What is Japanese Noh Theater

The creation of Noh theater and kyogen in Japan can be traced back to the 8th century, with subsequent developments incorporating a variety of artistic expressions such as acrobatics, song, dance and burlesque. Today, it has become Japan's predominant traditional theater. These plays are mainly based on scripts from traditional Japanese literature, and are supplemented by a performance form consisting of masks, costumes, props and dance.

Noh theater and kyogen are two different types of theater. "Noh plays represent a surreal world in which the protagonist is a supernatural hero who tells the story and drives the plot. Everything in reality appears in the form of masks to represent ghosts, women, children and old people. The "rant" is performed with comical dialogues, similar to a comic drama. The language used in the scripts of both Noh and madrigals was the spoken language of the Middle Ages. The greatest threat to Nengdrama and Rhapsody in today's society is the loss of interest in ancient theater among young people. In its broadest sense, Noh theatre, which includes the comic form of rhapsody, formed a distinct art form in the 14th century and is the world's oldest surviving professional theater. Although noh theater and rhapsody developed together and are inextricably linked, they are in many ways very different. Noh theater is fundamentally a symbolic stage art, whose importance lies in the ritual and suggestion within a rarefied aesthetic atmosphere. And the main point of ranting is to make people laugh.

The United Nations World Heritage Committee has proposed a specific conservation plan for Noh theater and rakugo, and the Japanese government has listed Noh theater and rakugo as "cultural properties," so that Noh theater and rakugo and their artists are protected in all aspects. A program to train actors and actresses has received financial support from the Japanese government, and a whole series of programs to document this ancient form of drama is in the works.

The most important thing for a Noh actor is the mask he or she wears during a performance. Noh masks are as important to Noh performers as a business sign is a holy relic that can never be touched again. Noh performers honor their masks as sacred. The clothes and socks they wear during their performances can be shown to others, but the mask is the only thing that they can't just look at because it is placed in a wooden box covered with a cloth like a treasure.

When a Noh play is about to be staged, because the clothes worn during the performance are very wide, others need to help put them on, and others need to help put on and tie the wig, but the mask must be put on by oneself. They believe that a mask is unique to the soul of a character and cannot be violated by others. The masks of Noh plays can be broadly categorized into six main types: male, female, old, young, spirit and ghost, and it is very rude to perform a Noh play while wearing the wrong mask.

When putting on a mask, the performer carefully takes it out of the wooden box, squeezes the sides of the mask with both hands, holds the front of the mask to his face, and says, "I'm going to play you." This has been a tradition for thousands of years, and every Noh theater performer does this before performing. When they finish, they carefully put the mask on backwards.

Traditionally, noh theater consisted of five plays, with three or four interspersed with rants, but today's noh theater is more likely to consist of only two or three plays, interspersed with one or two rants. The program or monodrama is based on the basic dramatic structure of preface, breakdown, and urgency (jo-ha-kyu, preface-explanation-conclusion), while the monodrama usually consists of a single preface, three parts of breakdown, and a single part of urgency. The preserved repertoire of Noh theater consists of the Ong and the surviving 240 plays divided into five groups. The Ong is more of a ritual than a performance. The first of the five groups of Noh plays is a divine play ("divine thing")) in which the protagonist appears first as a human being and then as a god. These dramas move slowly and are rarely performed today. The second group is the warrior dramas ("Shura things"). In most performances, there is a scene in which a warrior on the losing side in the Heiken War asks a priest to pray for his soul.

Development of Noh Theater in Japan

Noh theater and kyogen belong to the four classical forms of Japanese theater. The other two forms of comedy are kabuki and kokeshi. In its broadest sense, noh theater encompasses the comedic form of kyogen, which in the 14th century became a unique art form and is the world's oldest surviving professional theater. Although noh theater and madrigals developed together and are inextricably linked, they are in many ways very different. Noh theater is fundamentally a symbolic stage art, whose importance lies in the ritual and suggestion within a rarefied aesthetic atmosphere. Ranting, on the other hand, is primarily about making people laugh.

History of Noh Theater

Early in the 14th century, a variety of performance troupes with centuries of stage traditions traveled to temples, shrines, and festivals. They were generally sponsored by nobles. "Sarugaku was one of these genres. Kan Aya (1333-1384), an outstanding playwright and actor, and his son, Sei Aya (1363-1443), reformed Sarugaku into Nogaku, and the form of performance they created has largely survived to the present day. Kan'aya (1333-1384) introduced the musical and dance elements of the popular entertainment, the "salvation dance," into Sarugaku, and his actions attracted the attention and patronage of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu (1358-1408), the shogun of the Muromachi shogunate.

After Kan'aya's death, Se'aya became the head of the Kan'aya troupe. Yiman's continued patronage of the troupe gave it the opportunity to further refine the aesthetic principles of Nohra, including the object's true likeness, or mimicry, and the language of the drama, yugen, a Zen-influenced aesthetic ideal emphasizing the quest for the mysterious and profound. In addition to writing many popular Noh plays, Sei Aya authored many treatises that standardized Noh performances for centuries to come.

After the fall of the Muromachi shogunate, noh was patronized by the military leader Toyotomi Hideyoshi; in the 17th century, noh became the official property of Tokugawa Keiki. During these years, performances became slower and more staid than in the Seiya era.

With the end of the shogunate system, nogaku in the Meiji era (1868-1912) continued to flourish, thanks to the dedication of performers like Umewaka Minoru I (1828-1909) and the patronage of the nobility. After the Second World War, Noh music had to rely entirely on public support to survive. Today, a small but enthusiastic audience continues to support Noh, and a significant number of amateurs continue to support Noh by paying song and dance tuition. In recent years, outdoor noh performances around fire have become increasingly popular, and many such performances are held at temples and shrines and in parks during the summer.

Elements of a Noh performance

The stage

The stage for Noh performances, which was originally outdoors, is now usually inside a large building, and the Noh stage itself is a work of art.

The main stage, six meters long and wide, is built of polished Japanese cypress, covered with a Shinto-style roof, and has a bridge ("hashi-suspension") that leads to the stage. To the right and behind the main stage is where the musicians and choir are located. Pine trees are painted above the back wall, the only backdrop used for all programs, and the set is created by the vocabulary and chorus of the actors.

At the back of the stage are three or four musicians (mashiko-square hayashikata), playing flutes, small and large tambourines, and large drums when the show calls for it. The chorus ("column" jiutai) sits to the right of the stage, and its main role is to sing the words and thoughts of the main characters.

Masks, Characters, Costumes and Props

Many people at home and abroad who have not come into direct contact with Noh play first learn about it through its famous masks, which can be seen in museums and at special exhibitions. Noh masks can be categorized into many types, such as young women, old men, and demons; there are also different levels of masks used for the same character, which affects how the character and the play will be performed. Joy and sadness can be expressed through the same mask with only minor adjustments.

Generally, only the main characters (shite) wear masks, but in some plays the supporting characters (tsure) also wear masks. However, the supporting roles (waki), the supporting roles' companions (wakizure), and the children's roles (kokata) do not wear masks.

Like the masks, Nogaku is famous for its brightly colored and extravagant costumes, which contrast sharply with the bare stage and formal movements of Nogaku. The costumes for the main characters are five layers thick, with coats made of brocade. The actors wear these costumes to create a majestic effect, and in some performances a red or white wig is added to the effect.

The protagonists and supporting characters can use gestures to convey complex meanings, and the effect of this gestural language is enhanced by the use of props. The most common prop is the folding fan. The fan can be used to symbolize an object, such as a dagger or a spoon, or it can be used to indicate an action, such as summoning or viewing the moon.

Programs and performances

Traditionally, noh dramas consisted of five plays, with three or four interspersed with rants, but today's noh dramas are more likely to consist of only two or three plays, interspersed with one or two rants. Both the program and the monodrama are based on the basic dramatic structure of preface, break, and rush (jo-ha-kyu, preface-explanation-conclusion), while the monodrama usually consists of only one preface, three parts of a break, and one part of a rush.

The preserved repertoire of Noh theater consists of the Ong and the surviving 240 plays divided into five groups. The Ong is more of a ritual than a performance. The first of the five groups of Noh plays is a divine play ("divine thing")), in which the main character appears first as a human being and then as a god. These dramas move slowly and are rarely performed today. The second group is the warrior dramas ("Shura things"). In most performances, there is a scene in which a warrior on the losing side in the Heiken War asks a priest to pray for his soul.

The third group of Noh plays is the wig play. Usually, wig plays are about a beautiful woman who fell in deep love during the Heian period (794-1185). The fourth group of noh plays is the largest group and is generally called zatsu noh (mixed noh) because this type of play deals with a variety of themes. The fifth group of noh plays is called demon noh (鬼畜物 kichiku-mono). This type of play is the fastest moving, and the protagonist often appears first as a human in the first scene, and later as a demon in the second scene.

One Noh play: Aoi no Kami

The Noh play "Aoi no Kami" is a regular favorite. The original author of the play is unknown, but it was adapted by Sei Aya from an 11th-century novel called "The Tale of Genji" written by Shijibu.

At the beginning, a court official (a "wakizashi" character) explains that Aoi is the wife of a court nobleman named Genji, who is pregnant with a sixth child, and that the sorceress Eri has been recruited to figure out what kind of ghost is possessing her. The folded robe is placed at the front of the stage to represent Aoi.

The witch (the "Lianfang" character) brings in the possessed ghost.

The ghost walks. The protagonist wears a mask representing Nemesis. She is Rokugo, Genji's disgraced lover. The Sixth Woman recounts his own ordeal, saying that happiness in this world is fleeting, and that it resents Aoi, the wife of the radiant Genji. The Sixth Woman was further humiliated when Aoi's car pushed the Sixth Woman's car aside at a holiday party not long ago.

The spirit of the six women beat Aoi with a fan before walking into the back of the stage. The assistant blocks the audience's view with a robe, and the protagonist removes her Nemesis mask and replaces it with a female devil mask.

The court official calls a messenger and asks him to invite an ascetic from the mountains to come and expel the devil.

The exorcism begins and the protagonist returns to center stage, now wearing the devil's mask and waving a wand in her hand. They engage in a fierce battle, and the angry spirits of the six women are defeated by the ascetic's incantations. With the triumph of Buddhism and Aoi's salvation, this ending is very different from the novel The Tale of Genji; within the novel, Aoi dies while giving birth to Genji's son.

History of rakugo

Some people believe that rakugo originated in the eighth century or earlier as a form of entertainment that came to Japan from China. This entertainment from China evolved into Sarugaku in later centuries. By the 14th century, there was a clear distinction between the Sarugaku theater groups that performed serious Noh plays and those that performed witty kyogen. As a part of Noh theater, kyogen was supported by the military nobility until the Meiji Restoration. After the Meiji Restoration, kyogen was maintained by family troupes, mainly in the Izumo and Kokura genres. Today, professional kyogen performers perform independently as well as in tandem with Noh theater.

Performances and scripts

The term kyogen usually refers to a stand-alone comedy interspersed between two noh plays. But the term also refers to the role played by a ranting performer in a Noh play (aka aikyogen). Some of the ranting roles in Noh theater are integral to the Noh play, and often the ranting serves as a transitional bridge between the two Noh plays. In the latter case, the ranting performer is alone on stage and explains the plot in layman's terms. Such explanations gave the protagonists of the Noh theater enough time to dress up and were easy to understand for the uneducated audience of the feudal era.

Currently, there are about 260 separate madrigal plays. By the most common categorization, they can be divided into the following groups. Wakimania (giri plays), Daimyo (feudal landlords) plays, Taro plays ("Taro" is the name of the servant who is the main character), Son-in-law (son-in-law) plays, Woman (woman) plays, Geki (devils) plays, Yamamushin (mountain ascetics) plays, Sangha (Buddhist monks) plays, Blind (blind people) plays, Dance (dances) plays, and Miscellaneous (miscellaneous) plays. Apart from the miscellaneous dramas, the largest category belongs to the tara (servant) dramas. The protagonist of the servant's play is an intelligent common man who never tries to escape his destiny as a servant and is able to make life happier by getting along with his master.

The costumes for kyogen are much simpler than for noh dramas. The costumes are mostly everyday clothes from medieval Japan. Most kyogen plays do not use masks, although 50 plays do, and they are usually used for non-human characters, such as animals, deities, and ghosts. In contrast to Noh plays, in which the performers are expressionless, the performers of kyogen use a great deal of rich facial expressions for comedic effect.