Panasonic recently presented with Shochiku, renowned global Kabuki producer, with support from MGM Resorts International, an elaborate, high-tech outdoor performance unlike anything Las Vegas or the U.S. has ever seen.
The show featured a Kabuki-style theatrical event with larger-than-life animation and water choreography in the Kabuki masterpiece entitled “Koi-Tsukami,” or “Fight with a Carp,” as a large fish and turbulent sea are projected onto the Bellagio Hotel Fountains in a battle scene.
The scenery was set through artistic mastery via water screen projection, a high-tech visual technique in which an illusion is created from light beaming through an imperfect wall of water making it suddenly appear multidimensional. The display was set through 15 of Panasonic’s PT-DZ21KU projectors. This same model was selected to light up the London Olympic Games Opening Ceremony in 2012 and is a powerful, compact 20,000 lumen projector with a 10,000:1 contrast ratio and WUXGA resolution.
The event aimed to raise global awareness of Kabuki, which is classical Japanese dance-drama. It also looked to blend a traditional art form with new high-tech elements such as water screen projection, designed by Tokyo artist collective teamLab. The event was performed by famous Kabuki performer, Ichikawa Somegoro. This is a prelude to the 2016 Kabuki Festival, which will be held in Las Vegas.
