Eastern Theatre

1. Eastern Theatre

2. 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

3. 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.

5. 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

7. 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.

9. 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

10. 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

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

14. 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

16. 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.