But still we live on

A stage for Kyogen performers living in the 21st century
Vol.13 The "core" of tradition and new values
Ozo doctrine (Noh performer Kyogen style Ozo school)

In February, the COVID-19 pandemic was slowly spreading in Japan. Many events, including those in the sports world, were canceled, and many in the entertainment industry were also canceled or postponed.
From the performance in March to the present, I have only been on stage once. There is no indication of when performances will be held from now until August, but it can't be helped as my job is right in the middle of the "three Cs" advocated by the government. I think that the organizers will have no choice but to cancel the performances, considering the transportation situation of the customers.
I was also scheduled to perform a self-produced concert on May 31st, but I gave up on it.

"There's nothing I can do."
"Culture and the arts are powerless..."

I really hate feeling negative like that, so I thought, "Now is the time to do something I've never been able to do before!"
It may sound strange, but I was being a bit aggressive and thought, "Is it okay to be a little off in the current situation?"

First, we moved our Kyogen classes online.

It's modern, but the feeling is solemn.

This was something I undertook at the request of my students, and it was surprisingly fun. Although there are limitations to what we can do, I am exploring ways to practice online that are unique to this format.
Furthermore, it looks like university classes will also be moving online, so I have started collecting various equipment in order to teach more effectively.

It may be a bit solemn, but it's kind of fun when you add more equipment!

From the right, there are wired and wireless earphones, a wide-angle lens in the middle, a mobile phone stand on the left, and a fan in the foreground. In other words, there are more things to prepare for practice now (laughs).
The students were also happy that they were able to use their voices and move their bodies after being under house arrest every day.

Next, taking advantage of the fact that many artists are taking on various challenges on social media, I created and uploaded a hakama challenge and a memorization challenge.

First, here is the "Hakama Challenge" that was posted on Twitter. It's a kind of challenge to the students.

Putting on a hakama quickly is something we take for granted, but it seems to be surprisingly difficult for modern people, and when I posted, "If you have hakama at home, try it lol," I received an unexpected response.

I would encourage children to try the "Memorization Challenge." There are a lot of fish names in the game, so fishing enthusiasts will also enjoy it.
[Can you remember "The Fish Sermon"?]

I hope that my work will be seen by people, that it will make them happy, and that it will be useful. I think that this is the origin of my work.

So what will happen to the entertainment industry, as well as the theater and music industries? If it becomes difficult to gather together, will we naturally move towards video streaming?

It seems that there were many performing arts around the time that Noh and Kyogen were born. It developed by incorporating various genres, and over the long period of time, it was selected and elevated to a first-class art form. However, with the Meiji Restoration, it lost its support from the shogunate and found a life among the common people. During the war, "laughter" was even banned, but it has continued to be passed down through various hardships. In the face of the hardships we are facing today, perhaps we need to approach them with new values while still maintaining the "core" of tradition.

We cannot let the light of the heart that has been passed down go out now.
Culture and the arts are essential for people to survive.