Tickets now on sale for Korean troupe Bereishit Dance Company (브레시트무용단) at Byham Theater, March 4.

via FocusNews.

Tickets are now on sale for the Bereishit Dance Company's first performance in Pittsburgh on March 4 at the Byham Theater. From the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust:

In this first-ever Korean dance presentation for Pittsburgh Dance Council, the Seoul troupe Bereishit presents contemporary work that draws upon eastern Asian culture. Witness Bereishit’s amazing display of space and rhythms choreographed with kinesthetic clarity and power. Elements of street dance and multimedia add to Bereishit’s potency.

Sport meets dance in the rigorous male duet BOW, inspired by the Korean tradition of archery. The intensely physical Balance and Imbalance juxtaposes the dancers alongside some of Korea’s most revered traditional storytelling genre drummers and pansori vocalists.

Tickets range from $10 to $60. The theater is located at 101 6th St. in the Cultural District (map).

HOW: Hands-On Workshop Series—Chinese Paper Cutting with Tiantian, at Carnegie Library Oakland, November 1.

Chinese paper cut, by hto2008 (Creative Commons).

Advance notice for an upcoming Hands-On Workshop Series, Chinese Paper Cutting with Tiantian, at the Carnegie Library in Oakland on November 1.

Join us for HOW, a series of hands-on workshops for adults and teens. Learn from skilled craftspeople. Dig in and try things out in a creative, supportive environment. Join us for one or all of these free programs. Materials provided.

In China, the ancient art of paper cutting is used in festivals to symbolize good luck. Join us to make your own decorative cut-out.

No registration is necessary for these sessions. Seating for all workshops is available to 20 participants on a first-come, first-served basis. You’ll want to come early to be sure you MAKE it on time!

The event is free and open to the public. Carnegie Library's main branch is located at 4400 Forbes Ave. in Oakland (map).

Superdry to open its first Pennsylvania location on August 20.

Superdry, a UK-based Japan-inspired clothing company, will open its first Pennsylvania location on August 20 in the King of Prussia Mall. One of its features is nonsensical Japanese, inspired by the Gibberlish seen throughout Japan and East Asia. It currently has stores in New York, New Jersey, Florida, Chicago, and Las Vegas. The King of Prussia Mall was the site of the first Uniqlo in Pennsylvania, and is located roughy 20 miles northwest of Philadelphia.

2016 Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival schedule announced.

The lineup of films for the 2016 Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival was released today, a list that includes movies from Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, the United States, and elsewhere.



Movies from East Asia in the 2016 festival include Ten Years (十年) from Hong Kong, A Girl At My Door (도희야) from South Korea, and Twisted Justice (日本で一番悪い奴ら) from Japan.

The festival runs from September 16 to September 25 at various theaters around the city. A complete schedule is available on the Silk Screen website.

Tan Izakaya to open August 28.

Tan Izakaya announced it will open for business on Sunday, August 28, at 11:00 am. The Japanese-style pub run by the proprietors of Everyday Noodles is located at 815 S. Aiken St. in Shadyside (map), and released its menu---featuring ramen, sake, and yakitori---in May.

Noodle Uchi coming soon to Oakland's Craig St.

Window signage recently went up for Noodle Uchi at 415 S. Craig St. in Oakland (map), in what was formerly Maximum Flavor Pizza Shop. "Create Your Own Noodle Bowls" advertises another sign. Work is being done by Peter Margittai Architects, who designed the space for Noodle Uchi's neighbor, Sushi Fuku.

Cultures of China, Charms of Ningxia performances in Mars, August 21.

The Pittsburgh branch of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) presents an evening of performances on August 21: Cultures of China, Charms of Ningxia.

Led by the internationally acclaimed male singer Tao Jiang, Beijing Opera singer Chi Yang, and violinist Rong Guo, the delegation including 33 award-winning Chinese musicians and artists will perform a magnificent and elegant show to Pittsburghers, including folk songs, classical dances, and Peking Opera.

This gala will also kick off the celebration of 2016 Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Festival, which will be held on September 10th in Schenley Plaza in Oakland.

The event runs from 6:30 to 9:00 pm at Mars Area High School (map), roughly 27 miles north of Pittsburgh. Tickets are available online for $25, though a $5 discount is available with promo code OCA.

Japanese folk tales from Kuniko Yamamoto at City of Asylum, August 20.

City of Asylum will host Japanese folk storyteller Kuniko Yamamoto on Saturday, August 20.

Bring the whole family for an afternoon of unique storytelling with Kuniko Yamamoto. Charming folktales are combined with traditional musical instruments, magical masks, origami and mime to create storytelling that will have audience spellbound in their seats.

More information, as well as an RSVP form, is available from the City of Asylum events page. The free event is from 11:00 am to 12:30 pm. The City of Asylum is located at 330 Sampsonia Way on Pittsburgh's Northside (map).

Oakland-based education consulting firm WholeRen Education is hiring a Chinese-speaking Marketing Dept Host Family Recruiter Intern (市场部 寄宿家庭中期 全职实习生). Their website also lists several other internship and job openings.

Kung fu, anime films at Row House Cinema this fall.

Row House Cinema in Lawrenceville will show a number of Asian films this fall across several different film series: Kung Fu Cinema from September 23 to 29; Anime from October 14 to 20; and Miss Hokusai (百日紅) as part of Row House of Horrors from October 20 to 30.



Four movies comprise the Kung Fu Cinema series: the 1978 Jackie Chan movie Snake in the Eagle's Shadow (蛇形刁手), the 1972 Bruce Lee movie Way of the Dragon (猛龍過江), 1967's Dragon Inn (龍門客棧), and 1971's A Touch of Zen (俠女). The Anime series consists of three Japanese movies, with a fourth to be announced later: 1973's Belladonna of Sadness (哀しみのベラドンナ), Cowboy Bebop: The Movie (カウボーイビバップ 天国の扉), and Millennium Actress (千年女優). The 2015 film adaptation of the manga series Miss Hokusai (百日紅) is part of Row House of Horrors.

Tickets and showtime information will be available on the theater's website later. The single-screen theater is located at 4115 Butler Street in Lawrenceville (map).

Ai Weiwei in Contemporary China panel discussion, August 20 at Warhol Museum.

The Warhol Museum will host a panel discussion, Ai Weiwei in Contemporary China, on August 20.

Join us for a panel discussion about Ai Weiwei in the broader context of contemporary art and politics in China. Panelists include Cindy Lisica, art historian and gallery director; Taliesin Thomas, director of contemporary Chinese art organization AW Asia; and John Wagner Givens, Asian Studies Center associate and adjunct professor at the University of Pittsburgh. The panel is moderated by Jessica Beck, The Warhol’s associate curator of art.

A Next Pittsburgh write-up provides more information. The Andy Warhol | Ai Weiwei exhibit will run at The Warhol through August 28, and Ai Weiwei: Circle of Animals / Zodiac Heads will be at the Carnegie Museum of Art through the 29th. The Warhol is located at 117 Sandusky St. on the Northside (map). It's open every day but Monday, and adult admission is $20.

[Through Harmony] We Move, with Japan-America Society of Pennsylvania, September 10 in Mellon Park.

On September 10, the Japan-America Society of Pennsylvania will present [Through Harmony] We Move, a picnic and party in collaboration with Welcoming Pittsburgh and The Global Switchboard. From the JASP website:

Celebrate Japanese culture and the U.S. – Japan friendship with the Japanese community in Pittsburgh on September 10. Summer is a time of matsuri festivals in Japan, and we plan to celebrate with a festive picnic. Participants can experience Japanese cultural activities, learn more about Japan-related organizations in Pittsburgh, and try bon dancing and taiko drumming.

The event runs from 12:00 to 4:00 pm in Mellon Park (map).

Japanese film Our Little Sister (海街diary) in Pittsburgh, August 19 - 25.

The 2015 Japanese film Our Little Sister (海街diary) will play at the Harris Theater from August 19 through 25. Variety writes in a 2015 review:

Marking the subtle transitions in the lives of three sisters after they take under their wing a teenage half-sibling they never knew, “Our Little Sister” is so meticulously shot and gracefully orchestrated that it can be considered a worthy contempo successor to Kon Ichikawa’s masterpiece “The Makioka Sisters.” Yet, in attempting to evoke an overwhelmingly femme-centric universe for the first time, Hirokazu Kore-eda adopts an approach so serene that his protagonists’ pain as well as their personalities remain largely muffled as they drift soulfully through the seasons. While gently engaging throughout, the pic nonetheless doesn’t reverberate as deeply as the helmer’s 2013 Cannes jury prizewinner, “Like Father, Like Son,” but Kore-eda’s standing among the worldwide culturati will ensure a warm response at festivals and arthouse cinemas.

The movie stars Haruka Ayase (Hotaru no Hikari, Cyborg She, Masami Nagasawa (The Crossing), Kaho and Suzu Hirose.

Showtimes have not yet been released. The Harris Theater is located at 809 Liberty Ave. in the downtown Pittsburgh Cultural District (map).

My Best Friend's Wedding (我最好朋友的婚礼) Pittsburgh screenings cancelled.

The 2016 Chinese movie My Best Friend's Wedding (我最好朋友的婚礼), a remake of the 1987 American movie, will no longer play at AMC Loews Waterfront from August 12 as originally planned. It is currently scheduled to play in 24 U.S. cities on the 12th. Stay tuned for any updates on Pittsburgh.

2016 Korean movie Operation Chromite (인천상륙작전) in Pittsburgh, from August 12.

The 2016 Korean movie Operation Chromite (인천상륙작전) will play at AMC Loews Waterfront from August 12. Hello Asia! provides a summary of the Korean War film starring Lee Jung-jae and Liam Neeson:

Operation Chromite takes off where 8 South Korean soldiers formed by US army General Douglas MacArthur (Liam Neeson) operates under the special mission to infiltrate North Korean army and secure the Incheon landing for US troops. Captain Jang Hak Soo (Lee Jung Jae) leads the 7 men into their dangerous mission to gain insights on the North Korean naval mines. Will they be able to carry out the mission successfully?

Tickets and showtimes are available at the AMC Loews Waterfront website. The theater is located at 300 West Waterfront Dr. in the Waterfront shopping complex in Homestead (map), across the Monongahela River from Greenfield, Squirrel Hill, and the rest of Pittsburgh.

2016 Chinese movie My Best Friend's Wedding (我最好朋友的婚礼) in Pittsburgh, from August 12.

Update 08/11/16: Pittsburgh screenings cancelled.

The 2016 Chinese movie My Best Friend's Wedding (我最好朋友的婚礼) will play at AMC Loew's Waterfront from August 12. TheBeijinger summarizes this remake of the 1987 American movie, which opens in China on August 9, the date of this year's Qixi Festival:

The new version sees Shu Qi, who plays an editor of a Chinese fashion magazine, jetting about Europe, attending fashion week in Milan and getting up to wedding shenanigans in London.

Like the original, the Chinese remake follows two childhood friends after one of them announces he’s getting married to a young rich woman who has been studying in the UK.

Suddenly realizing that she's actually in love with him, Shu Qi’s character vows to stop the wedding at all costs. When she’s invited into the bridal party, things get even more complex.

Tickets and showtimes will be available at the AMC Loews Waterfront website next week. The theater is located at 300 West Waterfront Dr. in the Waterfront shopping complex in Homestead (map), across the Monongahela River from Greenfield, Squirrel Hill, and the rest of Pittsburgh.

2014 Zhang Yimou film Coming Home (归来) at Northland Public Library, August 10.

Northland Public Library will show the 2014 Chinese film Coming Home (归来), directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li, on August 10 in this month's installment of the Foreign Film Series.

Pittsburgh-based Duolingo hiring part-time bilingual Japanese-language expert.

The Pittsburgh-based online language learning platform Duolingo is hiring a part-time Language Expert, Japanese for a teaching intern position.

Use your language expertise to help Japanese speakers learn English.

Duolingo is looking for a native-level Japanese speaker to help us improve the way we teach English to our Japanese-speaking users in Japan. If you have a strong background and familiarity with Japanese, this is the perfect position for you.

Ryoji Ikeda's DATA.MATRIX at Wood Street Galleries, September 23 - December 31.

via artist's official site.

An audiovisual installation by Japanese sound artist Ryoji Ikeda will be on display at the Wood Street Galleries downtown from September 23 through December 31. His official site explains DATA.MATRIX:

matrix is a series of sound installations employing pure sine waves and white noises as a sculptural material. The installations are designed in response to specific gallery spaces or public sites selected by Ikeda. Sine wave are one of the purest forms of sound, white noise contains the full frequency spectrum randomly. As visitors pass through the sound field, subtle oscillation patterns occur around their ears, caused by their own movements interfering with the sounds. It is a very personal experience, and only through the visitors' physical engagement in the sound space can the real character of the work be perceived.

Ikeda will play a live set on September 23 at 10:00 pm at Pierce Studio in the Cultural District (map).

Ikeda's DATA.TRON was at the Wood Street Galleries in 2013. Wood Street Galleries is located at 601 Wood St. (map).

Japan National High School Champions play Western Pennsylvania All Stars in (American) football, July 29 in Greenville.

via American Scholar Group Facebook page.

Greenville-based American Scholar Group is hosting Japanese high school American football players as part of its Football Camp this month, and the Japan National High School Champions from Kwansei Gakuin High School (関西学院高等部) will play against the Western Pennsylvania All Stars on July 29. Earlier in July the team visited PNC Park and participated in cultural activities in Greenville, roughly 80 miles north of Pittsburgh.


via American Scholar Group Facebook page.

Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Festival (匹兹堡 中华文化节), September 10 in Oakland.

The second annual Pittsburgh Chinese Cultural Festival (匹兹堡中华文化节) will take place on September 10 in Oakland. Presented by the Pittsburgh Chinese Culture Center, it features numerous Asian performances, food vendors, and local business booths. It will run from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm at Schenley Plaza (map).