Dancing Japanese

Hosted by the Japan Contemporary Dance Network (JCDN), four of the most innovative groups of Japanese dance artists are set to take the stage in Bangkok.  The dancers in question are male trio Ko & Edge, male duo Shintai Hyogen Circle, female duo Ho Ho-Do and female soloist Masako Yamasuto.

 Thai dancer/choreographer Pichet Klunchun joins the network on August 17 to present unique dance performances. JCDN will host a workshop from August 18 to 20.

Tickets ranging from Bt400 to Bt1,000 are available at Thaiticketmajor or the Patravadi Theatre box office.

For more information, call (02) 412 7287-8 or visit www.patravaditheatre.com.

Bangkok random

August 11 to September 28, Kathmandu Photo Gallery

French/British photographer and artist Jerome Ming presents a collection of visual notes that encapsulates his version of Bangkok in flux - photographs of a myriad of complex spaces and the people and objects contained within them.

Part documentary, part journal, "Bangkok Random" contains work from his last four years, spent living in Thailand. The pictures vividly display his recent exploration of colour and provide a stark contrast to his earlier series, "Babylon Luxuri" (2004), on Beijing. The peripatetic artist now lives in Hanoi, Vietnam.

The gallery, at 87 Pan Road near the Indian temple, off Silom Road, is open daily except Monday, from 11am to 7pm.

Call (02) 234 6700 or visit www.kathmandubkk.com.

First Man Comedy Shows

August 18 and 19, Ambassador Hotel and Hard Rock Hotel in Pattaya

This three-man show combines comedy, music, magic and juggling for a night that should coax guffaws from even the most jaded of audiences. The show features Todd Paul, the magic master with a six-foot unicycle and what one critic has called "one of the best closing routines in the comedy business today". Lonesome Dave Conrades of North Carolina may have the accent and the guitar, but as one critic put it, "don't expect 'hehaw', this is Southern comedy with a contemporary flair". Ludo Vika, the female of the group, brings sexy Latin flair and firecracker-sharp humour; she was voted one of the top Hispanic comedians in the US by Hispanic magazine.

Tickets are Bt1,500 and available from Thaiticketmajor.

For more information call, (02) 262 3456.