What Will Be the Next Big Thing From Japan?

Yasumasa Morimura, artist

Osaka, where I live, is the home base of Ningyo Joruri Bunraku, a type of traditional Japanese puppet theater comparable to Kabuki and Noh. I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate on Bunraku projects, writing scripts and even performing onstage as a puppeteer. Bunraku storytelling relies on three key elements: moving puppets, the voices of narrators and the music of the shamisen [a stringed instrument]. It might be the prototype for modern anime — for fans of that medium, I think it’d feel both refreshingly new and surprisingly familiar.

Toshiko Mori, architect

As the story goes, increased mechanization of tea harvesting and processing in Japan created more plant waste and, in the 1920s, roasting leaves and stems that would have otherwise been discarded became a widespread practice. The resulting tea, called hojicha, has a nutty flavor and is less caffeinated, which means kids and people with digestive problems can drink it too — it’s better suited for everyday use. Today in Japan, there’s a niche trend of roasting your own tea or watching someone at a shop roast it for you. Tea masters associated with hojicha think it evokes the period before the rise of the highly stylized tea ceremony, when tea must have been appreciated in a way that was simpler and closer to nature.

Kiyo Shinoki, restaurateur

Japanese custard pudding, or purin, is a very popular treat that has a texture between crème brûlée and flan. In Japan, people eat raw eggs daily, so the eggs are very fresh and delicious, and eggs are the main ingredient in the pudding. I prefer my pudding à la mode, served with ice cream and seasonal fruits. Last fall, I opened a Japanese soft serve stand in my restaurant Takumen [in Long Island City, Queens], and I’m currently developing pudding to go with the ice cream. Once you’ve tried this pudding, you’ll want to eat it again.