Changes: Big Bird in Japan

Revision as of 00:37, 13 November 2010

Big Bird in Japan is a follow-up special to Big Bird in China. Produced in association with NHK, Japan's public broadcaster, and filmed on location in Tokyo and Kyoto, the special debuted in Japan on NHK in the late fall of 1988, and on PBS in January 1989.

Big Bird and Barkley, having previously seen China independently, have signed up for a bus tour of Japan. The officious, hyper-organized guide has the trip organized to the detail, with little intended contact with the Japanese people. Wandering off, the pair are soon abandoned, but find aid from a friendly young woman, whose identity is eventually revealed through Japanese theater. The production included four original songs: "Homesick" and "Going to Kyoto" by Tony Geiss, and "Ichi, Ni, San" and "Moon, Moon" by Carol Hall.

The special was released on VHS in 1991, and on DVD in 2004.

Notes

Brian Muehl performs Barkley, but by the time the special was broadcast, Fred Garbo Garver had taken over the role on Sesame Street.

Big Bird would return to Japan 16 years later as part of the cast of a local adaptation of Sesame Street, along with Elmo and Cookie Monster.

Reviews

“What we get is a kind of gentle travelogue, although this is not a very enthusiastic endorsement for guided tours... Wandering off on their own, the Muppets eventually conclude that they "saw more and learned more than if we never got lost at all."
...It is all very gentle. Big Bird's dizzy innocence may be getting a bit less ingratiating as the years roll by, but the gawky creature is thoroughly convincing when it declares: I'm homesick for Japan and I haven't even left. One interesting detail: As Big Bird and Barkley waddle and scamper through public streets, the passers-by seem remarkably unfazed. There is a reluctance to stare. The boundaries of Japanese politeness seem wonderfully wide.”

--- John J. O'Connor, The New York Times. January 16, 1989.

Cast

Caroll Spinney as Big Bird
Brian Muehl as Barkley
Maiko Kawakami as Young Woman/Kaguya-Hime

and

Masayuki Kato, Akira Muriyama, Kumiko Hironaka, Hikojiro Matsumura, Fukami Harue, Mariko Hirano, Akiko Nemoto, Yoko Haruta
Pat Morita as "Bamboo Princess" Play Narrator (voice)

Crew

Directed by: Jon Stone
Written by: Jon Stone
Producer: Sonia Rosario
Associate Producer: Cheryl Ann Jung
Editor: Ilene Merenstein
Music composed and conducted by: Dick Lieb
For Jim Henson's Muppets: Kermit Love, Caroly Wilcox, Richard Termine, Connie Peterson, Mark Zeszotek
Executive Producer: Jon Stone

Gallery

Video releases

External links

Tough Pigs Journal: Japan

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-'''''Big Bird in Japan''''' was a follow-up special to ''[[Big Bird in China]]''. Produced in association with NHK, Japan's public broadcaster, and filmed on location in Tokyo and Kyoto, the special debuted in [[Japan]] on NHK in the late fall of [[1988]], and on [[PBS]] in January [[1989]].
+'''''Big Bird in Japan''''' is a follow-up special to ''[[Big Bird in China]]''. Produced in association with NHK, Japan's public broadcaster, and filmed on location in Tokyo and Kyoto, the special debuted in [[Japan]] on NHK in the late fall of [[1988]], and on [[PBS]] in January [[1989]].
 [[Big Bird]] and [[Barkley]], having previously seen [[China]] independently, have signed up for a bus tour of Japan. The officious, hyper-organized guide has the trip organized to the detail, with little intended contact with the Japanese people. Wandering off, the pair are soon abandoned, but find aid from a friendly young woman, whose identity is eventually revealed through Japanese theater. The production included four original songs: "[[Homesick]]" and "[[Going to Kyoto]]" by [[Tony Geiss]], and "[[Ichi, Ni, San]]" and "[[Moon, Moon]]" by [[Carol Hall]].

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