Banraku Puppet Theatre

Bunraku and Kabuki, by their very nature, are doing a better job of attracting audiences than Noh and so perhaps they have more chance of proving relevant to modern society.  I went to see Bunraku perform Hiragana Seisuiki at the National Theatre.  I was astounded by the intricate skill and the detail of the movements of the puppets – it is little wonder each puppet requires three people to manoeuvre.  It was Edward Gordon Craig who said that the perfect performer is the marionette and you could see by the efficiency and directness of movement from these puppets why he might have thought it.  I was also impressed by how the narrators built themselves up into something near a meditative trance by the end of each scene.  In the fifth scene, Kanzaki Ageya, I never thought the sight of a woman striking a basin with a ladle could be quite so dramatic!

At Kabukiza I saw four plays: Koi Minato Hakata No Hitofushi, Yudachi, Kanda Bayashi and Oshi No Fusuma Koi No Mutsugoto.  I have to admit that after Noh I found the set and costumes rather garish at first.  Much of the comedy too, of course, relies on a good grasp of the language.  However, after a while I began to be seduced by their showmanship, the shouts from the audience, the vivid colours and strange look in their eyes that by the time Ebizo and Kikonosuke had finished dancing as lovebirds I was completely transfixed.  I also had the opportunity to watch Kataoka Nizaemon rehearse Onna Goroshi Abura No Jigoku.  As a director, it was particularly interesting to see a rehearsal led by the main actor.  At first, I was shocked to hear that at Kabukiza they only run through a play twice before a performance, a stark contrast to the weeks of rehearsal which opera demands.  However, just as an opera singer comes to the first rehearsal knowing the music, a Kabuki actor comes to the rehearsal knowing the entire role.  It is then the job of the main actor to tweak certain stage positions and adjust certain musical speeds to fit with his performance.  This made me realize that actors in Kabuki (and Noh for the same reason) must have a broader understanding of the theatre than most straight theatre and opera performers because, whereas modern theatre performers hand much of the thinking about lights, music, action, set, etc. over to the director, the Kabuki actor does it all himself.

I met Bando Yajuro after a performance and talked in length about the history of Kabuki and the life of a Kabuki actor.  The fact that they start so young is evident in the depth of feeling and understanding that they have for their art.  The drawback of this is that there is a natural conservatism in how they perform.  Yajuro-san, however, is very interested in opera and combining it with Kabuki.  There seem to be a number of attempts at reinvigorating the traditional art forms and Yajuro-san is certainly not alone.

FWW

Next Installment is Part 5: Modern Japanese Theatre- A Myriad of Cultures (Previous Installment- part 3: Young People and Japanese Culture)

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