Cambridge Students Experience Japanese Traditional Storytelling

London, May 7 (Jiji Press)--Students at the University of Cambridge have participated in a workshop to learn about Japanese culture through "rakugo" and "kodan" traditional Japanese storytelling, trying their unique ways of narrating.

In the workshop, held last week, students of Japanese and other people watched pieces performed by storytellers from Japan. Some tried performing on a stage, sometimes struggling to act differently depending on the character and use different tones to accentuate the delivery.

Rakugo storyteller Tatekawa Shinoharu and kodan storyteller Kanda Yoko taught about 40 people, mainly students from first-year to graduate levels, how to act and use hand props such as a Japanese fan. Rakugo focuses on comic stories, while kodan storytellers mainly handle historical topics.

After practicing, students went up to the stage set up in the seminar room and performed parts of stories.

First-year student Zazie Chen played a scene of a child begging a parent for things in the "Hatsutenjin" piece about a New Year's visit to a shrine and a festival there.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]