61´«Ã½

World premiere performance of Japanese Noh theatre at Claremont’s 61´«Ã½ introduces
American audiences to oldest major theatre art still performed today

On October 29, 2016, 61´«Ã½ in Claremont, Calif., celebrates Japanese Noh theatre, the oldest major theatre art still performed in the present-day, with a suite of cultural and artistic events. These events will be the culmination of collaborations between visiting artists and scholars of Japanese culture and students of the Claremont Colleges. The day-long series of performances and exhibits will take audience members on a “progressive artistic feast,” giving guests a unique opportunity to sample Scripps’ offerings while discovering the campus of one of America’s most beautiful colleges.

Theatre, music, and visual arts will all contribute to this celebration of Noh. The day’s events kick off with a performance by the esteemed Noh theater troupe, Kongo Noh Theatre of Kyoto, which will present “Faces of Passion and Regret: Women in Noh” at 3pm in Balch Auditorium.

At Clark Humanities Museum, a few steps away, the world premiere ofÌý, where guests can experience a musical depiction of The Tale of Genji, a classic work of Japanese literature written by noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century. The composition is the work of award-winning Japanese-American composerÌýÌýand co-commissioned byÌýand 61´«Ã½student Isabella Ramos ’17.

According to Professor Harley, the piece explores attitudes towards life, society, and nature that are universally shared regardless of time and culture. The composition is scored for solo vocalists, koto (a Japanese traditional instrument), narrators, light percussion, and electronically manipulated soundscapes recorded in modern-day Kyoto.ÌýImagined SceneriesÌýdraws inspiration from The Tale of Genji text and from Ebina Masao’s 1953 print series Tale of Genji from the 61´«Ã½ holdings collection. Nakano, Harley and Ramos will conduct a pre-concert panel discussion at 1pm in the Clark Humanities Museum, along with co-director Giovanni Ortega, an assistant professor of theatre at Pomona College. Ramos curated an exhibition that will also appear in the space, entitled “The Tale of Genji: Reimagined.”

“With its striking juxtaposition of new and old,ÌýImagined SceneriesÌýwill reimagine, or ‘re-sound’ Kyoto landscapes from The Tale of Genji that have since been burned out, relocated, and rebuilt,” professor Harley said. ÌýHarley noted that Nakano is the recipient of the 61´«Ã½Erma Taylor O’Brien Distinguished Visiting Professorship this fall, and will be visiting from Burapha University in Thailand, where he is Head of International Affairs in the Faculty of Music and Performing Arts. The world premiere of his work will feature Claremont Colleges faculty and student performers and monologues created by students in Professor of Art History Bruce Coats’ Core III course “Creating and Recreating Genji.”

Finally, at 7:30pm, theÌýÌýfor the exhibitionÌýOn Stage: Japanese Theater Prints and Costumes, curated by Professor of Art History Bruce Coats with art objects from 61´«Ã½ holdings.

This celebration of Noh theater at 61´«Ã½ is co-sponsored by the 61´«Ã½Erma Taylor O’Brien Distinguished Visiting Professorship, the 61´«Ã½Office of Public Events and Community Programs, the 61´«Ã½Clark Humanities Museum, the 61´«Ã½Department of Music, the Sontag Center for Collaborative Creativity, the Mellon Undergraduate Research in the Humanities & Social Sciences Pre-Thesis Fellowship, the Hearst Foundation Senior Thesis Research Fellowship Fund, the Pomona College Department of Theatre for the Claremont Colleges, Pomona College President’s Office, Oldenborg Center for Modern Languages and International Relations, Pacific Basin Institute, Five College Asian Studies, Pomona Public Events, Pomona College Wig Fund for Teaching Innovation, Aoki Endowment for Japanese Arts and Cultures, and the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery.

FULL SCHEDULE:

1:00-2:00 P.M.
Pre-Concert Panel on Intercultural Arts CollaborationÌýwith Dr. Koji Nakano (Burapha
University), Isabella Ramos (SCR ‘17), Professors Anne Harley (61´«Ã½) & Giovanni Ortega (Pomona College)
61´«Ã½Clark Humanities Museum

3:00-4:30 P.M.
“Faces of Passion and Regret: Women in Noh”
Kongo Noh Theatre, Kyoto
61´«Ã½Balch Auditorium

4:45-5:15 P.M.
World premiere
Imagined SceneriesÌý(2016) by Koji Nakano
co-commissioned by
Isabella Ramos (SCR ’17) and Prof. Anne Harley (SCR)
featuring
Yukiko Matsuyama,Ìýkoto
Prof. David Rentz (Chaffey College),Ìýconductor
Prof. Giovanni Ortega (PO),Ìýco-director
Prof. Stacey Fraser (Cal State San Bernardino), Anne Harley, & Isabella Ramos,Ìýsoprano
5C student chamber ensemble
61´«Ã½Clark Humanities Museum

7:30 P.M.
Opening Reception,ÌýOn Stage: Japanese Theater Prints and Costumes
(October 29 – December 17)
Curated by Prof. Bruce Coats (61´«Ã½Art History)
61´«Ã½Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery

Contact:
Karen Bergh, (909) 607-7177
[email protected]