Section 2

I

What’s important/when you perform rakugo  overseas?//

S

I consider it important/to keep the original stories,/including the settings and characters.// By doing this,/international audiences/become absorbed in Japanese culture.// As a result,/they laugh more.//

I

How did you realize that?//

S

In a performance/in the US,/I told a Japanese story/which included an episode/about a crane and a tortoise.// I didn’t think/the audience was familiar with a Japanese crane.// So/I replaced it/with a flamingo.// The audience didn’t laugh/as much as I had expected.// Later,/I found out the reason.// The word “flamingo”/brought their minds to Florida/because it’s famous for those birds.// I realized/I had to keep their minds/in a Japanese world.//