"Kodan" Storyteller Ichiryusai Teisui Dies at 81

Tokyo, Dec. 9 (Jiji Press)--Ichiryusai Teisui VI, the first Japanese "kodan" traditional storyteller designated a living national treasure, died at a Tokyo hospital Thursday. He was 81.

Ichiryusai Teisui, whose real name was Seitaro Asano, was born in the Yushimatenjin district of the Japanese capital. He took up an apprenticeship under Ichiryusai Teijo V in 1955, the year he began high school.

He was promoted to "shin-uchi," the highest rank in the kodan craft, and took on the name Teisui in 1966.

He was known for using lighting and sound effects to deliver scary tales such as "Yotsuya Kaidan," which earned him the nickname "Kaidan no Teisui," or Teisui of scary stories.

Teisui was designated a national treasure in 2002 and awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, in 2009.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]