Manzai

A pair of manzai performers at a New Year celebration; the tsukkomi at front, the boke behind him (artist unknown, 19th-century Japanese painting)

Manzai (漫才) is a traditional style of comedy in Japanese culture comparable to double act comedy.[1]

Manzai usually involves two performers (manzaishi)—a straight man (tsukkomi) and a funny man (boke)—trading jokes at great speed. Most of the jokes revolve around mutual misunderstandings, double-talk, puns and other verbal gags.

In recent times, manzai has often been associated with the Osaka region, and manzai comedians often speak in the Kansai dialect during their acts.

In 1933, Yoshimoto Kogyo, a large entertainment conglomerate based in Osaka, introduced Osaka-style manzai to Tokyo audiences and coined the term "漫才" (one of several ways of writing the word manzai in Japanese; see § Etymology below). In 2015, Matayoshi Naoki's manzai novel, Spark (火花), won the Akutagawa Prize.[2] A mini-series adaptation was released on Netflix in 2016.

  1. ^ Blair, Gavin (2016). "What's Manzai?". Highlighting Japan June 2017. Public Relations Office of the Government of Japan. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  2. ^ Kyodo, Jiji (17 July 2015). "Comedian Matayoshi's literary win offers hope for sagging publishing industry". The Japan Times. Archived from the original on 27 August 2015.