Japanology Plus

Episode Synopsis

A private banquet in the company of geisha is considered the ultimate in elegant hospitality. A common misconception is that geisha are courtesans; in reality, they are skilled practitioners of traditional performing arts. At one time, there were 80,000 of them working in Japan, but only about 1,000 remain today. Our expert guest Kenji Watanabe, a scholar of early modern Japanese literature, will guide us into the real world of geisha. And in Plus One, playing party games with geisha!