Kabuki in the Land of the Rising Sun is considered a complex art form. Kabuki actors prepare very carefully for each performance. Before the performance, the actors apply complex makeup and wear national clothes. Any action in Kabuki is determined by Japanese symbols. There is no room for trifles, there is utmost attention to detail. Colors, hieroglyphs and movements are subject to certain canons.
Historical reference
History dates the emergence of national theatrical art in Japan to approximately the 7th century. It came from neighboring countries of the East: from Chinese, Korean, Indian, Persian, Tibetan expanses. In many ways, theatrical performances of that time are associated with religious beliefs: shamanism, Taoism, Confucianism, the Shinto religion, but most of all with Buddhist teachings.
Two types of art came to Japan first:
- gigaku - pantomimes;
- Bugaku - dancing.
They were performed during religious festivals, folk festivals, and later won a separate stage, becoming a kind of theater. Gigaku existed until the 10th century, but then it was overthrown from the theatrical stage by other, more sophisticated types of pantomime. Bugaku still exists.
Theatrical talents were passed on from generation to generation: often the children of actors inherited their profession, and a whole dynasty was formed. Thanks to this, the whole world can get acquainted with the masterpieces of this art and get to know the original Japanese soul through the prism of theater.
A little history
A country torn apart by internecine wars throughout its existence is unlikely to retain accurate references to the origins of a particular art. But roughly we can say that its theatrical activity began around the seventh century AD. Like the Japanese people themselves, this direction came to the islands through the borders closest to the “mainland” from China, Korea and from the shores of Russia, which then still belonged to the Ainu.
The Ainu are one of the first peoples to inhabit the Japanese islands. At first they lived near the Amur River and in the southern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula. According to the latest census data, the main place of residence of the people at the moment is the island of Hokkaido.
The most ancient forms of Japanese theater are pantomimes (gigaku) and dances (bugaku). Initially, they were performed during religious rites and national holidays. Bugaku exists to this day, but gigaku has lost its significance and has gradually been replaced by new types of pantomimes.
Types of Japanese theater
Traditional Japanese theater has remained virtually unchanged for centuries. The only transformation is that the performance now lasts much less - about 2 hours instead of 5-6, and the scenes themselves, the characters, and the events have become more dynamic.
There are several types of theater that are beloved in Japan:
- But, he is also Nogaku - performances for the aristocratic strata;
- Kyogen - crowd theater, showing comedy scenes from the lives of ordinary people;
- Kabuki is for ordinary people;
- Bunraku - puppet theater;
- shadow play.
Of course, modernity dictates its own rules, and today in Japan you can even enjoy modern ballet or listen to opera. However, foreign tourists, and even the residents of the country themselves, want to touch the eternal - traditional theater.
Feudalism is gathering clouds
The severity of feudalism at the end of the 18th century led to a very different direction in kabuki plays. In Edo, they returned to the realistic dramaturgy of Kamigata. Only suicides of lovers gave way to family dramas. The faithful wife decides to help her husband's career and leaves him, saying that she does not love him. A husband kills his wife in passion. Public tastes shifted towards murder. But the plays themselves moved away from the entertainment character, showing social injustice, abandonment of life goals, and despair.
This direction could not help but undermine the ideals that Edo actors had been pursuing for so long. The clash between Edo and Kyoto and Osaka turned out to be not only in art, but also in power and economics. This had certain consequences: the plays became abusive, and blackmail and extortion reigned outside the theater.
So in the play “Tokaido Yotsuya-kaidan” Tsuruya Namboku showed the life of a ronnin who makes a living by repairing umbrellas. But he wanted a carefree life, which only the path of evil could give him under feudalism. Which he stepped on.
The reforms carried out by the shogun only plunged society further into decline and chaos. It was decided to destroy the Kabuki theater building and ban performances. But one of the officials wisely moved the theater to the outskirts of the city.
During this difficult time for society and culture, theatrical productions were not distinguished by either high themes or special techniques. Kabuki increasingly became a mirror of a people trying to survive in troubled times. The plays of Kawata-ke Mokuami were especially popular.
They tried to amaze the audience with a special Edo dramaturgy, which increasingly included various tricks and unexpected turns. The purpose of representation is to find truth even in decline. So, for example, in the play “Sakura Sogo” a peasant revolt unfolds. The production was the result of a search for fresh trends, because previously kabuki did not reflect village life.
Mokuami also worked closely with kabuki actor Ichikawa Kodanji. In their joint work, they addressed bandits and high-road romantics, emphasizing the special beauty of evil. Thus, in “Kozaru Shichinosuke” women are raped, in “Murai Choan” a sadist kills his loved ones, and in “Ikakematsu” the hopelessness of the future is reflected.
Noh Theater
Noh theater originated in the 14th century and became especially popular during the time of the famous samurai Tokugawa. So traditionally it became a genre of samurai, rulers and aristocratic persons.
Its highlight is the special masks and national kimono costumes that the actors wear. The mask does not correspond to a specific character - it is used to express feelings, emotions, mood, so one actor can wear several masks in turn. Both masks and costumes are passed on from senior actors to junior ones within the theater.
In Japanese theaters, about 200 masks made of cypress wood have been preserved, which have existed for centuries.
During the performance, the site - the main character - talks about his life, about times of peace and war, love and family experiences, criminal acts, demonic manifestations and the opposition of evil to good. In the old patois, the site narrates the story, accompanied by calm music and a choir, and then the secondary characters join in.
Much attention is paid to gestures - they are graceful and elegant. The perception of the play depends on the specific viewer - he himself comes up with the meaning of many scenes. The performance lasts from three to five hours.
Some moments of Noh can be unexpectedly contrasting: melancholic dancing to rhythmic music or a bright climax of the plot during complete silence. The scenery is simple so as not to distract from the main thing - the acting.
Kyogen
Kyogen is not at all like Noh theater, although for a long time it was its sideshow, that is, a small comic scene within an exquisite performance of dramatic content. However, after World War II, Kyogen gained fame and began to function independently, apart from Noh.
Kyogen caters to a large crowd. This is a comedy, a farce, scenes from the life of ordinary people who are devoid of fateful events. The scenes are simple, full of trivial jokes and cases familiar to most people.
The themes of kyogen are:
- evil spirits;
- gods;
- family troubles;
- everyday fuss;
- male infidelity;
- female insidious nature.
A frequent hero of the Kyogen theater is the servant of Taro. There are many characters, and according to their importance they are divided into main, secondary, tertiary and beyond.
The most famous schools of Kyogen are called Okura and Izumi.
Women's and men's suits are used, and service suits are available separately. All of them are made according to samples of outfits from the 16th and 17th centuries. Sometimes masks can be used, but not to express the feelings of the characters, as happens in Noh theater, but as an element of costume - each hero has a specific mask.
Trends of the Meiji era
After the overthrow of the old government and the advent of the Meiji reform era, kabuki theater did not change much, although social rights were recognized for the actors. The theater staged ordinary everyday dramas, which could not compete with the Mokuami method brought to perfection and its psychological variations. Writers and actors understood little at that time the problems and movements of the masses, because fundamental changes in the country were not made by the hands of the people.
After some time, “living history plays” began to be in demand at the theater, mainly thanks to officials who visited Europe. Actor Danjuro Ten presented elaborate ancient ceremonies on stage and performed with exceptional finesse. The people's theater, as kabuki has always been, began to move into theater for the upper classes. Ordinary people didn't need sophistication and history, they wanted fun dancing.
Kabuki
Probably everyone has heard about the Kabuki theater, even outside the Land of the Rising Sun. It is considered one of the classical art forms of Japan. Translated, this name means “the art of singing and dancing.” It appeared in the 17th century, during the Tokugawa government, and is associated with the name of a specific girl named Izumono Okuni.
Monument to Izumono Okuni
She was a temple dancer and later moved to Kyoto. There she did not give up her hobby, on the contrary, she began performing along the river coast and on city streets.
Okuni improved her skills, introduced new elements with a touch of romance and eroticism, and wove folklore, legends, and poetry into her performances. Soon musicians joined her, and the girl’s success was stunning. This is how she gave birth to a whole art form.
Many ensembles began to copy the genre. They often included revealing outfits and erotic scenes. Men went crazy over the beauty and grace of the actresses and often fought among themselves.
The ruling elite did not like this trend, so they legally banned women from participating in theatrical performances. But this did not destroy Kabuki as a type - now exclusively male actors began to play there, embodying both women and men - this is the so-called wakashu-kabuki.
Of course, after 2 centuries the decree was abolished, but the tradition of playing roles by men remained - there are now many more of them than female actresses. Kabuki plots reflect important values and spiritual experiences:
- righteous and just life;
- the Buddhist law of karma, when good is rewarded, and evildoers very soon feel the consequences of their own bad deeds;
- respect for elders;
- life commitments;
- dreams, desires, personal goals.
Costumes play an important role - they seem to recreate the era of the 17th century. It is not customary to use masks - instead, actors apply skillful makeup in several layers, and also wear wigs.
History of origin and development
Kabuki appeared at the beginning of the 17th century, or rather in 1603, the birthplace of the kabuki theater in Kyoto. The genre was started by Okuni of Izumo (Izumo-no-Okuni), born in 1571. Okuni was a servant of the Izumo Shinto Shrine in Shimane Prefecture. The prayer dance she performed during the service inspired her to create her own style, which included singing, dancing and acting. Okuni was known for her beauty and skill in dancing. One day she was sent to Kyoto to collect funds and donations for the temple. It was at this time that her performances attracted the attention of the townspeople; in addition to dances of a religious nature, Okuni also showed humorous skits about meetings of lovers. Her skill began to attract large crowds and when it was time to return to the temple, Okuni ignored the demand of the temple abbots, although she continued to send money. Izumo no Okuni remained in Kyoto, gathered around her women, outcasts from society, and taught them to dance. Already in 1604, a stage was built on the territory of the Kitano Shrine for the performance of the Okuni troupe. Since there were only women in the theater, all the roles, both female and male, were performed by women. The kabuki repertoire mainly consisted of comic scenes from everyday life. Gradually, the performances became increasingly popular, and similar troupes began to appear in other cities.
Kabuki performers were not modest and were in great demand among the male population; performances were attended not only by commoners, but also by members of the samurai class. Kabuki became a common form of entertainment in the red light district of Edo. Here you could always meet famous actors, hear new exciting music, and see the latest fashion trends. Class boundaries were blurred against the backdrop of onno-kabuki performances, but clashes and brawls often arose, and government officials were also involved in scandals. All this unrest led to the shogunate banning onno-kabuki (women's kabuki) in 1629, suggesting that in addition to the theater's scandalous reputation, the shogunate was concerned about the plays' depiction of the lives of ordinary people.
Women's kabuki was replaced by young men who quickly mastered the skills of their predecessors and supplemented the performances with acrobatic stunts; the nature of the performances changed and moved from the dance direction to dramatic art. But since the moral side of the Kabuki theater did not change, in 1652 the performance of young men on stage was prohibited. Considering the great popularity of the theater, it could not be closed and mature men began to play on stage, a new type of kabuki appeared, more refined and stylized - yaro-kabuki (prankster kabuki). Until this time, the theater still did not use literary works and was intended to show the beauty and skill of the performers. With the departure of young actresses and actors from kabuki, only the plot of the play could save the theater, so the theatrical action quickly began to be filled with literary works.
Until the 18th century, kabuki theater flourished, but later public interest in the theater disappeared. During the Meiji era (1868-1912), Japan was forced to open up to the world; it was a time of great changes in all areas of Japanese life, with the Kabuki theater being no exception. With the arrival of everything European, it faced the real prospect of destruction. Morita Kanya, the owner of the large theater in Edo, reconstructed the theater in a European style, calling on all his connections for help, ensured that the imperial couple visited kabuki, and the theater rose a notch higher in the eyes of the public.
In the period from 1912 to the Second World War, despite the destruction caused by strong earthquakes, kabuki successfully continued its activities and even toured abroad.
After the war, the occupation authorities recognized the kabuki theater as anti-democratic and set a number of strict conditions for its continued existence. Most plays were banned, new plays were limited in number, and an English translation had to be provided. Most of the prominent kabuki actors died or were killed during the war. The theater was going through difficult times, despite this deplorable situation, troupes began giving performances in September 1945. The Japanese government supported and helped the activities of traditional theaters as much as possible.
Shadow play
Initially, shadow theater appeared among the ancient Chinese and Indian inhabitants 17 centuries ago. Later, with the raids of Genghis Khan, it entered the life of other Asian countries. In Japan, shadow art appeared around the 16th and 17th centuries, when theatrical performances were gaining momentum.
In the shadow theater, small plays were staged that reflected the usual life of the heroes, their experiences and eternal values. Each region of the country had its own theme.
For performances, a special design was used: a frame was built from beams, which was then covered with light canvas - this was the stage. The figures that became dolls were quite primitive - paper, leather, rags.
Actors were hiding behind the stage and controlling puppets using special ropes or thin bamboo sticks. The light was directed at the heroes, and they cast shadows on the white canvas-scene. Hence, as you may have guessed, the name of the theater. The dolls (or rather, the actors who controlled them) danced and sang.
Shadow theater is one of the most beloved in many eastern countries:
- the Chinese recreate the events of history;
- Indians stage scenes from the sacred epic Mahabharata;
- Turks love to enjoy comedy and farce.
Shadow theater in Indonesia
By the way, in one of the articles we talked about Chinese theatrical art - you can read about it here.
The Japanese base their performances on myths, legends, and folklore, and live actors dressed in black clothes perform alongside puppets - this approach makes Japanese shadow theater the most dynamic and realistic.
This year the Japanese shadow theater performed in Russia for the first time. This happened in Ulyanovsk at the “Japanese Spring on the Volga” festival.
Bunraku
Bunraku is a great entertainment for children and their parents, because it is a puppet theater and an enchanting musical performance in one package. Fairy-tale, mythical and folklore motifs come to life here.
The story began with the fictional princess Joruri, who became the main character of the ballads that formed the basis of the productions. At first there were no dolls - the monks performed songs, then the ensemble was supplemented by musicians, and the stories were accompanied by pictures. Only later were the images replaced with real figures.
The narrator is the main character, he is called gidayu here. It tells the story of events and also creates additional sound, such as creaking or rustling. The height of the dolls reaches one and a half meters.
In Bunraku, the puppets are controlled by actors in black robes with a hood - so they do not distract the audience from the magic happening on the stage.
