Rakugo

Rakugo (落語^?, literally "fallen words") is a form of Japanese verbal entertainment. The lone storyteller (落語家, rakugoka^?) sits on stage, called Kōza (高座^?). Using only a paper fan (扇子, sensu^?) and a small cloth (手拭, tenugui^?) as props, and without standing up from the seiza sitting position, the rakugo artist depicts a long and complicated comical story. The story always involves the dialogue of two or more characters, the difference between the characters depicted only through change in pitch, tone, and a slight turn of the head.

Rakugo was originally known as karukuchi (軽口^?). The oldest appearance of the kanji which refers specifically to this type of performance dates back to 1787, but at the time the characters themselves (落し噺) were normally read as otoshibanashi (falling discourse).

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