Member Highlight: Christine (Chris) Brown
- Japan Society of Boston
- 24 hours ago
- 5 min read
Please introduce yourself.
My name is Christine Heaton Brown. I was born in Pittsfield, MA in the Berkshire Hills. After second grade, my mother and I flew to Japan (by propeller plane!) to visit my uncle in the Air Force. It was a mind-blowing experience for an 8 year old. We stayed for 9 months, I went to school, and we studied Japanese culture once a week. Santa Claus brought me a kimono, geta (traditional Japanese wooden sandals), and hanetsuki (Japanese badminton paddle and shuttlecock), which I still have!
I attended Monmouth College in Illinois. Monmouth had a 150 year old association with Japan and offered enough classes in language, literature, history, religion, art, and theatre for me to design a BA in “The Art & Culture of Japan.” I traveled with the Experiment in International Living in Japan for a homestay in Matsuyama one summer. While participating in a production of Noh and Kyogen plays, I met a cultural attaché from the Japanese Consulate in Chicago. Our friendship and my recent degree led to a job at the Japanese Consulate – a rare opportunity in 1972!
A few years later, I went to Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, IL where I obtained a Master’s degree in Community Development. My husband and I married the summer we graduated and devoted ourselves to job hunting; 1981 was a dismal economy, so we were forced to cast a wide net. I was offered a job as the first professional director of the Pennyroyal Arts Council in Hopkinsville, KY. I learned how to write grants, curate a performing arts series, calm down board members, and negotiate the intricate web of southern society and power structures! Also how to balance the care of a newborn son with a professional job.
My husband, Bruce, and I longed to return to New England where we both had family. I became the director of Community Arts Outreach at the newly formed Center for the Arts at UMass Lowell, and Bruce landed a job at MIT in Cambridge. At UML, I initiated a performing arts series for families on weekends (Discovery Series), school day educational shows (STARTS - Student & Teacher Arts), teacher training in partnership with the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and a host of other programs. I had found my calling as an arts presenter! However, the University suddenly eliminated my job due to budget difficulties after 23 years. In the midst of my shock, my colleagues in the field – presenters, artists, agents – urged me to create my own company.
I located a theatre to rent, booked a season of shows, wrote a brochure and sent it to all area schools – and Chris Brown Presents was born. The next 6 years were great fun. With the assistance of loyal volunteers and technical crew who had worked for me at UML, we entertained and educated between 10,000-20,000 students per year. Eventually changes in school curricula and budgets made field trips increasingly difficult, so I decided: retirement has arrived! With retirement came travel to France, Italy, England, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany, Portugal, and of course, Japan.
Your experience in Japan as a child led to a lifelong connection. How have you kept Japan an active part of your life?
Experiences in Japan at a young age sparked an interest and fascination which have kept me on the alert for any opportunity to enjoy Japanese culture. While on an Urban Studies semester in Chicago, I was able to take tea ceremony lessons and research the resettlement of the Japanese community in Chicago after release from the internment camps of WWII. My Consulate job had me writing speeches for the opening of the Japanese garden in St. Louis and the presentation of a million dollar endowment to two Midwestern universities, railing about Japanese trade imbalance to a rotary club in Michigan, and hosting a bunraku (Japanese puppet theatre) company who had never been off the island of Awaji.
Now I seek out exhibits of Japanese art, read Japanese literature, visit Japanese gardens, and take available courses. Moving to Lowell has put all the resources of the MFA within my reach, opening Japan to me in lots of new ways. Just sitting for a while in the dim ambiance of the Buddhist temple is nostalgic. And of course the JSB Book and Film Clubs have kept Japanese culture a regular part of my life and introduced me to other Japanophiles. Plus, I am able to provide Japanese words to my husband’s New York Times crossword puzzles!
What drew you to become a member of JSB?
Although I do not remember exactly what led me to become a member of JSB, I came across the newsletter and was immediately interested in the film and book clubs. That’s why I joined.
We are fortunate to have you as the new volunteer leader of the JSB Book Club in 2026. What would you say to someone who is considering joining?
The group is fun, lively, welcoming, and thought-provoking. You will read some things which you may not have chosen yourself, but your intellect and imagination will be stretched. You may examine Japanese society and family structures in new and surprising ways. You may be introduced to genres you may not have considered before. You may make new friends!
What are some of your favorite works of Japanese literature, art, theater, or culture?
Fifty years ago I read many works by Tanizaki, Mishima, and Kawabata. I am really loving re-reading some of them in the Book Club, with new eyes and perspective. I love The Makioka Sisters by Tanizaki and have just discovered that his last book was The Maids, a kind of follow-up to The Sisters. I’m trying to get my hands on it.
I have a love of and fascination with bunraku theatre. I have been able to see it live in Osaka and occasionally in the US – but never enough. The recent art exhibits at the MFA have been spectacular, especially the recent one examining the influence of woodblock artists on European artists. In 2013, there was a fascinating course called “Japan: A Cultural History of the Land of the Rising Sun.” I am on alert for the word “Japan” and find treasures everywhere.
Do you have any fond memories of JSB events to share?
I attended the Japan Society of Boston’s presentation of bunraku theatre in 2007. The performance was given by the National Bunraku Theatre and had narration by Peter Grilli, then President of JSB. I was thrilled by it.
Thank you, Chris, for sharing with us!
Chris will be leading the JSB Book Club in 2026 and our first meeting of the year is on February 25th where we will be discussing The Makioka Sisters!
Interested in becoming a JSB Member? Click here or reach out to info@japansocietyboston.org for more details.