The Aurora-Japanese Language Scholarship Foundation holds major benefit concerts for twenty years to raise funds for scholarships of Japanese language teachers in the U.S. In 2019, the Aurora Foundation features flower artist and flower business owner Nicholai Bergmann and pianist Makiko Hirata for a piano concert and a flower arrangement performance as a substitute for annual Aurora Benefit Concert. The Benefit Awards Luncheon, Auction & Mini Concert / Performance will be held on Sunday, October 27, from 12:00pm at the Riviera Country Club, 1250 Capri Drive, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272. Benefit tickets are $200 per seat, $2,000 per table....
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North Hollywood, CA – Valley Gakuen is seeking alumni to join their 70th anniversary celebration on Saturday, October 26, 2019 at 6 PM. The event will honor the pioneers of both the Valley Gakuen and Valley Culture Center. This year’s honorees are Hiroyo Sakaguchi,  Kanji Sayano, Late Kazuo Teramura, and Ken and June Kageyama The event takes place at the Angeles National Golf Club in Sun Valley, located at 9401 Foothill Blvd. Sunland CA 91040 After World War II, many people returning from relocation centers settled in a trailer park on Roscoe Blvd. in an area now known as...
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Mr. Paul Takeo Bannai, the first Japanese American elected to the California State Legislature, passed away at 99 years of age on September 14, 2019. Mr. Bannai represented the 53rd Assembly District for four terms from 1972 through 1980. Mr. Bannai was born in Colorado in 1920 to Japanese immigrants Sakui and Shino Bannai, and was incarcerated at Manzanar during World War II due to Executive Order 9066. He joined the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and trained with the 522nd Field Artillery, before being assigned to the U.S. Army Intelligence Service. He served in the South Pacific, including with...
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Jazz at LACMA: Hiroe Sekine Friday, October 18, 2019 Concert starts at 6 pm Location: Schmiti Welcome Plaza of LACMA 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles Admission: Free Celebrate L.A.’s finest jazz musicians! Jazz at LACMA is presented Friday evenings from April to November. A talented musician, gifted jazz pianist, composer, and arranger Hiroe Sekine presents jazz standards and her own compositions using her very original voices and colors—modern and fresh, yet classic. She has been writing for and performing in numerous concerts and other events for nearly 20 years both in Japan and the U.S. In 2017, Sekine was...
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An Afternoon of Japanese Dance Performance with Lecture / Demonstration on the Koken, Stage Assistant Saturday, October 19, 2019 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm First Lutheran Church and School 2900 Carson Street, Torrance, CA 90503 Special Guest Artist (Lecturer from Tokyo) Bando Toshitaro Participating Dance Teachers Azuma Sumako II (Kikusue) Bando Hidesome Wakayagi Hisame Learn the secrets of the “hikinuki,” or on-stage quick costume change sometimes featured in Japanese dance performances, including those dance sequences in the Kabuki drama. A guest artist from Japan will present this unique lecture on the art of the Koken, or dancer’s stage assistant,...
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The 19th Typhoon of 2019 or Typhoon Hagibis tore through Japan’s main island of Honshu on October 12 and 13 causing massive river flood, killing 45 and leaving 17 unaccounted for as of Oct. 14 in Japan Time. Cities and towns across the county  – including in Nagano, Niigata, Miyagi, Fukushima, Ibaraki, Kanagawa and Saitama prefectures – were inundated by flood waters after levees failed in the face of record rainfall, forcing many people to abandon submerged homes. Rescue efforts were hindered after more than 20 rivers in central and northeastern Japan burst their banks and dozens more overflowed...
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George J. Doizaki Gallery, JACCC 244 South San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 The Go For Broke Spirit: Legacy in Portraits November 3-24, 2019 Opening Reception: November 3 at 1:00 pm Veteran’s Forum: November 9 at 1:00 pm Free events “The Go For Broke Spirit: Legacy in Portraits” is a photographic and video exhibit opening at the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center from November 3-24, 2019. The exhibit illustrates the stories of the Japanese American soldiers who fought in America’s wars through the work of photographer Shane Sato, whose portraits of Japanese American WWII veterans are featured in his book The...
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Japan Times: Powerful Typhoon Hagibis tears through Tokyo region, killing two and prompting rare weather warnings https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/10/12/national/powerful-typhoon-hagibis-lashes-japan/#.XaISOWZlDIU https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/
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Japan Foundation Los Angeles Screening of “Mameshiba” Saturday, October 12 at 6PM At Japan Foundation Los Angeles https://www.jflalc.org/ac-japanema-101219 Mameshiba 106 mins, 2018 Directed by Toru Kamei In Japanese with English subtitles
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Whittier Art Gallery 8035 Painter Ave, Whittier, CA 90602 (562) 698-8710 Touch of Nature October 2 – 13, 2019 (Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays) Reception on Saturday, October 5 at 6 pm Profile of Artists (alphabetical order) While each participating artist has a unique background and favorite mode of expression, all strive to express their personal interpretations and appreciation of the ‘world’. We all hope this event will be successful by providing the opportunity to touch your heart through defining “NATURE”. James Greaves, (MFA, Institute of F.A., NYU) is a retired art conservator, who has been promoting the ancient...
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Descanso Gardens 1418 Descanso Drive La Canada Flintridge, Ca 91011 Japanese Garden Celebration October 12 & 13, 2019, 9:00am – 5:00pm Sogetsu Ikebana Group Yokou & L.A. Men’s Class Exhibition www.descansogardens.org/event/Japanese-garden-celebration/
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Los Angeles Lecture about Japan Terasaki Nibei Foundation Lecture Series Tuesday, October 22, 2019, 6:00pm Chindon-ya performance by Benten-ya from Nagoya Chindon-ya is a Japanese term for small music bands wearing advertisement signs and marching through streets.  Today Chindon-ya is rare in Japan. Benten-ya is a Nagoya-based professional Chindon-ya band which gains national recognition. Benten-ya appeared at Japan Expo in Paris, 2016; Hyper Japan in London, 2015; and Expo Milano 2015. On Oct. 22, two members of Benten-ya, Susie playing saxophone and drum and Suzuko on clarinet, will perform at the Terasaki Nibei Foundation. Lecture is free, but dinner...
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