Page 148 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Tokyo

146  TR A VELERS ’ NEEDS
ENTERTAINMENT IN TOKYO

Entertainment in Tokyo is a wonderful mix even Western classical music. Tokyo enjoys
of the old world and the cutting edge. a pulsating and truly international club
Traditional performing arts span the culture; at many places, you can dance till
vibrancy of Kabuki theater to the haunting dawn. Sports fans have a choice between
tones of a shakuhachi recital. Tokyo is the baseball and soccer, or the more traditional
best place to catch the latest in movies forms of martial arts, as well as sumo.
and music from around the world. The At night, the city puts on a different face,
abundance of live music on offer ranges and the brightly lit leisure districts show
from jazz and blues to pop and techno, and how serious Tokyo is about fun.

Japanese-speaker at hand will
help. Reserva tions can also be
made online, at convenience
stores such as Lawson, or
through the Metropolis website.

Cinema
There are several specialist
cinemas that screen movies
from Asia, as well as Europe
and the US. How ever, most
non-Japanese films are shown
in the original lang uage with
Japanese sub titles. The Tokyo
Kabuki performance in Kabuki-za Theater International Film Festival
(see p32) is be coming
Information Sources agent or hotel travel desk. For increasingly high profile.
Metropolis, a free weekly concerts and sporting events, the There are also several other
magazine and website is a two major ticket agencies are interesting film festivals,
good source of information Ticket PIA and CN Playguide. showcasing both domestic
on leisure acti vi ties in the They can be hard to reach by and international movies.
city. Tokyo Weekender also phone. It is easier to book in Cinema prices are not cheap,
focuses primarily on the big city, person; a conve nient office averaging around ¥1,800.
but it has a good travel section is Ticket PIA at Ginza’s Sony On Cinema Day, usually the
which covers other parts of the Building (see p40). Department first of each month, tickets
country as well. The Japan and convenience stores also are reduced. In Shibuya,
Times, Asahi Shimbun, The have ticket desks, sometimes Bunkamura (see p68) some-
Japan News, and Japan Today with English-speaking assistants. times shows Japanese films
also have comprehensive Alternati vely, book directly by with English subtitles and is
listings. All of these publications phoning the venue; payment known for screen ing indepen-
are in English and avail able at is made when the tickets are dent and European films.
station kiosks and major stores picked up. Most agencies speak Also in Shibuya, Theater
including Kinokuniya (see p62), only Japanese, so having a Image Forum uses the most
Tower Records (see p69), and
Maruzen (see p141). Infor mation
on current events in and around
Tokyo is also given on the JNTO
(see p159) website. Other useful
online resources include Go
Tokyo, Realtokyo, and Tokyo
Food Page.

Booking Tickets
Popular traditional Japanese
entertainment, such as Kabuki
and sumo, are best reserved
ahead of time through a travel Movie poster in Shinjuku, one of Tokyo’s centers for cinema

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