Laugh it out the Japanese way!

As audiences, we have only been used to plays or events in which actors or storytellers jump or wander on a stage, making complete use of the space, to make audiences laugh. However, on Saturday, the city's theatre buffs got to know that one could sit in a relaxed manner, talk and make gestures to make a large gathering and still make them laugh. Welcome to the Japanese way of telling a story and having fun, Rakugo.Utazo Katsura, the Rakugo master from Japan, performed the sit-down comedy at the ABK AOTS DOSAKAI, Tamil Nadu Centre, recently. Clad in a black kimono and sporting a calm expression, Utazo Katsura resembled a martial arts expert. But as he sat on his haunches in a position that very much resembled our Vajrasana and started narrating funny tales from Japan, it was a laugh riot. In an accent that sounded more Japanese than English, he told four stories and acted them out without moving from his position. And whenever the audiences failed to grasp his fast narration, he paused to joke, "Chennai people are very slow."It was amazing the way he made the audience create their own picture of the story in their minds with the help of nothing but a traditional folding fan and a towel. He made different faces, spoke in different voices and made different noises that sounded so real