Gene Luen Yang at Carnegie Lecture Hall, March 19.

The Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures series will host author Gene Luen Yang on March 19.

Gene Luen Yang is an award-winning graphic novelist and the 2016 Library of Congress National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. He has written and drawn over a dozen books including Duncan’s Kingdom, The Rosary Comic Book, Prime Baby, and Animal Crackers. His 2006 book American Born Chinese was the first graphic novel to be nominated for a National Book Award and the first to win the American Library Association’s Michael L. Printz Award. His 2013 two-volume graphic novel Boxers & Saints was nominated for the National Book Award and won the LA Times Book Prize. Yang also writes Dark Horse Comics’ Avatar: The Last Airbender series and DC Comics’ Superman. Secret Coders, his middle-grade graphic novel series with cartoonist Mike Holmes, teaches kids the basics of computer programming.

With his latest graphic novel, Level Up, Yang returns to the subject he revolutionized with American Born Chinese. Whimsical and serious, by turns, this story about a boy who wants to play video games and his parents’ high expectation for him to go to medical school, is a new look at the tale that Yang has made his own: coming of age as an Asian American.

Tickets are $11 and available online. The talk begins at 2:30 pm at the Carnegie Lecture Hall in Oakland (map).

Hit movie Your Name (君の名は) in Pittsburgh, from April 7.

The record-setting Japanese movie Your Name (君の名は) will be premiering across the United States on April 7, and will open in Pittsburgh at the Southside Works Cinema. The distributor provides a summary:

From director Makoto Shinkai, the innovative mind behind Voices of a Distant Star and 5 Centimeters Per Second, comes a beautiful masterpiece about time, the thread of fate, and the hearts of two young souls.

The day the stars fell, two lives changed forever. High schoolers Mitsuha and Taki are complete strangers living separate lives. But one night, they suddenly switch places. Mitsuha wakes up in Taki’s body, and he in hers. This bizarre occurrence continues to happen randomly, and the two must adjust their lives around each other. Yet, somehow, it works. They build a connection and communicate by leaving notes, messages, and more importantly, an imprint.

When a dazzling comet lights up the night’s sky, it dawns on them. They want something more from this connection—a chance to meet, an opportunity to truly know each other. Tugging at the string of fate, they try to find a way to each other. But distance isn’t the only thing keeping them apart. Is their bond strong enough to face the cruel irony of time? Or is their meeting nothing more than a wish upon the stars?

Tickets are not yet available online, and more theaters carrying the film will be announced later.

Reading with Chinese lawyer and human rights activist Teng Biao at City of Asylum @ Alphabet City, March 21.

By May Tze for South China Morning Post.

City of Asylum @ Alphabet City will host Chinese lawyer and human rights activist Teng Biao on March 21.

Teng Biao will be reading an essay about his fight for human rights and freedom in China–why people like him join the struggle even after being persecuted severely–as well as a poem he wrote for his wife when he was kidnapped and detained by secret police in 2008.

. . .

Dr. Teng Biao is an academic lawyer and a human rights activist. He was formerly a Lecturer in the China University of Political Science and Law, a visiting Fellow at Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, and currently a visiting scholar at New York University and the Institute for Advanced Study. He co-founded “Open Constitution Initiative”, ”China Human Rights Accountability Center” and is also the Founder and President of the China Against the Death Penalty. His research interest includes human rights, criminal justice, constitutionalism, social movement and political transition in China.

The event begins at 8:00 pm, and is free and open to the public (RSVP requested). Alphabet City opened in September 2016 as the permanent home of City of Asylum, and is located at 40 W. North St. in the North Side (map).

Korean Hand Therapy workshop at Western Allegheny Community Library, April 8.

The Western Allegheny Community Library in Oakdale will host a workshop on Korean Hand Therapy (고려수지침) with Bonnie Lowery on April 8:

Korean Hand Therapy is a modified system of acupuncture that is limited to the hands and requires no needles. By the application of direct pressure on the hands, or by placement of small metal pellets on specific points on the hands, signals are sent out to the entire body to relieve pain and to bring balance to the afflicted area. Korean Hand Therapy helps relieve headaches, sinus congestion, back pain, inflammation, migraines, and other physical conditions. This therapy offers immediate results! In this workshop you will learn how to relieve your back pain. Bonnie Lowery is a Korean Hand Therapist and has been practicing this art since 2008.

The event starts at 10:00 am in the library's Community Room and is free and open to the public. The library is located at 181 Bateman Road in Oakdale (map).

Japanese psychedelic band Kikagaku Moyo at Spirit, May 10

The Japanese psychedelic band Kikagaku Moyo will play at the Spirit in Lawrenceville on May 10. Doors open for the 21-and-over event at 8:00 and the show starts at 9:00. Tickets are $10.

Lineup for 2nd annual Pittsburgh Japanese Film Festival at Row House Cinema announced.

Yesterday the Row House Cinema announced the lineup for the 2nd annual Pittsburgh Japanese Film Festival, which will run from April 7 through 13. Seven movies comprise the 2017 iteration, and, as the Facebook event page describes it, the "key themes this year include felines, friendship, and the samurai code for 2017": 1977's House (ハウス), 1962's Harakiri (切腹), 1993's Sailor Moon R: The Movie (劇場版 美少女戦士セーラームーンＲ) , 2014's Samurai Cat (猫侍), 2002's short film Ghiblies Episode 2 (ギブリーズ episode2), and 2013's Why Don't You Play in Hell? (地獄でなぜ悪い). Special events include Pittsburgh Taiko on April 10, a tea ceremony on April 12, and the remastered 1995 Ghost in the Shell (攻殻機動隊) as the closing film.

Tickets will go on sale March 15 at 5:30 pm, though a schedule is available online. The single-screen theater is located at 4115 Butler Street in Lawrenceville (map).

2013 French-Chinese movie The Nightingale (夜莺) at Northland Public Library, May 10.

The Northland Public Library recently announced the May installment in its monthly Foreign / Indie Film Series, the 2013 French-Chinese movie The Nightingale (夜莺). The library summarizes:

Ren Xing is a spoiled ten year old who has everything. Her parents are never together at any one time due to business. However both will be away for an extended time and must find a babysitter for Ren Xing. As a last resort, Ren’s mother asks her husband’s father for help. Her husband hasn’t spoken to his father in many years due to an incident in his childhood. The grandfather is not up to date with the world, and doesn’t want to, so the two do not understand one another. However, the grandfather has to visit the grave of his late wife before his beloved nightingale dies, as the nightingale is eighteen years old . The nightingale is the last remnant of the time he spent with his wife. His wife had never heard the nightingale sing. To get to her grave site is a long trek. Will the two bond while on the trek? The movie is beautifully shot in the idyllic Chinese countryside.

The movie runs from 1:30 to 3:30 pm on May 10 and is free and open to the public. The library is located at 300 Cumberland Rd. in the North Hills (map).

Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism talk at Carnegie Library West End branch, March 11.

The second talk in a three-part series on Comparative Religions of East Asia at the Carnegie Library West End will be held on March 11 on the topic of "Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism":

The second lecture in our three part comparative religion series, hosted by Steve Joseph, will examine the themes, similarities and differences between Daoism, Confucianism and Buddhism. Each religion (or philosophy, if you prefer) exerted great influence over social, political and religious thought and practice throughout China, Korea and Japan. Learn about their origins, basic tenants and points of emphasis.

The event rusn from 1:00 to 2:00 pm and are free and open to the public. The West End branch is located at 47 Wabash Street (map).

6th Annual Tomodachi Festival: A Celebration of Japanese Culture, April 1 in Oakland.

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh's Main Branch in Oakland will host the 6th annual Tomodachi Festival on Saturday, April 1.

Tomodachi is a Japanese word meaning “friends”. Help us celebrate the spirit of friendship through activities, art and food that showcase Japan, its people and rich history.

Activities include:

• Kamishibai storytelling, singing and dancing
• Origami Art
• Kimono try-ons
• Japanese inspired refreshments

The event runs from 2:00 to 5:00 pm in the Children's section of the library, and is free and open to the public. The library is located at 4400 Forbes Ave. in Oakland (map) and is accessible by buses 28X, 54, 61C, 61D, 67, 69, 71A, 71B, 71C, 71D, and 93.

7th annual Matsuri at CMU, April 11.

The Japanese Student Association at Carnegie Mellon University will present its 7th annual Matsuri on Tuesday, April 11. The spring matsuri (meaning festival in Japanese) benefits Minato Middle School in Ishinomaki city, which was destroyed by the March 11, 2011 tsunami. More information, from the festival's official site:

Originally a sacred ceremony of the Shinto belief, now a night full of street food, arcade games, and joyful performances, Matsuris are of great importance to the Japanese people, its culture and its traditions.

We wanted to share a snippet of this eventful festival here in Pittsburgh, right on the CMU campus. Come by to try a taste of Japanese street food, play some traditional Japanese games, and enjoy a range of performances from Japanese Taiko Drumming to Pop + Rock Fusions of Contemporary Japanese Music.

We have put in a lot of effort into authenticity; we purchase things online and ship them from Japan. We hand craft our booths to make it look like what you see on the streets in Japan. Enjoy the event to its fullest by paying attention to the small details!

We are also proud to annouce that 100% of the profits we make at this event will be donated to Minato Middle school in Ishinomaki, Japan. This school lost their whole campus due to the East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 11, 2011. Please read more about our cause here.

Admission is free and the event is open to the public at the rear of the Cohon University Center (map). Additional information is available at the Japanese Student Association's website.