Kodo to Perform at Mesa Arts Center, 2/10

Under the artistic direction of Kabuki luminary Tamasaburo Bando, taiko performing arts ensemble Kodo will present a new program: Kodo One Earth Tour 2015: Mystery. The U.S. tour will stop at Mesa Arts Center for a performance in the Ikeda Theater on Tuesday, Feb. 10 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at mesaartscenter.com or by calling 480-644-6500.

Kodo describes this pioneering program as follows: Amidst reverberations like rumbles in the earth, large serpents coil, demons and lions move wildly. They surface from the gloomy dark, eerie at times, and in some respects, even nostalgic.

This work fuses Kodo's real worth, the dynamism of taiko expression, with the wondrous beauty and true charm that lie within rituals expressing the worship of myriad gods and reverence for nature that have been traditions in Japan since ancient times. This performance will take the audience member on a voyage to the extraordinary, to a mysterious realm that lies in the beyond.

"It's hard to put into words, but I'm aiming to create a world of mystery," says artistic director Bando. "Across Japan, the folk arts have been handed down for countless generations. There's a sacredness there, an air of mystery within each prayer. The drums express this, and I would like for the audience to feel it, too. I hope theatergoers will experience the same sort of otherworldly splendor that they sense in temples, shrines, and moments of discovery in the forest."

Kodo has seen a departure from its traditional costume styles and musical direction since Tamasaburo Bando took the helm as full-time artistic director in 2012. Mystery represents a further evolution of the group's new expressions and promises to transport both seasoned fans and first-time viewers alike to uncharted artistic territory.

Mesa Arts Center is located at One East Main Street in downtown Mesa.