Let’s Play Kendama! - Traditional Japanese Games

March 10, 2018 (Saturday)

Morning session: 11:00am-11:45am
Afternoon session: 1:30pm-2:15pm

Both sessions cover the same content.

What is a kendama?

Kendama (けん玉, “sword [and] ball”), a Japanese variant of a “cup and ball” toy, is enjoyed by people of all ages in Japan. The toy consists of two parts connected by a string: a handle with three shallow dishes and a spike; and a relatively large ball with a hole. The aim of the game is simple: swing the ball and catch it on one of the dishes or the spike on the handle. It can also be played the other way around. Thanks to its simple rules and affordability, anyone in Japan would have played this game in childhood but it can also be an intensive hobby to master complex tricks.

This workshop is recommended for children (age 6+) and adults who have little or no experience in playing kendama. You will love this traditional and appealing game if you like yo-yo or juggling activities that encourage you to perform tricks using hand and eye dexterity.

After watching a short introductory video of kendama, our presenter will demonstrate some arm and body control exercises to build up the foundations applicable to all kendama tricks. Following this will be some basic practice tricks such as ōzara (catching the ball on the large dish) and tomeken(catching the ball vertically on the spike). How far can you get?

Kendamas will be loaned to participants who do not have their own.