The Japan Foundation Los Angeles will present Cinema Kabuki: “Yugen”(幽玄) on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 1 p.m. (doors open at 12:30 p.m.) at the Aratani Theatre, 244 S. San Pedro St. in Little Tokyo.

In this production, recorded live at Hakataza Theatre, Hakata, in 2017, world-acclaimed kabuki actor Tamasaburo Bando has sublimated the traditional Japanese performing arts of noh and kabuki into a new dimension of art by fusing them with Kodo’s soul-stirring taiko. In addition to starring in and directing the play, Tamasaburo also edited and supervised the video, creating the ultimate worldview. A special video that can only be seen in this production will be included.

Yugen depicts the beauty and ethereal world of Japan incorporating themes from iconic works such as:

“Hagoromo” —?A fisherman finds the Hagoromo (heavenly feather robe) in the Miho no Matsubara and attempts to take it home. A tennyo(celestial dancer), the owner of the robe, performs a graceful dance in order to get the robe back.

“Dojoji” — A female dancer comes to a temple where women are forbidden. She enters the temple grounds, puts on a raven hat, and begins to dance, but it turns out that she is the ghost of a girl who burned a man to death out of resentment for an unfulfilled love. In the midst of the glamorous dance, the girl’s appearance changes rapidly.

“Shakkyo” — Deep in China’s Mount Seiryo, a lion spirit appears on a stone bridge leading to heaven. The solemn sound of the lionesses echoes through the air, and mythical lions dance heroically as if playing with the beautifully blooming peonies.

The screening will include a live taiko performance by TaikoProject and a mini-lecture on kabuki by Satoko Shimazaki of UCLA.

Since 2005, kabuki production company Shochiku Co. Ltd. has released Cinema Kabuki. which offers English speakers the unique opportunity to experience full-scale kabuki performances by some of Japan’s biggest stars on the big screen with English subtitles. This, however, is no regular film screening; Cinema Kabuki allows the audience to vividly experience the excitement of the live stage through the full use and wide-range capability of high-definition (HD) images and six-channel sound. Enjoy the authenticity of kabuki as if you were sitting in the best seat of the Metropolitan Opera House.

Admission is free but registration is preferred. Click here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cinema-kabuki-screening-yugen-tickets-778814965527