That great Bunraku-style skeleton dance I linked to earlier this week is from Kasou Taishou (欽ちゃん＆香取慎吾の全日本仮装大賞; Kinchan and Katori Shingo’s All Japan Costume Grand Prix), the same biannual Japanese TV show where the famous “Matrix Ping Pong” sketch originated.
I’ve only be able to watch short clips of the show, but as far as I can tell it’s built around amateur groups of black-clad performers competing for prizes by staging skits and routines using large-scale puppetry. Think of it as sort of a Japanese Bunraku version of American Idol.
You can find many other popular routines from the show on the Kasou Taishou website, but Internet Explorer is required to view the videos properly. If you don’t have IE, try searching YouTube for “Kasou Taishou” instead.
12/9/14 Update: The original video at the beginning of this post was been replaced because it was no longer available online.
