Join Tetsuta Watanabe, a member of the The Australian Kamishibai Association, for a kamishibai (paper theatre) performance that will delight children and adults alike.

Kamishibai (紙芝居) is a form of Japanese storytelling using a set of illustrated story boards with pictures printed on one face and the script on the reverse face. The term kamishibai is also used to refer to the set of story boards itself.

Two sessions available:

1:30pm SOLD OUT

2:30pm SOLD OUT

About the performer:

Tetsuta Watanabe is a writer and translator of children’s books (English to Japanese), and founder of Melbourne Kodomo Bunko. He is also a performer of Kamishibai, and a member of The Australian Kamishibai Association (AKA) and The International Kamishibai Association of Japan (IKAJA).

Tetsuta Watanabe was born in Tokyo and moved to Australia in 1996 with his family. His recent books include The Little House with a Star Inside (illustrated by Chaco Kato, Zuiunsha, 2018), Grandma’s Cake (illustrated by Shinbo Minami, Fukuinkan, 2018). His recent English to Japanese translations include Daniel Kirk’s Library Mouse series (Zuiunsha Publishers, 2012-) and Winter’s Story by Cameron White (Sandwich Press, 2015). He has been running Melbourne Kodomo Bunko since 2000, where he reads stories to Japanese-speaking children and tells stories using kamishibai, while his wife Chaco performs puppet shows and offers various art workshops. Recently, he has performed kamishibai at a number of events and venues including Williamstown Writer’s Festival and Springvale Library.

Photos: Anthony Cheung