In the shopping district of Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture, the rakugo theater, which has been popular as a place for rakugo and manzai presentations for more than 13 years, was closed due to deterioration, and the last rakugo performance was held.
The facility that will be closed due to aging is the Shichifukuza located in the Nishinikaimachi shopping district in Himeji City.
In November 2009, an association of shopping districts remodeled a vacant store in order to revitalize the local area with laughter named after Beicho Katsura, who was born in Himeji City, and has performed rakugo and comic storytelling three or four times a month.
At the final rakugo event held on the 15th, rakugo performer Tomomaru Shofukutei performed classic rakugo, while his master Hitoshi Shofukutei performed original rakugo on the theme of professional baseball. The audience was laughing out loud.
And when Mr. Nichi called out, ``Don't forget the 'Shichifukuza,' and come again when it reopens,' there was a big round of applause.
In the future, it is planned to set up a reduced-scale vaudeville nearby.
A male office worker in his 50s who visited said, "It played a major role in establishing rakugo culture in Himeji. It's sad that it's gone, but I hope the rakugo show will continue even if we move."
Mutsuhiko Kakiuchi, the manager of Shichifukuza, said, "We started rakugo performances to revitalize the area, and we are grateful that many customers laughed at us. We want to contribute to the liveliness of the area even after we move."