show Tokyo Cynics. Stalkee assures us that the show is now much better than when I first saw it well over a year ago, which I assume means that there will be more laughing and less cringing. Whoo hoo! And now that I've told you all this, you can stalk me stalking him. How exciting is that?

Even more exciting, both shows are free, so you can use your hard-earned yen to support your notorious drinking habit.

photography

I love looking at other people's photographs. Did you know that June was Photography Month? Me neither.

To commemorate that, from May 30 to June 1 (just over the weekend) the Photographic Society of Japan will be exhibiting photographs by 1000 people in the center plaza of Yebisu Garden Place [access]. Admission is free, of course, and it's not much of a time commitment, so we could just wander in after brunch.

(I could have sworn "they" said it was going to rain on Saturday, though. Be prepared for postponement or a slight location change.)

dandy

Does this template make me look fat?

There are some screwy things going on with BlogSpot right now. So please excuse the mess while they get their shit together. I've been meaning to add Tokyo Comedy Store and Tokyo International Players to my "Check List." So here they are until BlogSpot starts accepting my changes.

I'm kind of a comedy snob, so it's taken me a while to warm up to TCS, seeing as how their shows are usually a mix of amateurs and pros. They also tend to be stand-up and improv-heavy, virtually ignoring my favorite comedy form, sketch. That said, I still think it's interesting to watch people feel their way through a scene, either playing off of each other or totally ignoring each other (as the case may be). And just remember that even the Kids in the Hall used to bomb every so often at The Rivoli. There's something gratifying about watching people earn the funny, because when they're good, they're really good. And when they're bad? You remember that drinks are only 500 yen.

theatre

Arms, and the man I sing, who, forc'd by fate,
And haughty Juno's unrelenting hate,
Expell'd and exil'd, left the Trojan shore.
Long labors, both by sea and land, he bore,
And in the doubtful war, before he won
The Latian realm, and built the destin'd town;
His banish'd gods restor'd to rites divine,
And settled sure succession in his line,
From whence the race of Alban fathers come,
And the long glories of majestic Rome.

Virgil, The Aeneid

I almost forgot. Intrigue Theatre's production of George Bernard Shaw's Arms and the Man is sneaking up on us like...like a big sneaking-up thing. (Note to self: get a thesaurus.)

Starring a lot of the same people as the last two plays (and probably the same set), I'm sure this production will also manage to show its strengths in quality acting, directing and, of course, material. I don't doubt that the decision to stage this show was influenced by recent world events; unlike Virgil's poem, which glorifies war, Shaw's play mocks that institution, demonstrating "the flimsiness of military and heroic romance, in contrast to the sober and prosaic work of peace." Take from it what you will.

The show runs from June 2-8 at Studio Akasaka Playbox with matinée shows on the weekend. Tickets are 4000 yen each. See the site for details.

music

Since I figure that I'm too old to be sitting in the wilderness, sharing portable toilets for days on end with a bunch of younger, sweatier, no-deodorant-wearing music lovers, and tending to my bee stings with my homemade emergency kit, I'm probably more of a Summer Sonic person than a Fuji Rock person. Summer Sonic sounds like Fuji Rock-lite. Half the fun, sure. But it's also less of a commitment.

This is just a reminder that the box office officially opened for Summer Sonic yesterday. Tickets are 23000 yen for two days (p-code: 149-001) or 13000 for just one (p-code: 149-000), and the event takes place at Chiba Marine Stadium (number 100 on this map, if that helps any).

Since I'm only really interested in seeing Radiohead, I'm only going on the 3rd, which--with the exception of Radiohead--looks a bit ass-like. Let's hope I'm wrong.

hi there

Yeah, uh...if you came here from the Metropolis article, I suspect they've got the wrong blog. There's no art or photography here, just suggestions for things to do around town, some of which may or may not have already been reported in Metropolis or some other widely available publication. Read my shoddily assembled FAQs if you want to know more.

Might I suggest esthet? She seems much more in the know. Plus? Better links.

theatre

If you are me (and let's face it, if you're reading this blog, you probably are) you missed Hamlet last night. But instead of paying the 5000 yen to see the Kichijoji performance, you could see one of the less-publicized university performances for half (or 1/5) the price. There's a list on the One World site of all the shows throughout Japan, but there are only two shows left in our area. Sort of. If you count Chiba. (If not, then there's just one.)

22 May, 5:30 p.m. Kanda University in Chiba (Millennium House)
[useless map][Japanese map of campus]
advance 2000 yen/at the door 2500 yen

26 May, 5 p.m. Tokyo Women's Christian University near Kichijoji [map]
1000 yen (general public/students )

Wait. 5 p.m. on a Monday? Okay, I'm screwed.

film

How about I just move into the Uplink Factory? That'd be okay, right? No one would mind? It's spacious, conveniently located, has lots of chairs and plenty of booze. What's more, I wouldn't need cable.

Up until now, I have failed to mention that they've been showing the award-winning documentary Promises for weeks. Shot between 1995 and 2000, the film is a study of the Middle East conflict through the eyes of seven Palestinian and Israeli children, ages nine to thirteen. From the site:

Though they live only 20 minutes apart, the seven children exist in completely separate worlds; the physical, historical and emotional obstacles between them run deep. The ability to have dialogues with anyone, in a way that breaks through prejudices, is surely a prerequisite for peace in the region. And yet hardly anyone has such conversations. PROMISES explores the nature of these boundaries and tells the story of a few children who dared to cross the lines to meet their neighbors.

This month, Promises will be showing at 11 a.m. from the 23rd to the 25th and the 29th. It is also scheduled for the same time on every Thursday of next month. The 1300 yen admission includes one drink. (1000 yen for students.)

Also worth mentioning, Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in our Times is scheduled to run a few more times next month. (I thought they were done with Noam.)

And after the May 23rd screening of Promises, there will be a small Festival of the Disgruntled and Generally Surly (my title, not theirs), starting at 2 p.m. The three films shown will be Clerks (Kevin Smith's only good film), Happiness (kind of gross, but it has Philip Seymour Hoffmann!) and Welcome to the Dollhouse (painfully good) with a special guest speaker before the first film. Sure, you could just rent these titles and save money. But then, how else are you going to meet like-minded malcontents?

film

Bring on the Eurotrash.

As part of Uplink Factory's Eurotrash festivities next month, they're dedicating one night to horror films. Whoo hoo! On June 28th, the "Splatter Movie Archives" will be featuring Terror Train and Communion (aka Alice, Sweet Alice), only one of which stars Jamie Lee Curtis. And both so bad they've gone past good and back to bad again. (Apologies to Ghostworld.)

If the idea of seeing low-brow horror makes you feel dirty (as well it should), you can brush up on your Laura Mulvey ahead of time and pick apart the instances of scopophilia, phallocentrism and trans-sex indentification. Then you can feel all smart and psychoanalytical again.

The Eurotrash event runs from June 28th to July 4th. More info to come at a less ridiculously early date.

play reading

TIP Reads is a side project for Tokyo International Players to hold informal play readings at a member's house. The program is run by a professor at Aoyama Gakuin's English department, and the plays he chooses tend to be of the sort that TIP shies away from--quirky plays, political plays, lesser-known classics, or plays that are brilliant but might not draw a crowd.

So perhaps it's a good sign for the group that the reading this month is for one of next season's shows: A.R. Gurney's The Dining Room. Details:

The Dining Room, A. R. Gurney's witty look at that meeting place of upper-middle class lives, the dining room. Love is lost, found, and generations come and go in a play with some 60 different parts though played by only 6 different actors. At turns, touching, and comic, this play, a hit on Broadway, is by one of America's master playwrights and scheduled for TIP's 2003-4 season.

The reading will be orchestrated by David Neale, past director of one of TIP's biggest hits, Godspell, and director of The Dining Room next spring.

This reading will be held May 31st, Saturday, at 7:00 pm, and everyone brings food for the group (snacky food is okay), and a bottle of wine, or another beverage. Roles are usually assigned at the reading and you don't have to have any experience to volunteer. You can also just come to listen if you're feeling shy.

(E-mail me if you want details on how to get there and to RSVP; I can't post phone numbers and maps to someone's house on a website.)