Walk Cheerfully
Benshi performance
JAPAN SEASON 2021
Part of the Humanities Cultural Programme, one of the founding stones for the
future Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities.
Ozu Walk Cheerfully
Benshi performance
Book tickets via Ultimate Picture Palace. (This event has passed.)
With live accompaniment by Sylvia Hallett, and benshi performance by Tomoko Komura.
A delicious Tokyo spin on a classic gangster tale, following small-time hood Kenji (aka Ken the Knife) and his doomed attempts at going straight. Although known for the minimalism of his later work Ozu had grown up devouring
Kenji’s underworld adventures will tonight be accompanied not only by live music, but also live narration courtesy of actress Tomoko Komura. Walking in the footsteps of the benshi, Komura will not only comment on the action but also voice the characters’ dialogue and provide the occasional sound effect. The specially composed score is by renowned improviser Sylvia Hallett, who deploy electronics alongside traditional instruments.
Biographies
Tomoko Komura is a Jacques Lecoq-based physical theatre performer based in London UK. Originally from Japan, she combines her language abilities in English and Japanese as well as the dual cultures for her work. Tomoko began performing as a benshi in 2011 at the Barbican Cinema for Mizoguchi’s Water Magician. Most recently, in October 2021 she performed and toured in London with a theatre show ‘We Like to Move It Move It’ by ice&fire, which questions the existence of national borders. Tomoko is a member of a renowned performance art group ‘Frank Chickens’ and plays the keyboard with a pop rock band ‘NO CARS’. She is also passionate about her career as a conference interpreter. www.tomokokomura.com
Sylvia Hallett is a multi-instrumentalist and composer moving between violin, Norwegian Hardanger fiddle, saw, accordion, electronics and found objects. She currently plays solo and with The London Improvisers Orchestra and The Heliocentrics. Recent collaborators have included Clive Bell, Chris Dowding, Mike Cooper, Evan Parker, David Toop, Jah Wobble, Anna Homler, LaXula, Opera North, h2dance, Jacky Lansley, Miranda Tufnell, Eva Karczag, Wonderful Beast, and The Royal Shakespeare Company. She has worked with Tomoko Komura on several performances of live music and benshi for Japanese silent movies. She performs internationally as a solo improviser, having released four solo albums. In July 2015 she was commissioned by the Livio Felluga Wine Company to create and perform a solo site-specific work on a hill in an Italian vineyard.
This event is a collaboration with the Ultimate Picture Palace as part of the Humanities Cultural Programme: Japan Season.
Find out more about the Japan 2021 – Humanities Cultural Programme here.
