“A Suitcase of Memories” Joy Kogawa poetry performance event with poet, Sora Takayama - commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Internment
Date/Time: May 11 2017, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Vancouver, Vancouver Japanese HallCost: $15.00
Find tickets: here
In an innovative “poem within a poem” format, this literary event commemorates the 75th Anniversary of the internment, dispossession and dispersal of Japanese Canadians. Joy Kogawa, recipient of the Order of Canada and Japan’s Order of the Rising Sun, best known for her award-winning novel Obasan, partners with an up-and-coming Japanese poet Soramaru Takayama. Joy performs her own poems, one from “Obasan,” the other from “Gently to Nagasaki,” within an original dramatic poetry monologue created by Soramaru. The poetry will guide you on a pilgrimage through Joy’s memories. After the performance there will be opportunity to talk to Joy Kogawa herself. This is a rare and priceless chance to hear the story of internment from a Canadian literary giant.
7:00 - 8:00 pm poetry performance by Joy Kogawa and Soramaru Takayama
8:00 - 9:00 pm Joy Kogawa Q&A, Book signing, Refreshments
Biography
Joy Kogawa was born in 1935 in Vancouver, B.C. She has two children and four grandchildren. Her best known work is a novel Obasan, published in 1981, which is one of the handful of Canadian novels that have become essential reading for a nation. Interned with her Japanese-Canadian family during WW2, she has worked tirelessly to educate and help redress a dark moment in our history.
In 1986, she was made a Member of the Order of Canada; in 2006, she was made a Member of the Order of British Columbia. In 2010, the Japanese government honored her with the Order of the Rising Sun "for her contribution to the understanding and preservation of Japanese Canadian history".
Her latest work, a memoir titled Gently to Nagasaki, was published in 2016.
Soramaru Takayama:
Soramaru is a member of the artist collective Tasai. He was recently featured on icotto.jp as well as Nikkei TV. Sora brings his innovative poetry monodrama to Vancouver by way of ongoing solo performances as well as in collaboration with nationally recognized poets visiting from Japan.
In 2007, having received an MA in philosophy, Sora travelled the world for four-and-a-half years writing short poems. In 2008, he joined Austrian artist Bello Benischauer's ongoing art project doing translation and performance work.
His first poetry book "Tsuki To Buranko" was published in 2014 which he took on three successful tours of Japan. He was featured in the Japanese TV commercial along with his poem "A cloud and a backpack" in 2015. In 2015 he was featured in short documentary film created by Global Work, a Japanese lifestyle brand. The film was part of a national broadcast and online campaign about Japanese nationals living inspiring lives abroad. In an effort to further develop his innovative PoemMime style he is currently studying traditional Japanese theatre movement with Master Yayoi Hirano.
He performed for the Canada Japan Friendship Association, Joy Kogawa House, and was commissioned to create and perform a poem of the 110th Anniversary of the Vancouver Japanese Language School & Japanese Hall. Sora hosts an annual Canada Council for the Arts funded event, Japanese Poets North of the 49th. He is the founder and owner of Vegan Pudding & Co.
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