Japanese theatre

• Kabuki


  Japanese traditional theatre art that combines acting, singing and dancing
• Kabuki

  • Stylized manner of performance
  • Rich blend of music, mime, dance, costume, and props
  • In existence for almost four centuries
• Kabuki


  ka, "song"; bu, "dance"; and ki, "skill"
• Kabuki was founded in 1603 by Okuni, a Shinto priestess
• Okuni and her troupe of mostly women performed dances and comic sketches on a temporary stage set up in the dry riverbed of the Komagawa River in Kyoto
• Okuni's troupe gained national recognition and their plays evolved into kabuki that would later become one of the three major classical theater of Japan
• Kabuki theater


  • Stylization of its drama
  • Elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers

  
• Kabuki


  The art of singing and dancing
• Kabuki


  Derives from the verb kabuku, meaning "to lean" or "to be out of the ordinary"
• Kabukimono


  Those who were bizarrely dressed and paraded on a street
• Kabuki stage features


  • Hanamichi - a flower path, a walkway which extends into the audience and via which dramatic entrances and exits are made
  • Kogakudo - kabuki theaters that have stages both in front of the audience and along the sides help create a bond between the actors and viewers
  • Mawaro butal - the interior of the theater contains a revolving stage
  • Suppon - a platform that rises from below the stage
  • Hanamicho - a walkway that cuts through the audience seating area to connect the stage with the back of the theater
  • Magicians and supernatural beings often make their entrances from trap doors in the hanamichi Some stages have 17 trapdoors
• Main categories of kabuki plays


  • Jidai-mono - historical, or pre-Sengoku period stories
  • Sewa-mono - domestic, or post-Sengoku stories
  • Shosagoto - dance pieces
• Mie


  In which the actor holds a picturesque pose to establish his character and his house name yagō, is sometimes heard in a loud shout (kakegoe) from expert audience member, serving both to express and enhance the audience's appreciation of the actor's achievement
• Actors categories


  • Onna-gata - female roles
  • Aragoto - male roles
• Most main characters in Kabuki plays are aragoto, because of its super-stylized masculine, heroic style
• Onna-gata playing young women have very little paint, while aragoto roles use red and blue
• Kabuki make-up


  • Actors apply their own make-up by painting their faces and necks white, then adding stylized lines in red, black, or blue
  • The colors and lines used tell you what kind of character is being performed
• Meanings of Kabuki make-up colors


  • Red lines - passion, heroism, righteousness, and other positive traits
  • Pink - youthful joy
  • Light blue - even temper
  • Pale green - peacefulness
  • Blue or black - villainy, jealousy, and other negative traits
  • Green - supernatural
  • Purple - nobility
• Structure of a Kabuki play


  1. Jo - auspicious and slow opening which introduces the audience to the characters and the plot

  2. Ha - speeding events up, culminating almost always in a great moment of drama or tragedy in the third act and possibly a battle in the second and/or fourth acts

  3. Kyu - quick and satisfying conclusion
• Kabuki props


  • Flowing water is usually represented by fluttering roles of linen
  • Creatures like insects and foxes
  • Fans are used to symbolize wind, a sword, a tobacco pipe, waves or food
  • Props often have symbolic meanings
• Kabuki costumes


  • Female characters generally wear an elaborate kimono and obi
  • Pleated hakuma trousers are worn by characters of both sexes
  • Actors playing both sexes often have a supported midriff because a straight and curve less figure are regarded the essence of beauty
  • Costume changing is considered as an art with specialized teams that take care of complete and partial costume changes as part of the performances
• Kabuki wigs


  • Each costume has its own type of wig
  • Specialized craftsmen shape the wigs to the head
  • Wigs are made of human hair or horse hair or, bear fur or yak-tail hair imported from Tibet