University Gamelan Ensemble performance, November 15 at Pitt.

The Department of Music will present a University Gamelan Ensemble performance on November 15. A description of the ensemble, from the department:

The University Gamelan was founded in fall 1997 and is directed by Andrew Weintraub. The instructor for the course is currently Jay Arms. The University Gamelan Ensemble (Mus 0690) plays the gamelan music of the Sundanese people, an ethnic group that inhabits roughly the western third of the island of Java. Gamelan refers to a set of predominantly percussion instruments including tuned gongs, metal-keyed instruments, and drums (as well as bowed lute and voice). Gamelan music is played as accompaniment to dance, drama, puppet theater, and martial arts, as well as for concerts of listening music. Gamelan is performed in conjunction with special occasions and to mark important life-cycle events.

The event starts at 8:00 pm in Bellefield Hall (map) and is free and open to the public, though registration is required. It will also be streamed online on the department's Youtube channel.

"We Learn" Beginner and Intermediate Korean classes resume at Carnegie Library in Oakland and online, Saturdays from November 12.

via the Republic of Korea's Flickr page.

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh branch in Oakland will resume its free "We Learn" Beginner and Intermediate Korean classes Saturdays from today, November 12, through December 17. The beginner classes run from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm and are online, while the intermediate classes run at the same time and are a hybrid class. Registration is required. More information is available at the library website.

Soju tasting with Korean film Midnight (미드나이트), November 14 at Row House Cinema.

As part of the Modern Korean Cinema series starting today, Row House Cinema will host a soju tasting to accompany the November 14 screening of Midnight (미드나이트).

Wi Ha-Jun (star of Squid Game) stars as a brutal serial killer who ruthlessly hunts down a deaf woman through the streets of South Korea after she witnesses his brutal crime in a new thriller that will keep you guessing and leave you breathless.

. . .

Come watch a fantastic new Korean thriller and taste some soju — a Korean liquor made from sweet potatoes or rice. 21+

Tickets are available online. The single-screen theater is located at 4115 Butler Street in Lawrenceville (map).

Tickets now on sale for Greater Pittsburgh Lunar New Year Gala, January 21, 2023.

Tickets are now on sale for the Greater Pittsburgh Lunar New Year Gala, held on January 21, 2023 at the PNC Theater at Point Park University's Pittsburgh Playhouse.

Greater Pittsburgh Lunar New Year Gala is the best performing arts show for Lunar New Year celebration in greater Pittsburgh area! Come and Join us to celebrate coming Year of Rabbit, which will be held on Saturday, January 21st, 2023 from 7PM to 9PM in Pittsburgh Playhouse, PNC Theater.
 
The gala will include world renowned and awarded Master of Arts and Crafts as follows.

Pittsburgh Pirates acquire Ji-man Choi (최지만) from Tampa Bay.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have acquired firstbaseman Ji-man Choi (최지만) from Tampa Bay. Choi, has played on four different teams over his seven years in the league, and has found his most success and longevity with the Rays over the last five years. As has been the fashion with the Pirates and seasoned players, he figures to provide a solid veteran presence at 1B, at least for part of the season before being moved near the deadline.

If Choi plays in a regular season game he will be the fifth Korean in Pittsburgh Pirates history: Chan-ho Park in 2010, Jung-ho Kang from 2015 through 2019, Hoy Park in 2021-2022, and Ji-hwan Bae in 2022, though the Pirates have had several other Korean prospects and players in their system over the decades.

Choi, Jung-ho Kang, and Ji-hwan Bae in 2019, from Bae's Instagram.

Matsuri: Autumn Night Market, November 19 at Carnegie Mellon University.

The Carnegie Mellon University Japanese Student Association will present its annual Matsuri on November 19, with a theme of Autumn Night Market.

Every year, CMU JSA holds a festival called "Matsuri" to celebrate Japanese culture through food, games, and performances. This year's theme is 夜の屋台 (Yoru no Yatai), or Autumn Night Market, and will revolve around the flavors and colors surrounding autumn.

This year's features

• An even greater selection of fresh, handmade Japanese street food items
• Some of our most popular game booths from last year
• Stamp rally with the opportunity to win gift cards
• Live performances by our very own CMU JSA members

It runs from 12:00 to 6:00 pm at University Center Connan (map). The event is free, but food and other events require tickets, which can be purchased at the door or online in advance.

Miyazaki Week coming to Row House Cinema in December.

The Row House Cinema will present Miyazaki Week from December 2 through 11. The lineup consists of 2004's Howl's Moving Castle (ハウルの動く城), 1984's Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Japanese: 風の谷のナウシカ), 1989's Kiki's Delivery Service (Japanese: 魔女の宅急便), and 1988's My Neighbor Totoro (Japanese: となりのトトロ), as well as a one-night-only showing of 1992's Porco Rosso (Japanese: 紅の豚). Tickets are available online. The single-screen theater is located at 4115 Butler Street in Lawrenceville (map).

Traditional Japanese Puppetry in Dialogue with Contemporary Puppet Theater, November 10 at Pitt.

via tomleeprojects.com 
The Department of East Asian Languages & Literatures at the University of Pittsburgh will host puppeteer Tom Lee and his lecture "Traditional Japanese Puppetry in Dialogue with Contemporary Puppet Theater" on November 10.

Join us for this talk with director, designer, and puppet artist Tom Lee. Mr. Lee is the creator of the multimedia puppet piece "Akutagawa," which he will be directing in Pittsburgh this February. During this talk, he will discuss this piece and his process to puppetry as an art form. For questions about the event, please contact Elizabeth Oyler (eaoyler@pitt.edu). This talk is sponsored by the Department of East Asian Languages and Literature and with support from the Japan Iron and Steel Federation Endowments of the University of Pittsburgh and the Asian Studies Center of the University Center for International Studies.

The talk starts at 11:00 am in 135 Chevron Hall (map).

Asian-made short film festival at CMU, November 9.

Carnegie Mellon University will host an Asian-made short film festival on November 9. Films include:

FIRST TIMERS by Jee Hoon Seo
An advanced surfer encounters a beginner surfer struggling on his first session and is reminded of his own beginnings.

DE CLOSIN NIGHT by Shicong Zhu & Ella Rouwen Chen
A Chinese theater student tries to get rid of her accent in order to land a college performance. But as she tries harder, the line between the skill set. and her self-identity gets blurred.

WALINONG SARI by Eugene Foo & Honey Ahmad
A warrior princess of Inderapura has to choose between a kingdom that comes with a strategic marriage or, to follow her heart for a life of adventure with a man who truly understands her.

OINK by Milky Tran
A story about unconditional admiration and how mothers can unconsciously pass on their own unhealthy habits and insecurities to their daughters.

The evening also includes a keynote address by filmmaker and Pittsburgh native Milky Tran, and the first 50 people to arrive get free Boba. It will be held at cConomy Auditorium, Jared L. Cohon University Center (map). Registration can be made online. Presented in collaboration with CMU International Film Festival, aKDPhi, Project Smile, Screenshot Asia, UPitt Asian Studies Center, and Big Straw Magazine.

Japanese short film Veils (ベール) named Reel Q Pittsburgh LGBTQ+ Film Festival Best Short Film.

The 2021 Japanese short film Veils (ベール) was selected yesterday as an audience award winner at the 2022 Reel Q Pittsburgh LGBTQ+ Film Festival for Best Short Film.

Ayumi Tani, an owner of a small bookstore, and Sayaka Murakami, a call center worker, are a lesbian couple living together. While they feel somewhat stifled by the fact that they are part of the LGBTQ community, they are looking forward to having a wedding-style photo shoot to celebrate their five-year anniversary. Sayaka finds a site for searching photo salons advertising “LGBTQ available" and enthusiastically makes an inquiry, but one photo salon’s disappointing response angers them. Ayumi decides to go confront the photo salon in person, even though Sayaka tries to stop her. Will Ayumi's words reach Ms. Oshima, an experienced staff of the salon? Will there be a place where Ayumi and Sayaka can enjoy their own slice of happiness.