LOS ANGELES--Offering thanks through traditional Japanese dance, Koichi Fukuchi traveled here to acknowledge the support the Tohoku region received from around the world over the past year.
LOS ANGELES--Offering thanks through traditional Japanese dance, Koichi Fukuchi traveled here to acknowledge the support the Tohoku region received from around the world over the past year.
He said he received even more encouragement from the audience.
Fukuchi led a group of 12 dancers from Tono, Iwate Prefecture, in a program on March 2 to commemorate the anniversary of the March 11 Great East Japan Earthquake.
“We came to express our thanks, but the response was terrific, some saying, ‘Very good,’ ” said Fukuchi, 59, a wasabi horseradish farmer. “It may take some time, but we want to convey what we experienced today to people back in our city.”
The program, “Overcoming the Disaster: Gratitude from Japan to the World,” featured traditional performances from the Tohoku region, including dances by Fukuchi’s Wakumizu Kagura Hozon-kai (Group to preserve Wakumizu Kagura).
It marked the first time Wakumizu Kagura dances were performed outside Japan. Tono was a base for foreign volunteers and rescue workers during the disaster.
The Ondekoza group presented musical performances featuring traditional Japanese instruments, such as “taiko” drums, shakuhachi flutes and samisen stringed instruments.
The program is sponsored by the Japan Foundation. It will tour New York, Paris, Beijing and other cities through late March.