| Kasou Taishou | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Masquerade ALL JAPAN KASOH GRAND-PRIX |
| Presented by | Kinichi Hagimoto (1st-99th editions) Shingo Katori (since 65th edition) |
| Country of origin | Japan |
| No. of episodes | 100 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 2-3 hours |
| Production company | Nippon Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | NNS (NTV) |
| Release | December 31, 1979 (1979-12-31) – present |
Kasou Taishou (欽ちゃん＆香取慎吾の全日本仮装大賞,Kinchan ando Katori Shingo no Zen Nihon Kasō Taishō, All Japan Kasoh Grand Prix, internationally known asMasquerade[1]) is a semi-annual Japanese televisionvariety show that is run onNippon TV and first aired in 1979.
The program shows variousamateur groups (or solo artists) performing short skits, which are rated by a panel of judges. Especially in recent years, many of the skits have revolved around clever methods of "faking"cinematic special effects on a live stage. The show is hosted byKinichi Hagimoto andShingo Katori. Worldwide, the most famous of these skits, and among the most successful at "fake special effects" was a skit which is widely known as "Matrix ping pong".
On the 98th edition (February 6, 2021) of the program, Kinichi Hagimoto announced that this would be the last time that he will present the program. However, he ended up returning in the 99th edition (2023).[2]
Matrix Ping Pong is a popular movie clip from the show featuring performers playingping pong with moves in the style ofThe Matrix, usingkurokos—stagehands inkabuki theatre—to hold the props up, facilitating humorous and otherwise impossible movements. Most of the elements in the performance are set against black to visibly obscure the stagehands. This performance, led by team captain Hideki Kajiwara (梶原比出樹), won the competition on March 31, 2003.[3] The clip became aninternet meme.
The show is also aired internationally in some countries.Hong Kong airs this programme under the name of "全民創意爭霸賽" on thei-CABLE Entertainment Channel withCantonese dubbing, while inTaiwan it was aired under the name "超級變變變".[4]Indonesia,Malaysia andSingapore on the other hand airs it under the name ofMasquerade. The Indonesian and Singaporean broadcasts under this title are aired dubbed, onMNCTV inIndonesian andMediaCorp okto inEnglish respectively, whereas the Malaysian broadcast onTV3 is aired withMalay subtitles. in Thailand broadcast onChannel 9 MCOT in title named "Game Za Tha Kuen (เกมซ่าท้ากึ๋น)". Southeast Asia also airs it asMasquerade (year) onSony Gem TV aired every Christmas Day.
In the Philippines, the version of the show airs onGMA Network as part ofBilib Ka Ba Nights (transl. Do You Believe? Nights) block of the network under the name ofMasquerade and hosted by Ariel Villasanta and Maverick Relova, it ran from August 20, 2008 until March 11, 2009.[5]
The show was featured in the music video for the 2004 single "Flamboyant" by British pop-duoPet Shop Boys. Directed byNico Beyer, the music video follows one of the real participants of the show that eventually goes on to win the competition with their recreation ofbilliards.
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