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World Theatre Essay Plan
Subject Of Investigation
For this investigation I plan on looking into kabuki theatre, but more specifically the staging
and how it is set up for a multitude of stage devices as appose to its counter-part Noh
Theatre. To do this I’ll start off by talking briefly about how kabuki came about from the Edo
era (1603-1868) and how it developed from the traditional style of Noh theatre. Following
on from that I’ll eagerly see if that kabuki staging was designed by females as well as
creating the first forms of the style. From this I shall then talk about my main focus, the
stage sets or the “O-dogu” as it is known, as well as the performances of the period, this will
include what they demanded in terms of special effects i.e. trap doors and backdrops etc.
Examples of where such devices are incorporated will be play’s I look into such as Masakado
and also Benten Kozo. Furthermore I plan to look at what impact these special effects had if
any on the Peasants, artisans and merchants as an audience of that period.
Methods Of Investigation
To go into more detail of how I will go about my investigation I have taken a variety of books
surrounding kabuki/Japanese theatre. One such book is called Kabuki backstage, onstage An
actor’s life, which has been written by Matazo Nakamura who describes how kabuki first
established itself. “It is said that kabuki began in the early Edo period (1603-1868) when a
woman named Izumo Okuni began to dance something called Okuni kabuki in the ancient
capital of kyroto.” Further reading includes the description of the layout of the stage of
which on page 77 he explains about the differences of western upstage and downstage to
the eastern stage and as to the reasons for the difference. Another useful book is, Kabuki a
pocket guide by Ronald Cavaye who describes a simple overview of the various elements of
kabuki theatre, including “the kabuki playhouse has undergone five major developments”
reading on from this helps my comparison argument to Noh theatre through such
similarities as they both use a walkway called Hanamichi. Another similarity is that families
of actors are kept through generations and they make their presence known to the audience
by such things as family crests which are called “mon” usually found on costumes and props.
Again from such explanations as these I can explore how an audience then perceives these
subtle indications of set and props. Focusing on certain play’s which have grand staging is
also helpful by following on from examples such as the kabuki a pocket guide, in which
play’s like Masakado are noted for their staging. Then books that look at the performance in
greater detail like, Master pieces of Kabuki, eighteen plays on stage by James r. Brandon and
Samuel L. Leiter. I’ll be able to look at the uses of stage assistants and how their job role fits
in upon the stage for example in the piece Masakado “Meanwhile, her stage assistants are
pulling the threads from the shoulders of her kimono, allow the garment to fall open.” And
so with these elements and other sources I hopefully will have a more defined answer to
how kabuki staging works through all its various aspects.
By David Weeks
Bibliography
(Master pieces of Kabuki, eighteen plays on stage by J R. Brandon and S L. Leiter) 2004,
university of Hawai’i press, p214-223
(Kabuki backstage, onstage An actor’s life by M. Nakamura) 1990, Kodansha International
Tokyo and New York, p21-36/ 72-73/ 76-77
(Kabuki a pocket guide by R Cavaye) 1993 Charles E. Tuttle Publishing p22-27/ 89-95/ 104130
(The Kabuki theatre by E. Ernst) 1974, University of Hawai’I Press, p127-128-136-163
(Kabuki The Popular Theatre by Y. Toita) 1970, Jointly published by John Weatherhill, inc.
and New York and Tokyo, p9-26/ 65-72/ 80
(The Cambridge guide to Asian Theatre by J R. Bradon) 1993, Cambridge University Press,
p142-152
(The Kabuki Theatre of Japan by A. C. Scott) 1999, Published George Allen & Unwin Ltd,
p152/15/236-289
(Kabuki Today the Art and Tradition by D. Keene and I. Kamimura) 2001, Kodansha
International Tokyo and New York, p13-15/ 36-41/ 191
(The Twentieth-Century Performance Reader by T. Brayshaw and N. Witts) 2014, Routledge,
p48- 297- 405
(Theatre Histories an introduction by P. B. Zarilli, B. McConachie, G. J. Williams & C. F.
Sorgenfrei) 2010, Routledge, p203-206/ 219-227
(Key concepts in Drama and Performance by K Pickering) 2010, Palgrave Macmillan, p179189
(The Ladies: Female Patronage of Restoration Drama 1660-1700 by D Roberts) 1989, Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
(The Japanese Theatre From Shamanistic Ritual to Contemporary Pluralism by B. Ortolani)
1995, Princeton University Press, p165- 168- 175
(K. Mende) 2002, ‘Concerning the Japanese Kabuki Stage’ Journal for Geometry and
Graphics (Volume 6 No.2) July 28, p183–190. http://www.heldermannverlag.de/jgg/jgg06/jgg0615.pdf
http://www.kabuki21.com/
http://www.glopad.org/jparc/?q=en/scenery/kanai_history
By David Weeks
http://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/kabuki/en/3/3_01.html
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2090.html
http://www.lit-arts.net/Behn/theater.htm
https://www.mhi-global.com/discover/graph/pdf/157_03.pdf
By David Weeks