Meet a Professional: Simon, the Butler of Kabukiza Theatre (1/4)

Simon Yoshizumi is the operating manager of Kabukiza, the most traditional theatre in Japan. His hospitality plays a big role in customer satisfaction, and his understanding of Japanese culture makes him the face of Kabukiza theatre. Born between a Japanese father and English mother, Simon’s life in Japan wasn’t so easy. Through his story, we will uncover both the light and dark of Japanese culture.

Losing Identity; Deep Rooted Exclusionism

Simon’s parents met in Germany, when his mother was traveling and his father was playing horn for an orchestra. After marriage they moved to Japan, and Simon was born in Nagoya, the fourth largest city of Japan. Simon, as you can see in the picture, looks like an English man rather than Japanese. This was a good reason for kindergarten kids to bully him as “Gaijin”, a rude way of calling foreigners. Sadly, this is a very common thing that happens in Japan. The mentality is different from ethnic discrimination--- exclusionism may be the right word, since Japanese from “outside” (meaning other areas of Japan or other countries) are most likely to face the same kind of bullying. Simon refused to go to kindergarten for this reason, but after entering elementary school he eventually fights back the bullies, making him mentally stronger and maybe a bit naughty. “I was always thinking that Japanese were uncool people, with such low ability to accept other countries,” says Simon. This was one reason why he enjoyed his annual summer vacation in London with his parents. Nobody pointed at him or called him names in England.

So where was his identity? Simon thought about this for a while and answered, “I wanted to live somewhere outside Japan till around 20. I wanted to be someone positioned outside nationality and ethnicity.” He was already living away from his parents when he was a high school student, a very mature teenager. He also backpacked around Europe and Asian countries for summer vacation, meeting friends that developed into a lifelong relationship. Simon wasn’t a Japanese or English at this time.

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