THE APPA Newsletter

Sept 25, 2007

 

Hispanic Heritage Month began on Sept. 15.

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/hhm1.html

http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/feature/hispanic/

 

 

See This Weekend

 

MISSION STATEMENT:

Promote full utilization of the capabilities of the Enterprise's employees and champion the betterment of the company and community. Promote interest in Asian Pacific issues and culture and act as a bridge to all groups within our community. (substitute in your Enterprise and company, etcÉ)

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ed. by Douglas Ikemi

(dkikemi@pacbell.net)

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Back issues of the newsletter for all of 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005 are available at http://www.ikemi.info/APPA/newsletters.html if you want to look up some past event. The website www.apa-pro.org no longer exists. This newsletter was originally published under the auspices of the Hughes Asian Pacific Professional Association (no longer extant). It currently has no affiliation and is available to anyone who is interested in downloading it.

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Please send in information on cultural events and news items to dkikemi@pacbell.net or dkikemi@mac.com . Thanks to those who have.

 

Long range calendar items:

 

Chinatown Farmers Market EVERY THURSDAY FROM 2-6PM, the Chinatown Farmers' Market takes place at Hill & Alpine bringing fresh fruits and produce by California Farmers to the Chinatown Community. FRIED BANANA, FRIED YAM, HAWAIIAN CHICKEN. We invite you to come and experience the Chinatown Farmers' Market. Free parking with purchase.

 

The Downtown Arts District/Little Tokyo Farmers' Market

Weller Court 2nd & San Pedro in

Little Tokyo Summer Hours 10-3pm

Features fresh produce, Hawaiian Chicken, more food gifts...and live jazz band.

Tuesdays from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m.

The weekly market is held every Tuesday from 10 a.m.- 3 p.m year round, rain or shine.

Sponsored by LARABA the market will include farm-fresh produce, Asian produce, organic produce, eggs, seafood, cheese, olives, olive oils, flowers, plants, bread and prepared foods and more.

Hawaiian Chicken, Roasted corn on the cobb

Local businesses interested in having a prepared food booth at the market or individuals interested in volunteering at this non-profit event, please contact Susan Hutchinson at 323-660-8660 for more information

 

Los Angeles Public Library Celebrates our DiverseCity

http://www.lapl.org/kidspath/events/diversecity/index.html

 

An Urban Oasis: The Orange County Agricultural and Nikkei Heritage Museum at the Fullerton Arboretum

Spotlighting the rich agricultural legacy of Orange County and the Japanese American communityÕs contributions to that chronicle.

Sowing Dreams, Cultivating Lives: Nikkei Farmers in Pre-World War II Orange County.

Opens February 10, 2007.

The Orange County Agricultural and Nikkei Heritage Museum has been built on the grounds of the Fullerton Arboretum and has been designed along the lines of a packing house. California State University, Fullerton, and the Fullerton Arboretum are working together to open the museum to the public. The inside of the building is divided into four sections: Nikkei, Pioneer, Educational, and Transportation and Geography. There is a small bookstore and the Potting Shed will move its plant sales adjacent to the bookstore alcove.

The museum will highlight the history, development, and impact of agriculture, as well as the contributions of the Japanese American community and the local pioneer families, to the growth of Orange County. This introductory exhibit will be a peek into upcoming planned exhibitions and will be open throughout the summer.

The first major exhibit will focus on the Nikkei. Sowing Dreams, Cultivating Lives: Nikkei Farmers in Pre-World War II Orange County will journey with the early Japanese immigrants to California, and follow their stories as they establish permanent communities in Orange County by marrying, raising families, founding schools and social groups, and above all, cultivating the land.

Fullerton Arboretum, California State University, Fullerton

1900 Associated Road

Fullerton, California 92831

 

October 12, 2007 - January 21, 2008

Rank and Style : Power Dressing in Imperial China

For generations ChinaÕs rulers wore emblems on their robes that identified their place in a complex system of rank and privilege. This exhibition explores how this imperial hierarchy was maintained through the bestowing and wearing of exquisitely woven and embroidered Ôrank badges,Õ as they have become known in the West.

Identity and status, so carefully crafted and preserved among ChinaÕs elite, were expressed primarily through garments and their decoration, making them virtually a second skin Ð so intimately connected to oneÕs person that even in death wearing the appropriate badge assured a continuation of earthly status. The exhibition is rich in a wide variety of rank and festival badges worn by the emperor, members of the imperial household, and civil and military officials.

Rank and Style: Power Dressing in Imperial China presents for the first time in the United States selections from the Chris Hall Collection of Hong Kong. These rare and exquisite rank badges date from 1500 to the mid-19th century, with many from the Ming Dynasty (1368Ð1644). Numerous badges feature woven or embroidered mythical creatures such as the dragon and phoenix, while others depict rabbits, cranes and tigers. Additional pieces in the exhibition are drawn from the collections of the Pacific Asia Museum and local collections.

Dale Gluckman, Guest Curator

This exhibition will be part of the fourth city-wide collaboration of PasadenaÕs cultural institutions, ÒArt and Ideas.Ó

Related Events

Saturday, November 3, 2007, 1-4pm,

Free Family Festival

In celebration of the new exhibition Rank and Style: Power Dressing in Imperial China, this all-ages festival will focus on activities related to Imperial Chinese culture and the symbolism of dragons, birds, lions, tigers, flowers and lanterns in works of art.  Free.

46 North Los Robles Avenue, Pasadena California 91101 [Google Map]

Hours: Wed Ð Sun: 10:00am-6:00pm

www.pacificasiamuseum.org

 

Runs September 20 - October 14, 2007 DURANGO

By Julia Cho

Directed by Chay Yew

When Boo-Seng Lee is laid off from the job to which he has devoted the last 25 years of his life, he decides to take his two sons Jimmy and Isaac on a road trip to Durango, Colorado. As they make their way across the Arizona desert, they confront family secrets, peeling back the layers of identity, alienation and duty that define being Asian in America. DURANGO promises to be a thought-provoking examination of the fears, fantasies, and failures of a family standing in the shadow of the American Dream.

Single Tickets Available Starting August 20th!

WEST COAST PREMIERE

Previews September 13 - 16, 2007

Opens September 19, 2007

Wednesday - Saturday @ 8 pm, Sunday @ 2:00pm

$60 Opening Night

$35 Regular Tickets

$30 Students & Seniors

$20 Preview Tickets

American Sign Language-interpreted performance October 7, 2007 @ 2:00 pm

$20 Tickets for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Patrons

For more information, please call East West Players at (213) 625-7000 or email info@eastwestplayers.org.

Click here to visit the Mark Taper Forum online for more details.

 

September 15 Ð November 10, 2007 BUGU: THE SPIRIT OF THE SAMURAI WARRIOR

The Japanese American Cultural & Community Center is proud to host this exquisite and extensive exhibition of traditional Japanese arms and armor. With this exhibit, gallery goers can travel back into feudal Japan and glance at some of the most dangerous and romanticized professions of all time including Samurai Warrior and Ninja. The exhibition will examine how Bugu is represented and conveyed through manga (Japanese comics), and will include a section for gallery-goers to try on replica armor and include video of kendo, sumo and yabusame bouts.

Presented by The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles

George J. Doizaki Gallery, Main Floor Admission Free

Tuesdays Ð Fridays: 12noon to 4pm Saturdays: 11am to 4pm Closed Sundays, Mondays and holidays

Japanese American Cultural and Community Center

244 South San Pedro Street, Suite 505  (between 2nd and 3rd Streets)

Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012

(213) 628-2725

Aratani/Japan America Theatre Box Office Info:(213) 680-3700

 

October 06, 2007 Dream of the Red Mansions

A performance of Shaoxing opera

A Shaoxing opera performance based on the classic novel Hong Lou Meng (A Dream of Red Mansion).

Performed by the Los Angeles Yue Troupe, which focuses exclusively on Shaoxing opera tradition. The troupe consists of former professional actors from China as well as accomplished amateur performers. Although the members hail from various parts of China, most are from Shangha

Tickets: $20

In connection with the performance, there will be a conference (in Chinese) on October 2. Details at http://www.international.ucla.edu/asia/showevent.asp?eventid=6030

Saturday 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM

Baldwin Park Performing Arts Center

4640 N. Maine Ave.

Baldwin Park, CA 91706

For more information please contact

Joanna Wang
Tel: (626) 282-9000 / (626) 73-4942

Posted by: Center for Chinese Studies

Sponsor(s): Center for Chinese Studies, Los Angeles Yue Troupe

 

Oct 6 Akimatsuri  Fall  Festival, presented by East San Gabriel Japanese Community Center, Inc.

12-8PM

1203 West Puente Avenue, West Covina, 91790, 626-960-2566

 

Saturday, November 03, 2007Forty-eight Buddhas of Measureless Life: Court Eunuch Patronage at the Sculpture Grottoes of Longmen

Amy McNair presents the Twentieth Sammy Yukuan Lee Lecture in Chinese Archaeology & Art

PARKING: Enter UCLA from Sunset Blvd. at Westwood Plaza. Proceed directly ahead to Lot 4. There is an elevator at the southeast end of Lot 4 and a stairwell at the northeast end, closest to the museum. Parking is $8.

The centerpiece of the sculpted cave-shrines at Longmen is the colossal Vairocana assembly sponsored by Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu during the Tang dynasty (618-907). Fifty years after its completion, however, a consortium of court eunuchs added a display of forty-eight Buddha figures to its walls. This intrusive project allows us to explore questions about the spiritual and social purposes of Buddhist statuary and patronage in medieval China.

Amy McNair is the author of Donors of Longmen: Faith, Politics, and Patronage in Medieval Chinese Buddhist Sculpture, published in 2007 by the University of Hawaii Press. She is Associate Professor of Chinese Art at the University of Kansas, where she teaches and researches early and medieval Chinese art.

2:00 PM - 3:30 PM

Lenart Auditorium

Fowler Museum of Cultural History

UCLA

Los Angeles, CA 90095

For more information please contact

Richard Gunde

Tel: 310 825-8683

gunde@ucla.edu

 

2007 U.S. Tour -  Bunraku: The National Puppet Theatre of Japan

Because Bunraku is based in Osaka, Japan, special attention was given to Kansai-area Sister Cities in the United States.  The troupe will perform in Boston, MA; Champaign, IL;  Evanston, IL;  Berkeley, CA;  San Francisco, CA;  concluding its tour in Los Angeles with four performances at the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center, Aratani/Japan America Theatre.  In 2007, San Francisco celebrates its 50th anniversary of Sister City Affiliations with the city of Osaka.

 Dates:   October 2 Ð 20, 2007

 Program: An Introduction to Bunraku  (25 minutes)

 Tsubosaka Kannon Reigenki Р

  Miracle at the Tsubosaka Kannon Temple  (55 minutes)

 Date Musume Koi no Higanoko Р

    OshichiÕs Burning Love  (25 minutes)

 Company: 16 Puppeteers, Musicians and Narrators, with an 17 additional

touring staff of wig masters, costumers, and stage technicians.

October 12, 2007

 Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, CA

October 13 & 14, 2007

  Zellerbach Hall, Berkeley, CA

 University of California, Berkeley

October 18, 19 & 20, 2007

 Aratani/Japan America Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

 Japanese American Cultural & 

 Community Center

An Exclusive Southern California Engagement

Experience Bunraku in its first full-scale U.S. performance in nearly two decades!

Presented in Japanese with English super titles.

Thursday October 18, 2007 8pm

Friday October 19, 2007 8pm

Saturday October 20, 2007

2pm & 8pm

Aratani/Japan America Theatre

$100 Opening Night Gold Circle Seating (includes Reception)

$65 orchestra, $58 balcony

$60, $55 JACCC Members

To purchase tickets, or for more information call the Aratani / Japan America Theatre box office at (213) 680-3700 from noon to 5 pm, Monday through Saturday and Sundays only on performance days.

Fax orders to (213) 680-1872 or send email inquiries to boxoffice@jaccc.org.

Call 213-628-2725 to become a JACCC Member and receive Priority Handling!

The 2007 U.S. Tour of Bunraku: The National Puppet Theatre of Japan is

 produced and coordinated by the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center.

 

Saturday, October 6, 2007 at 5pm

Direct from the E Hula Ma Hula Competition!
Halau 'O Lilinoe a me Na Pua Me Kealoha Ho'ike and Concert

Featuring the musical stylings of Na Hoku Award Winner, Aaron J. Sala and Local Band K2 Under the direction of Kumu Hula Sissy Kaio, the award-winning Halau 'O Lilinoe a me Na Pua Me Kealoha celebrates Hawaiian culture through traditional and contemporary dance, music, and ancient chanting. Discover the 'ohana' (spirit), the power, and the beauty of hula, the ancient dance of Hawaii.

We congratulate the award-winning halau for their recognition at the E Hula Mau Competition over the Labor Day holiday in the following categories: FIRST PLACE: Wahine - Auana, Kahiko and Hawaiian Language and Oli Soloist Wahine Soloist - First place in Hawaiian Language and Second place overall THIRD PLACE: Kane - Kahiko, Kaikamahine - Kahiko, Kaikamahine Soloist

For information visit www.hulahalauolilinoe.com or call (310) 271-0055.

Aratani/Japan America Theatre $25 General Admission

 

Sunday, October 14, 2007 1pm 23rd Annual Music Fair 2007

Guest artist Mita Ryo Annual Nakano Music Studio recital Aratani/Japan America Theatre $25 General Admission Sunday October 21, 1pm 28th Goodwill Variety Show Nanka Kenjinkai Kyogikai Shinboku Engeikai The Ikuei Scholarship Fundraiser concert presented by the Japanese Prefectural Association of Southern California supports cultural scholarships for students interested in the pursuit of Japanese culture.

Aratani/Japan America Theatre $15 General Admission

 

Saturday, October 27, 2007 8pm 26th Annual Los Angeles Season Rhapsody In Taps

West Coast. Debut of Special Guest Artists Tap and Tray Ð Kurt and Klaus Bleis, from Germany
Guest Musicians: Leo Chelyapov, clarinet Claire Bergen, violin

Artistic Director Linda Sohl-Ellison and her troupe of seven tap dancers, five jazz musicians and percussionists bring together the art of rhythm tap dance, the freedom of live jazz music and percussion and original repertoire for a unique visual and musical event!

Recognized for choreographic invention and experimentation, RIT on presents several exciting premieres this season including Tribute to Foster Johnson, Accent Simpatico Sextet, Higher Learning, solos by RITÕs Òfast feet,Ó Bob Carroll, a new duet by Sohl-Ellison and master percussionist, Monti Ellison plus Laughing With Tears, Rhapsody In TapsÕ critically acclaimed tap and Klezmer music collaboration with Russian born composer and clarinet virtuoso, Leo Chelyapov. As an added bonus, the company is proud to present two special guest artists from Germany, Tap and Tray (Kurt Albert and Klaus Bleis) in their West Coast debut. Tap and Tray are hailed in Europe for their brilliant and hilarious vaudevillian styled choreography and clean tapping, all done while spinning trays!

For information visit www.rhapsodyintaps.com

For Hoofer's Circle and Group rates call (310) 858-1676.

Aratani/Japan America Theatre

$40 Hoofer's Circle, $32 Orchestra, $24 Balcony

 

DAWN'S LIGHT: THE JOURNEY OF GORDON HIRABAYASHI

By Jeanne Sakata

Directed by Jessica Kubzansky Based on a true story. During the Japanese Internment of WWII, UW student Gordon Hirabayashi refused evacuation orders as a violation of his civil rights and became a federal prisoner. His 1942 conviction was not overturned until 1987.

WORLD PREMIERE

Previews - November 1 - 4, 2007

Opening Night - Wednesday November 7,  2007

Performance Run - November 8 - December 2, 2007

Wednesday - Saturday @ 8 pm, Sunday @ 2:00pm

*NO PERFORMANCE Thursday, November 22, 2007

$60 Opening Night

$35 Regular Tickets

$30 Students & Seniors

$20 Preview Tickets

American Sign Language-interpreted performance Sunday, November 25, 2007 @ 2:00 pm

$20 Tickets for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Patrons

For more information, please call East West Players at (213) 625-7000 or email info@eastwestplayers.org.

Click here to visit the Mark Taper Forum online for more details.

 

Spiritual Sounds of Central Asia

Central Asia concert presented by UCLA LIVE

Some of the world‰Ûªs most ancient and mysterious music and epic poetry comes to Royce Hall in a remarkable concert featuring 18 of Central Asia‰Ûªs greatest singers and musicians, many of them appearing in the U.S. for the first time. Performed against a backdrop of vibrant projected images, ‰ÛÏSpiritual Sounds of Central Asia‰Û includes artists from the volatile, mountain-ringed region of Asia bordered by Russia, Iran, China and Pakistan including Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Karakalpakstan (Uzbekistan) and Kalmykia. Closed to the West for 70 years, this former Soviet controlled area has experienced a resurgence in ancient musical traditions since the fall of the Soviet Empire. Showcasing some of the most exotic musical traditions on the planet, the concert includes the legendary mugham singer Alim Qasimov and his virtuosic four-man ensemble, trance-inducing mystical songs by the seven-person Badakhshan Ensemble, and an illustration of Central Asian musical styles by the once taboo, all-female ensemble Bardic Divas. With supertitles for texted songs.

Date: Friday, November 02, 2007

Time: 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM

UCLA Royce Hall

Los Angeles, CA 90095

Cost: $46, 36, 24 ($15 UCLA Students)

Tel: 310.825.2101

www.uclalive.org

Posted by: Asia Institute

Sponsor(s): UCLA Live

 

November 03, 2007 Forty-eight Buddhas of Measureless Life: Court Eunuch Patronage at the Sculpture Grottoes of Longmen

Amy McNair presents the Twentieth Sammy Yukuan Lee Lecture in Chinese Archaeology & Art

The centerpiece of the sculpted cave-shrines at Longmen is the colossal Vairocana assembly sponsored by Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu during the Tang dynasty (618-907). Fifty years after its completion, however, a consortium of court eunuchs added a display of forty-eight Buddha figures to its walls. This intrusive project allows us to explore questions about the spiritual and social purposes of Buddhist statuary and patronage in medieval China.

Amy McNair is the author of Donors of Longmen: Faith, Politics, and Patronage in Medieval Chinese Buddhist Sculpture, published in 2007 by the University of Hawaii Press. She is Associate Professor of Chinese Art at the University of Kansas, where she teaches and researches early and medieval Chinese art.

PARKING: Enter UCLA from Sunset Blvd. at Westwood Plaza. Proceed directly ahead to Lot 4. There is an elevator at the southeast end of Lot 4 and a stairwell at the northeast end, closest to the museum. Parking is $8.

Saturday,  2:00 PM - 3:30 PM

Lenart Auditorium

Fowler Museum of Cultural History

UCLA

Los Angeles, CA 90095

For more information please contact

Richard Gunde

Tel: 310 825-8683

gunde@ucla.edu

Posted by: Center for Chinese Studies

Sponsor(s): Center for Buddhist Studies, Center for Chinese Studies

http://www.international.ucla.edu/asia/showevent.asp?eventid=5940

 

November 10 and 17 The World of Murakami: MOCA Exhibit

UCLA Extension course in conjunction with MOCA exhibit

In Conjunction with MOCA's exhibition, © MURAKAMI, UCLA Extension offers a two session course exploring the work of internationally acclaimed between the artist's work, traditional Japanese painting, and Western pop art through exhibition walkthroughs, slide lectures, and discussion.

Instructor: Mika Yoshitake, MOCA Project Coordinator for © MURAKAMI and doctoral student in the Department of Art History at the University of California, Los Angeles

The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA

Los Angeles, CA 90066

Cost: $85 MOCA members; $95 nonmembers

Tel: (310) 825-9971

www.uclaextension.org

Posted by: Asia Institute

Sponsor(s): UCLA Extension

http://www.international.ucla.edu/asia/showevent.asp?eventid=6035                   

 

November 10, 2007 Rethinking China and Europe: Connections and Comparisons

A day-long conference presented in conjunction with the Southern California China Colloquium

Organizer: Professor Jeffrey Wasserstrom (History, UC Irvine)

Presenters:

Robert Bickers

Professor of Historical Studies, University of Bristol.

Wai-kit Choi

Assistant Professor of Sociology, California State University, Los Angeles.

Kathryn Edgerton-Tarpley

Associate Professor of History, San Diego State University.

Richard S. Horowitz

Associate Professor of History, California State University, Northridge.

Ruth Rogaski

Associate Professor of History, Vanderbilt University.

Wensheng Wang

Mellon/ACLS Fellow and doctoral candidate in History, University of California Irvine.

Jeffrey Wasserstrom

Professor of Histoy, University of California, Irvine. P

Titles and additional information soon.

Saturday, 10:00 AM - 4:30 PM

6275 Bunche Hall

UCLA

Los Angeles, CA 90095

For more information please contact

Richard Gunde

Tel: 310 825-8683

gunde@ucla.edu

Sponsor: Center for Chinese Studies

 

Sunday, November 18, 2007 1pm & 4:30 pm

U.S. Premiere Special appearance by Director Hisako Yamada

ÒFudeko Sono Ai Tenshi no PianoÓ (Fudeko - The Angel's Piano) 2006

Directed by Hisako Yamada Starring Takako Tokiwa, Emiya Ichikawa In Japanese with English subtitles ÒFudekoÓ is the inspiring true story of Fudeko Ishii; a pioneer who established education, care and social services for developmentally disabled children in Japan in the Meiji era. Popular Japanese actress Takako Tokiwa portrays FudekoÕs very dramatic life and Kabuki actor Emiya Ichikawa makes his film debut. Adding to the authenticity of the film mentally disabled children have been cast in the film. The director, Hisako Yamada has dedicated her career to producing movies introducing unknown historical figures of significant achievement to a wide audience.

Proceeds from the screenings will go to benefit the Little Tokyo Service Center.

Aratani/Japan America Theatre $15 General Admission

Japanese American Cultural and Community Center

244 South San Pedro Street, Suite 505

(between 2nd and 3rd Streets)

Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012

(213) 628-2725

 

December 1, 2007 at 2pm A Special Event to Celebrate the Holidays! Back by Popular Demand!

NIHONMACHI The Place to Be

A Musical Journey to the Whole Family
Written by Soji Kashiwagi Musical Direction by Scott Nagatani

Featuring The Grateful Crane Ensemble Yoko Ibuki, Haruye Ioka, Keiko Kawashima, Kurt Kuniyoshi, Merv Maruyama, and Helen Ota

Featuring nostalgic Japanese and popular American songs, ÒNihonmachi: The Place to BeÓ will take you back through time to the special place where it all began: Nihonmachi. ¥ A third-generation manju maker decides to shut down his family manju-ya after 99 years in business. But as his doors are about to close, the spirit of his Issei grandfather returns to Nihonmachi to take him to J-Town the way it used to be. Through this journey, he learns his family story, finds his roots and in the end, discovers himself.

Aratani/Japan America Theatre $35 orchestra, $30 balcony $30, $27 JACCC Members, $32, $28 Groups (10+), Senior, & Students $20 Children 13 and under with adult purchase Post performance reception

Japanese American Cultural and Community Center

244 South San Pedro Street, Suite 505

(between 2nd and 3rd Streets)

Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012

(213) 628-2725

 

Dec 1, 2 Japan Expo 2007

Japan Expo, now in its 28th year, is the largest US/Japan event that strengthens the ties of friendship between the United States and Japan. Japan Expo will be held on December 1st and 2nd, 2007 at the Los Angles Convention Center in South Hall K. Admission is $12.00. Children under 12 are free.

December, 1(Sat)

9:00am ~ 11:00am (with invitations only)

11:00am ~ 7:00pm (public)

December, 2(Sun)

10:00am ~ 6:00pm

LOCATION

Los Angeles Convention Center (Down town Los Angeles)

<SOUTH HALL-K>

1201 South. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90015

Tel: (213) 741-1154 *www.lacclink.com

PARKING

Los Angeles Convention Center

1201 South Figueroa Street

Los Angeles, California 90015

Phone: (213) 741-1151

Parking: $10.00/day


arking and Traffic Information: Radio Station 1630 AM

The Los Angeles Convention Center is conveniently located at the intersection of the Santa Monica Freeway (10) and the Harbor Freeway (110). Japan Expo 2004 is accessible from the the South Hall Parking Garage.

http://www.japanexpo.org/

 

 

December 01, 2007 Comparative Perspectives on Rhetorical Narratives

A day-long conference presented in conjunction with the Southern California China Colloquium

Oganizer: Professor Lisa Raphals (University of California, Riverside)

A great deal of scholarship in recent years has focused on the rhetorical dimensions of historical, philosophical and religious narratives. That scholarship tends to be embedded in one discipline or one genre. A particularly interesting example is the problem of women's biography, which tends to be considered in isolation from other comparable rhetorical narratives. The papers in this panel attempt to open new ground, each examining a rhetorical narrative context through a comparative perspective, with significant attention to how and whether rhetorical narratives can be approached comparatively by genre, by area, or by time period. One session will focus on hagiographies and other biographical narratives. The other will address other comparative asepcts of rhetoric.

Details soon.

Saturday, 9:30 PM - 5:00 PM

10383 Bunche Hall

UCLA

Los Angeles, CA 90095

For more information please contact

Richard Gunde

Tel: 310 825-8683

gunde@ucla.edu

Posted by: Center for Chinese Studies

Sponsor(s): Center for Chinese Studies

 

*NOVEMBER/DECEMBER

Chinese American Museum

Jake Lee exhibit opens.

*SPRING 2008

Corky Lee exhibit opens.

http://camla.org/

 

See LA Library DiverseCity events at http://www.lapl.org/kidspath/events/diversecity/index.html

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This Weekend (and earlier/later)            

 

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Books & Conversations

From Barbed Wire to Barbed Hooks: Work in Progress 2:00pm - 3:30pm

Cory Shiozaki explores the history of Manzanar inmates who turned to trout fishing to escape the hardships of incarceration. The filmmaker suggests that through fishing inmates found a much sought-after feeling of freedom, however brief, as they matched wits with the wily trout of the famed Eastern Sierra fishing grounds. Shiozaki will share stories of "escaping" at night from camp, highlight Manzanar's well-known fishermen, and share examples of fishing tackle used in camp.

Made possible, in part, by the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles.

JAPANESE AMERICAN NATIONAL MUSEUM

369 East First Street

Los Angeles, California 90012

phone: (213) 625-0414

fax: (213) 625-1770

 

FACES OF BATTLE: Japanese Prints from the Permanent Collection

On display from May 26 - September 26, 2006

This installation explores the themes of samurai virtue in conflicts ranging from legends of pre-history to epic moments of civil war in the late 19th century.

The thirty woodblock prints from the installation are also presented online in an interactive feature with stories of the protagonists, zoom screens enabling close inspection of the images, and a brief biography of the influential printmaker Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-92).

http://collectionsonline.lacma.org/MWEB/about/japan_about.asp

Los Angeles County Museum of Art

5905 Wilshire Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90036

323 857-6000 (general information)

323 857-0098 (TDD)
http://www.lacma.org

 

 

Sept 26 Gagaku and moon viewing at New Otani Hotel

8-9PM $5

Program includes

Etenraku ( transcending-heaven-music):  The most familiar of all Gagaku pieces, this melody has become the basis for many Japanese folksongs and popular songs.  It has come to be used in recent times as processional music in weddings.

Senshuraku

Bato

Bugaku

Nasori

The New Otani Hotel and Garden is located at 120 South Los Angeles Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 253-9232.

For reservations 213-253-9200

 

CaliforniaJapanese-Style Gardens: Tradition & Practice

September 28-30, 2007; Los Angeles, CA

Three day conference presented by the California Garden & Landscape History Society and Co-hosted by The Garden Conservancy, the Japanese American National Museum, and the Los Angeles Conservancy.

Exotic portions of great estates, commercial teahouse gardens, modest bungalow gardens, and public sister city or friendship gardensÑfor more than a century the lure of Japan has inspired a category of gardens that will be the subject of the California Garden and Landscape History SocietyÕs conference and annual meeting.

Little Tokyo, long-time heart of the Los Angeles Japanese American community, is the site of the conference. Through talks, an exhibition visit, and garden tours, the conference will focus not only on the Japanese-style garden in California but on the Japanese Americans who designed, constructed, and maintained them.

Registration and Fees: (Registration deadline September 7)

Members (CGLHS, JANM, GC, LAC)                       $225.00*

Non-members                                                              $270.00*

Saturday Dinner                                                            $ 75.00

Pre-conference bus tour                                                $ 70.00

* Includes Friday evening reception and exhibit; Saturday lectures and walking tour of Little Tokyo; Sunday garden tours and closing reception.

To register, fill out the attached form. For more information visit www.cglhs.org, e-mail conference@cglhs.org or phone (323) 462-2443.

Hotel:

A block of rooms has been reserved for Conference attendees at the New Otani hotel in Little Tokyo.  Call by September 5 for the special group rate of $105 per night: reservation desk at 800-639-6826 or 213-253-9215, Rosalind Pargas or 213-253-9242, Nini Whitaker and refer to Group name:  California Garden & Landscape History Society. 

Conference Schedule:

Friday PM      Opening Reception & Exhibit

Landscaping America: Beyond the Japanese Garden

Japanese American National Museum, Little Tokyo

This multimedia exhibition reveals the personal stories, historical journeys, communities, and creativity that underlie the surface of the ÒJapanese garden.Ó

Saturday         Lectures

Democracy Center, Little Tokyo

Highlights: Walking tour of Little Tokyo during mid-day lecture break; late afternoon visit to New Otani Hotel roof top garden and no-host cocktail reception; optional dinner includes a reading by Naomi Hirahara.

Sunday            Self Driving Tour:

Cultivating LA: 100 Years of Japanese-Style Garden Making in Southern California

Los Angeles Conservancy docents will be on hand to interpret five gardens and sites featured in the JANM exhibit and discussed in SaturdayÕs lectures.

Car pools will be arranged for Conference attendees. The day will end in a special private garden.

Cultivating LA is included with conference registration. Additional tickets for people not attending the conference are available at www.laconservancy.org     

Speakers (partial list)

Kendall H. Brown, Associate Professor, Asian Art History at California State University, Long Beach is the foremost scholar of AmericaÕs Japanese gardens. He is the author of Japanese-Style Gardens of the Pacific West Coast, Rizzoli, 1999. In addition to giving us a general overview of California Japanese-style gardens he will speak on ÒKinzuchi Fujii and the Storrier-Stearns Japanese Garden.Ó

Naomi Hirahara is an award-winning author of a mystery series set in Los Angeles featuring Japanese American gardener and atomic bomb survivor, Mas Arai. Hirahara is the editor of Green Makers: Japanese American Gardeners in Southern California, and she has written or edited numerous other works. Her short film, MamoÕs Weeds, featuring another fictional Los Angeles gardener is part of the exhibit Landscaping America: Beyond the Japanese Garden.

Takeo Uesugi, Ph.D, FASLA, taught landscape architecture for several decades at Cal Poly (CSPU) Pomona, and is much sought after as a designer of Japanese-style gardens. His James Irvine Garden at the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center will be featured during the Conference. Dr. Uesugi, in his talk ÒFrom Japanese Garden to California Landscape,Ó will discuss the future of California Japanese-style gardens based on his experience in the design, construction, and maintenance of gardens and his knowledge of the history and concepts of Japanese gardens.

William Noble, Director of Preservation Projects for The Garden Conservancy will moderate a panel discussion, Traditions in Transformation. This panel will examine issues surrounding the preservation of three southern-Californian Japanese-style gardens: the Huntington Japanese Garden; the James Irvine Garden and the Ganna Walska Lotusland Japanese Garden.

The panelists include: 

Bill Noble, Moderator, The Garden Conservancy

Chris Aihara, Executive Director, Japanese American Cultural and Community Center

Jim Folsom, Director of the Huntington Botanical Gardens

Greg Kitajima, Japanese Garden Specialist, Lotusland

Trudi Sandmeier, Director of Education, Los Angeles Conservancy

Gardens to be visited during the Conference (partial list)

Garden in the Sky, New Otani Hotel, Little Tokyo

Huntington Japanese Garden

James Irvine Garden, Seiryu-en, Little Tokyo

Norton Avenue

Garden of Peace, Roosevelt High School, Boyle Heights, Los Angeles

Storrier-Stearns Japanese Garden, Pasadena

San Gabriel Nursery

UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden

Pre-Conference Options for Friday, September 28

There are several public Japanese-style gardens of note in the Los Angeles area. Conference attendees are encouraged to visit some of these gardens during the day on Friday. A list of public gardens will be included with registration confirmation.

Bus Tour 9am-5pm:

Designed for out-of-town guests, this tour will visit two important public Japanese-style gardens. The tour departs from the New Otani Hotel in downtown Los Angeles and travels to west Los Angeles to the UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden. After lunch in the Sawtelle area, the tour continues across town to Pasadena to visit the Japanese Garden at the Huntington Botanical Gardens. At both gardens there will be a guided special tour. Please reserve early as space is limited.

Self Drive to UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden:

This garden is open to the public by appointment only. The Conference is making special arrangements with the University to visit on Friday. There will be a fee to park on campus and for a shuttle to the garden. Information about this special opportunity will be sent with the registration confirmation.

Carolyn Bennett

Landscape Historian

Nancy Goslee Power & Associates

1660 Stanford Street

Santa Monica, CA  90404

310.264.0266

 

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Lifelong Learning

Little Tokyo Walking Tour 10:15am - 12:15pm

Relive history and learn about present-day Little Tokyo with National Museum docents on this historic walking tour. $8 for National Museum members and $13 for non-members, includes Museum admission. Reservations along with comfortable walking shoes and clothes are recommended. Weather permitting.

JAPANESE AMERICAN NATIONAL MUSEUM

369 East First Street

Los Angeles, California 90012

phone: (213) 625-0414

fax: (213) 625-1770

 

Saturday, September 29, 2007 1pm  FOREST OF WORDS

Painting with Visual Language Origin of Japanese Kanji Ideogram

Early written signs of Chinese script were found on tortoise shells and ox bones and date back to the Shang dynasty (14th-11th Century BCE). These first characters were direct interpretation of nature, signs of medicine and agriculture, or practices in divination. Through the Japan FoundationÕs international program, two outstanding figures working in collaboration, Tetsuji Atsuji, Professor at Kyoto University, and Hirokazu Kosaka, Artistic Director of Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, will explore the evolution of Chinese ideogram with a lecture and calligraphic demonstration. Accompanying this program will be a collection of calligraphy brushes, including those made from the whiskers of rats, eyelashes of an ostrich and the hair from a boyÕs first hair-cut; a variety of specialty calligraphic ink; traditional paper; and scrolls from distinguished calligraphers of Japan.

Space is limited, please RSVP by calling Gavin Kelley at (213) 628-2725 ext. 133. Support provided by the Japan Foundation, Los Angeles

Aratani/Japan America Theatre Free Admission

Japanese American Cultural and Community Center

244 South San Pedro Street, Suite 505  (between 2nd and 3rd Streets)

Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012

(213) 628-2725

Aratani/Japan America Theatre Box Office Info:(213) 680-3700

 

Sept 30 Samurai Films at the JACCC in Little Tokyo

11AM

Three Outlaw Samurai

Bandits vs Samurai Squadron

Samurai Rebellion

Throne of Blood  (MacBeth in feudal Japan)

Festival pass $30 or $10 single

Japanese American Cultural and 
Community Center

244 South San Pedro Street, Suite 505

(between 2nd and 3rd Streets)

Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012

(213) 628-2725

 

 

 

 

Last weekend (or so) I went to: 

 

 

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Links to selected articles from the LA Times. To actually access the articles, you may have to sign up for a free account.

 

The Buddhism bomb

Burma's leaders know that suppressing protesting monks could blow up in their faces.

By David I. Steinberg

September 25, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-oe-steinberg25sep25,1,4395897.story

 

Health

BY THE NUMBERS

Healthcare satisfaction odds are less than 50-50

Fewer than 50% of Americans consider their healthcare to be stellar.

September 24, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-lahew-numbers24sep24,1,1377729.story

 

THE SMART LIST

Premieres of the season for 'Heroes,' 'Dancing With the Stars'

September 23, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-ca-smartlist23sep23,1,1191433.story

 

Glory-bound: Beijing's gold-medal transformation

With the 2008 Summer Olympics looming, China's host city has gone on a wild building spree. Prepare to be wowed by the world-class transformation.

By Susan Spano, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
September 14, 2007

http://travel.latimes.com/articles/la-tr-beijing16sep16

 

Schwarzenegger tells U.N. that states are taking action against climate change

Governor, addressing a summit on global warming, says local governments are 'changing the dynamic' and providing leadership for Washington.

From Times staff and wire reports

September 25, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-ex-calclimate24sep25,1,2480151.story

 

Chinese step up scrutiny of food

Officials try to restore confidence in exports after product-safety scares. U.S. consumers are facing higher prices.

By Don Lee, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 24, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-chinafood24sep24,1,1199279.story

 

WORLD CINEMA

Ang Lee's 'Lust,' built on trust

The director pushes his actors to the limit in 'Lust, Caution,' a tale of sexual roles, violence and deception. On the set, they believe in him.

By Paul Lieberman, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 23, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-ca-lust23sep23,1,7458562.story

 

Japan talks dignity, or lack thereof

Sumo champion Asashoryu did not endear himself to fans by skipping a major tournament.

A former prime minister and a sumo champ are derided for their behavior, feeding the public debate over cultural values.

By Bruce Wallace, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 22, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-japan22sep22,1,4319960.story

 

A Latino who went to 'War'

Bill Lansford survived the Pacific campaign in World War II. Many of his comrades didn't. His appearance in Ken Burns' documentary is for them.

By Martin Miller, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 21, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-war21sep21,1,3673525.story

 

TELEVISION REVIEW

The realities of 'War'

Ken Burns chronicles World War II in photographs, newsreels and interviews. Even so, his movie is a construct, an impression.

By Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 21, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-thewar21sep21,1,7136704.story

 

Apology by Mattel praised in China

From the Associated Press

September 25, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-mattel25sep25,1,2221307.story

 

Boycotting China? Good luck

Amid calls to curtail imports, one family finds how tough it is to go without Chinese products for a year.

By Sara Bongiorni

September 25, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-oe-bongiorni25sep25,1,856957.story

 

DAILY BOOK REVIEW

"The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War," by David Halberstam

The Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist's final book sets a new standard for popular history.

By Tim Rutten, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 25, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-rutten25sep25,1,2600948.story

 

THEATER REVIEW

The American dream: next exit

An immigrant family escapes life's disappointments in the poignant 'Durango.'

By Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

September 24, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-durango24sep24,1,2842407.story

 

MOVIE REVIEW

'Dragon Wars' says it with action

Forget the mystical story. The movie is for young boys who might relish seeing a reptilian creature ravage L.A.

By Robert Abele, Special to The Times

September 17, 2007

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-dragon17sep17,1,4323251.story