Free Mid-Autumn Concert at Rivers Casino with Mai Tiến Dũng, Nguyễn Hồng Nhung, Đặng Thế Luân , and more, September 8.

Rivers Casino (map) will host a free Mid-Autumn Concert on September 8, featuring a number of Vietnamese and Chinese performers. The concert runs from 9 to 11 pm. Tickets are limited and those interested should call 412-566-4615.

Pittsburgh Pirates claim Taiwanese pitcher Wei-Chung Wang (王維中), place him on Major League roster.

The Pittsburgh Pirates claimed Taiwanese pitcher Wei-Chung Wang off waivers from Oakland and have placed him on the 40-man roster. Wang was originally in the Pirates system before being claimed by Milwaukee in the Rule Five draft prior to the 2014 season. If he plays for the Major League team he will be the first Taiwanese player in Pittsburgh Pirates history.

Japanese Language Social Hour, September 12 at Pitt.

Via Yasuda Women's University.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center is hosting a Japanese Language Social Hour on Thursday, September 12, with the group of students from Yasuda Women's University spending the term at the English Language Institute. A description from last year:

Interested in practicing your Japanese language with native speakers? The Asian Studies Center is partnering with students from Yasuda University in Japan who are studying English at Pitt's English Language Institute. We will organize a series of games to encourage Japanese/English conversations and hopefully many participants will find a language partner.

It runs from 4:30 to 5:30 pm in the new Global Hub on the first floor of Posvar Hall (map).

"Materializing Memory: Contemporary Video Art from China," September 5 through October 11 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's University Art Gallery will host the exhibit "Materializing Memory: Contemporary Video Art from China" from September 5 through October 11.

Exhibited in Pittsburgh for the first time, Materializing Memory presents the work of five young Chinese artists, all born after 1980. These artists are part of China’s balinghou and jiulinghou (post-1980 and post-1990) generations. Unlike earlier practitioners, they came of age following the dramatic economic and cultural reforms of 1978. Through the medium of video art, these artists explore contemporary Chinese society during a period of profound technological and urban transformation. Their work is deeply informed by the Internet, rapid economic development, international communication and exchange, as well as opportunities to earn advanced degrees abroad. These videos document personal and collective experiences. Some record individual feelings of boredom and isolation, while others investigate broader social contradictions and complexities within China and beyond. Together, these works illustrate the plasticity of contemporary experience, and ask what it means to remember during a time when progress accelerates the urge to forget.

The exhibition's opening reception is scheduled from 5:00 to 7:00 pm on September 5; the gallery is open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm weekdays in the Frick Fine Arts Building in Oakland (map).

GlobalPittsburgh Happy Hour with visiting Yasuda Women's University students, September 5.

Interior of Pitt's Cathedral of Learning, from the 2019 Yasuda Women's University promotional catalog.

GlobalPittsburgh's next First Thursdays Happy Hour on September 5 will welcome students from Yasuda Women's University (安田女子大学) in Hiroshima.

In September, we will have special guests from Japan. The 43 students from Yasuda University will be study abroad students at the English Language Institute at the University of Pittsburgh. Their host families are also invited to celebrate!

Meet globally-minded people from Pittsburgh and all over the world to make new friends and learn more about different cultures at our GlobalPittsburgh First Thursdays monthly happy hour. Bring your friends, family, and colleagues or come alone - we are a very friendly group!

A cohort of undergraduates has studied each fall at the University of Pittsburgh's English Language Institute since 2016.
The event runs from 5:30 to 8:00 pm at Roland's Seafood Grill in the Strip District (map), and tickets are available online.

Fuku Tea to open second Oakland location.

Via Margittai Architects.

Fuku Tea will open a second Oakland location at 300 S. Craig St. (map). Plans have been in the works for months and the space was cleared when Razzy Fresh frozen yogurt closed at the spot on August 31. The owners of the popular bubble tea spot also run Sushi Fuku, which has one of its three locations on the same street.

NPR profiles Yummyholic and Jasmine Cho.

National Public Radio (NPR)'s "The Salt" profiled Jasmine Cho and her Yummyholic brand on August 31.

Jasmine Cho knows the power of a good cookie. "Cookies," she says, "can make anything more palatable." Including conversations about race and social justice in America.

A baker based in Pittsburgh, Cho creates intricate, hand-drawn cookie portraits of Asian-American figures as a way to increase representation and raise awareness of Asian-American history and identity.

Oishii Donburi, from the team behind Oishii Bento, coming soon to Lawrenceville.

Via Margittai Architects.

Oishii Donburi is coming soon to 5227 Butler St. in Lawrenceville (map). The company, founded in 2017 by the people behind Oishii Bento, purchased the former Design Island spot in May 2018.

2019 film Promare (プロメア) in Pittsburgh, September 17 and 19.

The 2019 Japanese animated film Promare (プロメア) will play in Pittsburgh on September 17. The distributor summarizes:

The first feature-length film from the acclaimed studio TRIGGER, creators of the hit series KILL la KILL and Little Witch Academia, and director Hiroyuki Imaishi (GURREN LAGANN, KILL la KILL), Promare uses a bold cel-shaded visual style to tell a blistering action-adventure story, and is the spiritual successor to many of director Imaishi’s former works.

Thirty years has passed since the appearance of Burnish, a race of flame-wielding mutant beings, who destroyed half of the world with fire. When a new group of aggressive mutants calling themselves “Mad Burnish” appears, the epic battle between Galo Thymos, a new member of the anti-Burnish rescue team “Burning Rescue,” and Lio Fotia, the leader of “Mad Burnish” begins.

It will play locally at the AMC Loews Waterfront and AMC South Hills Village, Southside Works Cinema, and the Cinemark theaters in Monroeville and Robinson. The September 17 shows are dubbed in English while the September 19 ones are in Japanese with English subtitles. Tickets are available online.

The Secret World of Arrietty (借りぐらしのアリエッティ) in Pittsburgh, September 29 and 30.

The 2010 Studio Ghibli film The Secret World of Arrietty (借りぐらしのアリエッティ) will play in Pittsburgh on September 29 and 30 as part of this year's GKIDS Ghibli Fest.

From the creators of Spirited Away and Ponyo, and Academy Award®-nominated director Hiromasa Yonebayashi, comes a gorgeous and adventure-filled adaptation of The Borrowers, one of the most beloved children’s books of all time.

In a secret world hidden beneath the floorboards, little people called Borrowers live out of sight of humans. But when brave and tiny Arrietty is out gathering supplies, she is discovered by Shawn, a human boy, and they begin to form a friendship that blossoms into an extraordinary adventure.

It plays at the AMC Loews Waterfront and the Cinemark theaters in McCandless, Monroeville, Robinson, and Pittsburgh Mills. The September 29 screenings are dubbed in English while the September 30 ones are in Japanese with English subtitles. Tickets are available online.