The Heights Room of Corcoran Commons was filled to the brim with eager attendees—friends and passersby—for Japan Club’s Culture Show. On a small raised stage, an evening of art, music, and dance took place.
The Japan Club kicked off the show with an introduction. The show was built around the plot of Your Name. This animated movie follows two teenagers who find themselves switching bodies with each other, apparently at random. It was this plotline that connected each of the performances, running over the course of the play. In between each performance, actors would return to the stage for brief scenes. Audience members who hadn’t seen the movie need not have worried, however, as the Japan Club’s version was only loosely following the narrative.
The Culture Show began its first act with a traditional cords performance—women in kimonos performed a choreographed show aided by long ribbons attached to rods held in their hands. The whirl and pattern of the ribbons was mesmerizing to watch as they spun through the air in unison. Next was a singing performance, one of three in the first act. These performances were “Sparkle” and “Nandemonaiya” by the Radwimps and then “Peace Sign” by Yonezu Kenshi.
Also featured in the first act was a performance called “Bushido Dudes.” Here, men in red robes fought and dueled with wooden swords. When one was “killed,” the audience erupted in cheers. Later was a performance called “Parasols Mix.” Men and women holding black and colorful umbrellas dazzled the audience with the swimming and twirling circles.
After a brief intermission, the Japan Club returned with the second act. To start off the second half of the show was a guest performance by the breakdancing group Conspiracy Theory. The performers, garbed in red, wowed the crowd with spins and jumps in time with the music.
Following were three performances to J-Pop songs. The first was by J-Pop Modern Girls, dancing to “That’s My Baby” by Riri. After was a couples dance to “Complex” by Daiohi Miura, which was followed by J-Pop Modern Boys to “Maybe” by Sirup and “H Na Gal” by Tokyo Health Club.
Closing out the show were two stellar acts—Wotagei Light Show and Soran Bushi. The lights dropped as performers dressed in black emerged, holding blue glow sticks. The ensuing pattern was mesmerizing to the eyes. The Soran Bushi performance featured a large number of the Japan Club members as they acted out the traditional Japanese sea shanty.
Featured Image by Jacob Shick / Heights Editor
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