P6+Moore+Theater


 * Japan Theater **

Japanese culture had three different types of theatre; Bunraku, Kabuki, and Noh. Each play had different types of performances and different requirements for the audience while the plays were performing. Some Plays were even performed for specific classes of people to show the plays rank. Noh Theater is Japan’s oldest form of theater and is still performed and is popular today. It dates all the way back to the 14th and 15th centuries and was developed during the Ashikaga period. Basically, the only reason why Noh still exists today is because the Tokugawa shogunate ruled that it was to maintain its style for many generations. During the earlier popularity of Noh, some plays were actually performed at Shinto shrines for religious purposes. In original Noh plays, actors performed at tremendous speeds. If this were to happen today, the performance would be totally chaotic and out of control. Noh plays are performed today at a slower speed because Japan natives believe that if Noh is too quick, it would lose its dignity.
 * Introduction **
 * Noh Theater History **

The most famous Noh plays are based off of legends and folktales and are still performed today. Noh plays have a dreamlike quality and involve many ghosts and spirits in most cases. When a Noh play is performed in a Shinto Shrine it is usually for religious purposes. The actors in Noh plays are well known for wearing elaborate masks and costumes. The actors also perform in a stylized form of slow dance steps to the music of drums, flutes, and the chanting of Japanese poetry. The two main characters of a Noh play change their masks often to show different emotions that they are supposedly feeling. Usually only the main characters in the play will wear a mask. The scenery of a Noh play is usually very simple, it is even bare in some cases. Multiple Noh plays normally take about a whole day to be performed.
 * Noh Costumes and Performance **

Kabuki Theater is not Japan’s oldest form of theater, but it is still very old. It was developed in the 17th century and was very popular for many years among lower-class citizens, but is no longer performed. It gained most of its popularity during the Tokugawa period, as a form of entertainment for those that were not of a samurai family, as Noh plays were only performed for samurai. Kabuki was actually first developed and performed by women, but men soon took over and even played the roles of women. The 18th century has been named the golden-age of theater for Japan because many famous plays were written by “genius” writers for Kabuki and Bunraku.
 * Kabuki Theater History **

Kabuki was the type of theater that was performed for lower classes. It is very colorful dramatic, and at times it can be mellow. They are very long plays and can sometimes be up to six and a half hours long. Kabuki plays are not only performed to teach some sort of lesson, but also to be funny in some cases. Actors in Kabuki wear elaborate costumes and large amounts of make-up and use very exaggerated gestures along with what they are saying to express how they are feeling. This possibly might explain why the word kabuki means to “get freaked out”. The audience also may have a fun time at kabuki plays because they are allowed to yell out while the play is being performed. In other words the audience members are allowed to voice their opinion and make noise during the play.
 * Kabuki Costumes and Performance **

Bunraku Theater is a form of puppet theater. Japanese puppet theater dates back to almost the 11th century, but it wasn’t really recognized as a true form of theater until the 18th and 19th centuries. Bunraku is still very popular today, and is performed and enjoyed by many modern Japanese citizens. It is and was considered serious and comedic theater for adults, and originated from combinations of other performing arts including musical theater and almost life-size puppetry. Joruri is a general term referring to chanted narritives accompanied by shamisen music, and these two things basically set the stage for Bunraku before the puppets were incorporated. There are two different groups of Bunraku. The first group is called jidamono, or period plays that had to do with historical events often involving warrior exploits. The second group is called sewamono, or contemporary plays that describe and have to do with actual events going on at the time when the play is being performed.
 * Bunraku Theater History **

Bunraku performances are puppets for adults. The Puppets used in Bunraku however are actually life size. Since the puppets are so big it takes 3 puppeteers to play one puppet; one for the left arm, one for the feet, and one for the body and right arm. The puppeteers are dressed in complete black while playing the puppet, this way they are unnoticed or less noticed by the audience. The puppets on the other hand are elaborately dressed during the Bunraku performance. Also during the performance a samisen accompanies the actions of the puppets. A samisen is a stringed instrument that is played similar to a guitar. Even though people are not meant to be seen in Bunraku they are still meant to be heard even while the puppeteers are moving the puppet and the samisen is playing. A single person or a group of people are chosen to be the voice of the puppet during the Bunraku performance. There was much chanting, singing, moving in a sort of odd way, and dancing in Bunraku similar to Noh performances.
 * Bunraku Costumes and Performance **

In conclusion, the forms of theater in Japan, which are and were Noh, Kabuki, and Bunraku had their own unique characteristics. Their rich history and fascinating performances influenced many people in ancient Japan, and still influence many Japanese citizens today.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Conclusion **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">media type="custom" key="13442918" <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Deal, William E. Handbook to Life in Medival and Early Modern Japan. New York, NY: Facts on File Inc, 2006. <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Mitchell, John D. and Miyoko Watanabe. Aspects of Noh. Key West, FL: Institute for Advanced Studies in the Theatre Arts, 1994. Print. <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Bobbie Kalman. Japan the Culture. New York, NY: Crabtree Publishing Company, 1989. Print.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">Citations **