Guest Performers:
RONE and Gigi
(https://roneandgigi.com)
We are very excited to announce that RONE and Gigi, a clown duo, will be our guests for the upcoming December General Meeting to entertain us with "Laughter is Life" at the FCCJ.
Please join us to celebrate the start of the holiday season with a joyful clown performance.
PROFILE
RONE and Gigi became a theater clown duo in 1990 after graduating from Ringling Ros. and Barnum & Bailey Bown College, an American circus school, in Japan. They started up Open Sesami, a clown theatrical troupe, where RONE, whose father was a Kabuki actor, is the business manager and Gigi, who attended a clown school from 1989, is the artistic director.
The duo decided to go to Russia in 1991 after being inspired by Mimikrichy, a Ukrainian six-member clown troupe. In 1992, the duo went to Ukraine to study more Russian style clowning and then to the U.K. to study clowning and mime from Nola Rae, a famous clown and mime artist based in London. After attending the University of Wisconsin Clown Camp in 1997, they became instructors at the UW Clown Camp for 14 years. Winning numerous awards like the Best Clown Award at Clowns International (U.K), First Prize in Portland Comedy Fest (U.S.A) and the prestigious Silver Clown Award Monte Carlo international Clown Festival (Monaco). They have performed in South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Russia, Ukraine, Monaco, the U.K., the U.S.A and Canada.
SUMMARY
RONE and Gigi
Theater Clown Duo (Japanese Theater Clown Company OPEN SESAME)
The word clown refers to a Western art form that was not imported into Japan when ballet, opera, and Western theater were introduced. Just as opera is called opera and ballet is not called Western dance, clown has no Japanese translation. A clown and a pierrot are similar, but they are different professions. Just as karate and judo are different, so are noh, kyogen, and kabuki. Clowns are sometime translated as daidougei or pierrot as it has an image of street performers. In Europe and the United States, where clowning originated, it is recognized as an art form, like opera.
Clown is an art form with a philosophy not easily found in Japan. Clowning is a traditional art form with a systematic system of expressions. Not only are clowns well-versed in mime, juggling, dancing, singing, acting, and many other forms of entertainment, but they also communicate with the audience and create a whirlwind of laughter on stage.
Facing the reality of the world, RONE and Gigi work on creating comic scripts to make people feel happy. Clowns value diversity and strive to move the hearts of those who are present. During their training abroad, they were taught that “a sense of laughter is like a sense of taste; everyone has different tastes.” Even if it may not be to everyone's taste, they continue to improve their art form for the sake of those who need it. That love of art inspires RONE and Gigi to work extremely hard to develop their own special form of clowning.
-- HOW TO ATTEND THIS EVENT --
The December General Meeting will be held as a hybrid meeting. The luncheon will take place at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan from 11:30-14:00 JST. Doors open at 11:00. Live streaming will start from 11:30-12:50 JST.
In-person RSVP by Saturday, November 30th, 2024
Online RSVP by Monday, December 2nd, 2024
◉ In-Person Attendance ◉
STEP 1:
REGISTER.
The registration button (either pink or green) is on top left area of this page.
CHOOSE location "FCCJ"
CHOOSE Meat or Fish / Vegetarian course
STEP 2:
REMIT PAYMENT.
Non-refundable on and after Dec 1st.
A confirmation email will be sent to you with a payment link for GM & Luncheon at FCCJ. Please pay through the link inside your confirmation email.
Luncheon Fee for Members: 7,000 yen
Luncheon Fee for Guests: 8,000 yen
*NOTE: When you attempt to pay, if the screen responds only with "Added" and does not automatically take you to the payment screen, please look for a tiny cart in the upper right corner of the screen.
Click on the tiny cart and it should take you to the payment screen. Adjust the order quantity to "1" and proceed to checkout.
*For further online payment difficulties, please email "generalmeetingmanagers@cwaj.org" . We will send you a link for bank transfer, depending on the situation.
STEP 3:
FOOD ALLERGIES
*If you have any food allergies, please contact "generalmeetingmanagers@cwaj.org".
STEP 4:
ADDRESS
The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan
Marunouchi Nijubashi Bldg. 5F,
2-3, Marunouchi 3-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 100-0005
Time: 11:30 - 14:00
Click here for ACCESS: Directions to the Venue
Luncheon Menu
<Regular Menu>
Starter: Duck Salad with beetroot
Main: Please choose fish or meat
Fish: Sauteed salmon with mushroom and mustard sauce
OR
Meat: Grilled chicken with shallot and caper sauce
Bread
Dessert: Panna cotta
Coffee or tea
or
<Vegetarian Menu>
Starter: Green Salad
Main: Hamburger steak with shiitake and tofu
Focaccia
Dessert: Assorted Fruits
Coffee or Tea
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◉ Online Attendance ◉
STEP 1:
Choose "ONLINE".
RSVP by Monday, Dec 2nd, 2024
STEP 2:
If you reside in Japan:
CWAJ charges a ¥1,000 non-refundable Zoom fee for hybrid meetings.
Kindly remit your payment by Monday, Dec 2nd, 2024.
This fee helps to cover virtual operation costs for CWAJ hybrid meetings, including IT support.
If you reside overseas: no payment is required.
*We ask for your kind understanding in advance of the possibility of the zoom live-stream cancellation, in the event of unforeseen circumstances.
To attend the online event, please log into the private Zoom link which will be sent to the email you have registered with.
For the members who wish to register guests, please receive a code from General Meeting Managers (generalmeetingmanagers@cwaj.org) to share with the guests.
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For questions, please contact General Meeting Managers
Contact: generalmeetingmanagers@cwaj.org
General Meeting Managers: Shigeko Nagaoka and Chamodi Withana