Japanese comedy has a long and illustrious history that I find to be a remarkable subject to explore. And, as you might expect, the nation has created many distinct 'categories' of comedy over the previous several centuries. In The united states, where I now live, there are parallels to this. We have many different types of comedy as well, some of which are based on regions, such as hillbilly, or redneck humor. Japan's 'humor' categories are also regionally dependent, the perfect illustration being Manzai.
For this article, I'm going to concentrate on Manzai, since it's my favorite flavor of humor.
Manzai is really a traditional type of standup comedy in Japanese society, which generally requires two performers: a straight man (tsukkomi) as well as a funny man (boke) exchanging jokes at high speed. The majority of of the jokes center around common misconceptions, double-talk, puns and other verbal gags. People in america may compare Manzai to those wonderful Abbot and Costello routines of the 1930's and 40's. In the event that the names of Abbott and Costello don't sound familiar to those from the younger generation, possibly you've seen their well-known bit: 'Who's on First?' Manzai humor is very comparable to Who's on First in many regards.
Manzai can follow its roots back to the area of Osaka, where the comedians would carry out their amusing and funny dialogue speaking in the Kansai dialect. Yoshimoto Kogyo, a big entertainment conglomerate based in Osaka was the power behind manzai, and was a key player in introducing it to Tokyo audiences way back in 1933. According to a number of sources, it has become the most widespread flavor of Japanese humor within the Land Of the Rising Sun.
To learn the roots of manzai, we have to delve into Japanese history. The origins of this comedy variation can be credited to an ancient New Year celebration held during the Heian period. The pattern of the straight man and funny man is carried out by the performing artists supposedly providing communications from the gods. Opposition is the name of the game as one performer ruins the party of the other.
Eventually the Edo period came in to existence as the Heian time period passed into history. At this point the design altered with much more focus on the comic aspect of stand-up. Moreover there were newer variances and more varied styles.
Now we fast forward to the twentieth century. The Taisho period was coming to an end, and the foundation of Yoshimoto Kogyo was about to occur. It was 1912 to be precise, when these events provided the way for a fresher, more current version of manzai.
The modification proved to be a good one as the brand new style began to spread further into Japan which included Tokyo. The reputation of Manzai was boosted with the arrival of communications technologies for example radio, and eventually television. Yes indeed, manzai has survived the passing of the ages, and is well established even today in our high technology community.
I hope you liked this short look into Japanese Comedy. Perhaps you feel as I do that humor, when performed well, can help to make the world a better place. To that end, I've discovered a resource that may make us all funnier individuals. Please click here for more info.