Last year, the HARAJUKU COLLECTIVE collaboration appeared at AF Gallery in Harajuku from August 10 until August 28, garnering massive acclaim from fans. The collection is now being sold at Shinsaibashi PARCO until March 12, 2023.

 

HARAJUKU COLLECTIVE is a Studio Ghibli-inspired apparel collection by the popular American counterculture chain Hot Topic. Bringing more Japanese culture to the ongoing Studio Ghibli collaboration launched in 2014, Hot Topic stores began selling original items produced by nine Japanese creators and brands, as well as some original American items produced by Hot Topic’s executive designers.

 

The lineup of Japan-original items includes T-shirts, tote bags, and other items featuring exclusive artwork by up-and-coming creators. These items depict beloved characters from Studio Ghibli’s works, as well as logos created for the collaboration. Fans won’t want to miss grabbing these unique items!

 

 

Details on the Previous HARAJUKU COLLECTIVE Pop-Up Store: https://www.moshimoshi-nippon.jp/ja/625747

From February 11 to February 26, an exhibition inspired by the popular rock band CreepHyp will be held at the PARCO GALLERY on the 6th floor of the Nagoya PARCO West Building. The event is being held to celebrate the 10th anniversary of CreepHyp.   The exhibition is themed around a ‘Museum of Voices.’

A person’s voice is said to be a true expression of their personality. This exhibition will give fans a new sense of what CreepHyp is and will feature their music, their MC content, and various radio appearances.

Visitors will be able to listen to the member’s voices, but they’ll also be able to step on them, dive into them, look at them, and experience plenty of other ways to enjoy the band’s content. Completely immersed in this world of voices, this experience promises to be like no other. Come experience it while you can!

The exhibition was largely created by CHOCOLATE, the creative team behind CreepHyp’s past exhibitions. Exclusive merchandise will also be available on-site.

Atarashii Gakko! will hold solo concerts at Zepp venues in Tokyo and Osaka in April and May of 2023.   These performances will be held almost a year after the girls held their solo concert at Zepp DiverCity in Tokyo last May. This year’s events will be held at Zepp Osaka Bayside on April 30 and Zepp Shinjuku in Tokyo on May 2.   ATARASHII GAKKO! - HANAKO (Official Music Video)

ATARASHII GAKKO! - Pineapple Kryptonite (Official Music Video)

Hoshinoya Tokyo, a traditional ryokan in Otemachi, has announced the New Year’s Kabuki Plan, a two-day, one-night stay from January 5 until January 7, 2023. During the Edo Period, citizens enjoyed watching Kabuki plays during the New Year’s holidays, often sipping tea at connected teahouses. This event will invite visitors to experience what this was like, complete with traditional food and decorations.   Watching Kabuki was a chic way for those in Edo to ring in the new year. Theater teahouses were also a popular gathering place–along with arranging tickets, the teahouses offered plot notes, tea, sweets, boxed lunches, snacks, and other drinks.**Hiroshi Fujita, Yoshihide Tomizawa (2012) / The Updated Kabuki Dictionary, Kashiwa Shobo  

Relax Before Enjoying Tea and a Play

Guests are invited to relax in the Ochanoma (Living Room) Lounge, decorated to look like a traditional teahouse with fans, ukiyo-e prints, and formal curtains. Hanabiramochi, or rice cakes with flower petals, will be served with green tea. These rice cakes are said to date back to the New Year’s tradition of eating hard foods like daikon and rice cakes in the hopes of prolonging one’s life. Characterized by its curious burdock root aroma, the cakes are sweetened with white miso bean paste. 

Enjoy a Post-Viewing Mont Blanc Shaped like Soba with Sweet Dessert Wine

At theater teahouses in the Edo period, sake, snacks, and desserts were served one after another. During this special event, a menu inspired by this practice and prepared by Hoshinoya Tokyo Executive Chef Noriyuki Hamada will be served! Soba noodles were often served after a play in the past. Inspired by this tradition, Mont Blanc made with chestnut paste and sponge cake will be served up to look like this popular dish. Paired with a dessert wine aged in oak barrels, the sweet will be served in a traditional lacquerware basket. In addition, the dish will be paired with Wasabi Pralines, Shichimi Meringue, and Ginger Pate de Fruits. 

Take a Rickshaw to the Kabuki-za Theater

Guests will be taken on an Edo-style tour on their way to the Kabuki-za Theater. Passing through the Nihonbashi area, the first stop will be the Fukutoku Shrine. It’s said that Hidetada Tokugawa paid a visit to and praised the shrine on New Year’s Day in 1614. The next shrine on the docket, Hodo Inari Jinja, was enshrined in Edo Castle during the Edo period to protect the heir to the Tokugawa family. It’s said that the shrine provides blessings for child rearing, matchmaking, and business prosperity. 

This tour will provide a more elegant way to explore Tokyo as guests enjoy exposition from their chauffeur. To make the rickshaw ride even more enjoyable, guests can rent kimonos for an extra charge.

Would you like to take a step back in time this New Year?

The historic Nagoya Castle will hold a special nighttime viewing event for 14 days only, from November 25 until December 8, 2022. During this period, Honmaru Palace will be open to the public at night, and the Chrysanthemum Corridor inside will be open to visitors for the first time.  The Ninomaru Garden will also be illuminated and will transport guests to a different place and time by showing a space only possible during dark hours.   Inspired by the relationship between light and shadow, this event focuses on changes that occur over time and the creation and emergence of new ideas and things.   Honmaru Palace, Typically Closed to the Public, to be Open at NightNagoya Castle’s Honmaru Palace was completed in 1615 and served as the primary residence of the Lord of the Owari Domain and as the Domain’s government office. The interior of the palace was lavishly decorated with paintings and other art pieces and was praised as a masterpiece. Sadly, it was destroyed by an air raid in 1945. Restoration work began in 2009 and was completed in 2018 with unparalleled accuracy. The Honmaru Palace gives off a completely different aura at night.   

First Public Viewing of the Jodan-no-ma in the Joraku-den

The Joraku-den was added to Nagoya Castle to accommodate the third Shogun, Iemitsu, on his way to Kyoto. It is the most luxurious of all the Honmaru Palace buildings, and this event marks the first time that the Chrysanthemum Corridor on the north side will be open to the public. Visitors are welcome to admire the golden-blue paintings as they stroll through the historic site.

See Spectacular Paintings when Entering the Tsugi-no-ma Room

During this period, visitors can enter the Tsugi-no-ma room to view classical period paintings, giving a more clear idea of how people acted and dressed during this time in history.  

[Ninomaru Garden Special Viewing] 

~Witness a Never-Before-Seen Feudal Lord's Garden through a Spacial Presentation~Scenography for this unique show was provided by the creative label PERIMETRON. In order to show another side of the Ninomaru Garden at night, the company focused on light’s characteristics, from reflection and transmission to refraction and absorption. Light and shadow intertwine in various ways, and guests will be transfixed by this curious showing.

Creative company NAKED is currently holding the NAKED FLOWER TOWER AUTUMN event at the Chubu Electric Power Company MIRAI TOWER Sky Deck in Nagoya until December 2, 2022.    The historic MIRAI TOWER, formerly the Nagoya TV Tower, opened in 1954. On October 12, 2022, the tower was registered as a tangible cultural property, and many companies have collaborated with the structure over the years. Now, NAKED’s digital art is creating a new night experience for visitors and residents of Nagoya! The NAKED FLOWER TOWER event which began this summer invited guests to enjoy Nagoya’s evening views with all five senses. The tower’s Sky Deck was decorated with fresh flowers, given that Aichi Prefecture is the nation’s largest flower producer. It was also brought to life with a special projection mapping performance, and guests could enjoy original drinks as they gazed out at the illuminated city. This event has now been reimagined for autumn, with fall flowers and grasses brightening the space. During the projection mapping show, a massive full moon is projected on the glass. You won’t want to miss it!