Eastern Theatre

 One of the immediately visible appeals of any form of theatre is the lure of the sound and the color  Easter theatre seems to have perfected this Larger than life costumes Expressive masks Life-like puppets Contagious, rhythmic beat

NOH  Pronounced “no”  Oldest form of Eastern theatre  Deeply rooted in religion and ceremony  Combination of acting, dance and music, rhythmically entwined in a strict form that was passed to each generation in rigid training  Training starts in childhood  Short plots generally deal with myths and legends  Stock characters symbolized on-stage by masks  Each Noh also has a kyogen (a comic interlude) ○ Like the Greek satyr play  Performance combined gliding movements, chanting and stomping in unison with a flute and drum accompaniment  Strength of performance is the fluid beauty of the combined movement, sound and speech.

Bunraku  Form of Japanese theatre  Uses intricately hinged wooden puppets  Puppets stand four feet tall and have moving fingers and facial expressions  Three puppeteers for each figure  Puppeteers are masked in all black but are visible to the audience  Once the story begins they seem to disappear  This form originated in Korea but migrated to Japan in the sixth century AD

Kabuki  Most influential of Asian theatre  Employs singing, dancing, and acting  ka=singing, bu=dancing, ki=acting  Originally produced by women  Newest of the three Eastern forms was an imitation of Noh and the Bunraku  Plots based on historical tales or stories about everyday life  Kabuki actors do not wear masks  Characterized by dramatic face paint Stylized movement Elaborate costumes  Today only men act in the plays  They spend most of their lives studying their art, starting as children and are loyal actors until they die.

Kabuki Stage  Raised wooden platform  Because of rhythmic stomping is such a prevalent part of the style, amplifying wooden sections are often laid on top of the stage  The hanamichi (flower path) is a raised passageway that extends from one corner of the stage through the audience

Kabuki Stage cont.  Like Greeks, Kabuki audience will hear narration and dialog from a chorus of twelve to eighteen members  The chorus members are uniformly dressed and carry a fan  This adds to the beauty of the performance  The orchestra sits at the back of the stage Drums A flute Stringed instrument (samisen)  They are dressed like the chorus

Kimono  Traditional, floor-length robe with draping sleeves  Worn by both male and female characters  Distinguished by a variance in color, fabric, or accessories

Kabuki performance  Stylized wigs are worn to add size and color  Unrealistic make up is painted with brightly colored, sharply contrasting lines meant to show expression  The actors do not try to achieve realism.  Kabuki is fantasy storytelling  Actor‘s movements look more like dancing than acting  Props are brought on stage by crew members dressed in all black  Speeches are told with rhythmic musical accompaniment  May be told by several actors in unison or speaking in turn.  Very ceremonial theatre

China  Peking Opera Harmonious blend of song, dance, dialog, and acrobatics  Subjects of the operas come from fiction, legend, and history  Superb costumes serve to enhance the performance  Color is used to indicate rank and temperament  Originally acted by men, women were later introduced to the Chinese stage  Unfortunately, after the establishment of the People’s Republic in 1949, new plays were saturated with military propaganda  Some new playwrights occasionally surface, and when they do, the entire world has reason to celebrate.