The Other Reversed? Japan’s Assimilation of <span class='italic'>Carmen</span>, 1885 to 1945

doi:10.1017/9781108674515.018

18 - The Other Reversed? Japan’s Assimilation of Carmen, 1885 to 1945

from Part III - Localising Carmen

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 September 2020

Naomi Matsumoto

Edited by

Richard Langham Smith and

Clair Rowden

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Richard Langham Smith: Affiliation:
Royal College of Music, London
Clair Rowden: Affiliation:
Cardiff University

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Summary

Carmen is currently one of the most frequently performed Western operas in Japan where the character of Carmen has become widely known. This chapter explores the complex processes of assimilating and integrating a Western icon into the culture of a Far-Eastern country. It begins by establishing a chronology of performances and adaptations of Carmen in Japan between 1885 and 1945, and examines in detail: 1, the first performance of the opera by a Russian company in 1919; 2, the first all-Japanese-cast production in 1922; 3, the contribution of mixed-race singers such as Yoshiko Sato (1909−1982) and Yosie Fujiwara (1898−1976); and 4, Japan’s eventual role as a disseminator of occidental music to other Asian countries.

These encounters between Carmen and Japan raise fascinating issues of race, gender, class, hybridity and proto-globalisation. By embracing the ‘Otherness’ of Carmen, the Japanese were not asserting their distance from the West but rather attempting to access its mainstream. In this way, by striving to incorporate its Western ‘Other’, Japan embarked upon a shift towards a globalised world.

Keywords

Bizet Carmen Other Japan Westernisation Asakusa opera cultural appropriation Kósçak Yamada Yoshiko Sato Yosie Fujiwara Ina Bourskaya Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

Type: Chapter
Information: Carmen Abroad
Bizet's Opera on the Global Stage
, pp. 284 - 303

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108674515.018 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2020

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References

Newspapers and Periodical Literature

Asahi Newspaper (Tokyo)

L’Écho du Japon (Yokohama)

The Independent-Record (Helena, MO)

Keijo Nippō Newspaper (Seoul)

Miyako Newspaper (Tokyo)

Monthly Gakufu (Tokyo)

The Musical Courier (New York)

The Musical Times (London)

The New York Times

Ongaku no tomo

Ongaku shincho

Ongaku to bungaku

Philharmony (Tokyo)

Yomiuri Newspaper (Tokyo)

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