Among his many talents, Mutsuo Takahashi is also accomplished in the writing of Noh plays and adapting classical plays after the styles of Noh and Kyogen.
In 2009 Mutsuo Takahashi's verse was featured in "Libro di Pietra," an annual event in Arpino, the birthplace of Cicero.
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| IMS10 Cultural Events Poster: Click to enlarge and print |
He recently staged a critically acclaimed production for as part of the IMS10, one that is a metamorphosis of the classical Greek elements of Samson Agonistes into Noh. The Noh style itself reflects elements in common with Greek tragic form, so the production will exhibit a stunning fusion of international classical forms.
This is Takahashi performing at the Festival Internacional de Poesía de Medellín (Japanese with Spanish subtitles).
Manjiro Tatsumi (web site in Japanese only) played the title role for Samson. Tatsumi is a Noh actor of the Hosho School. Born to a Noh family, he made his stage debut at the age of four. After learning the principles of Noh under his father and under the head of the Hosho School, he went on to lead his own Noh groups, including the Manjiro-no-Kai (The Manjiro Group). He currently gives performances and acting lessons throughout Japan, and has performed internationally at such venues as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and at the Great Sphinx in Giza, Egypt. Tatsumi also produces and performs new dramas in the Noh tradition.
During the IMS10 we also enjoyed performances by Takashi Tsunoda and Mutsumi Hatano. They have performed the exquisite lute songs of such English composers as John Dowland, and Henry and William Lawes regularly in Japan and abroad. They have also performed at the Cambridge Music Festival, the Lincoln Early Music Festival as well as in London and other international venues.
During the IMS10 we also enjoyed performances by Takashi Tsunoda and Mutsumi Hatano. They have performed the exquisite lute songs of such English composers as John Dowland, and Henry and William Lawes regularly in Japan and abroad. They have also performed at the Cambridge Music Festival, the Lincoln Early Music Festival as well as in London and other international venues.
Timothy Harris also performed a reading of Milton's poetry. Harris has performed works by Shakespeare and other poets throughout Japan. In 2003 he read Christopher Marlowe’s poetry at the Poetry Centre in London. In 2008 Hatano, Tsunoda and Harris performed “Advent’rous Song: A Performance of Poetry, Song and Music to Celebrate the 400th Anniversary of John Milton’s Birth” to fabulous reviews.
