Is Japan An Extraordinary Novel Performing Art?

Chikamatsu Monzaemon’s play, The Love Suicides at Amijima explores the disgrace of Jihei and Koharu’s misbegotten romance, the underlying conflict of the hidden innuendos aimed at the Japanese social class and the sense of duty formed between two women from unseemmingly different backgrounds. In order to fully understand these themes, on must take into account the societal structure of Osaka, Japan in the 1720s. Within this culture, every individual was instilled the notion of familial obligation and had to adhere to the rules placed upon them by society. Chikamatsu Monzaemon does an ideal job of capturing these concepts within the play.

culture to provide plays and musicals that the audiences are thrilled to see. Whether people are

Kabuki (歌舞伎) presents one of the most popular forms of traditional theatre in Japan with roots tracing back to the Edo Period. The root of the word “kabuki” presents its definition clearly as it contains three Chinese characters: “ka” means song, “bu” means dance and “ki” means prostitute. Hence kabuki is the combination of music, dance and dialogues. The inventor of kabuki is one of the dancers of Shinto temple, Okuni in 1603. Therefore kabuki used to be acted only by women till 1629. It involves elaborately designed costumes, eye-catching make-up, outlandish wigs, and arguably most importantly, the exaggerated actions performed by the actors. Its plots are usually based on historical events, warm hearted dramas, moral conflicts, love stories,

Court Dances explores dance in the royal courts of the world and shows how its function lives on in European ballet, Japanese Bugaku, and the dance of the Asante kings of Ghana (West Africa).

In the late 18th century both Japan and Europe were experiencing many new artistic and intellectual developments. While Europe’s developments were increasingly political, more and more people wanted rights for women along with protection from the state. Japan on the other hand was progressively modernizing from their isolated feudal society into its modern form now. Beginning in Tokyo many new intellectual advances came from studying the western sciences and techniques. Authors like Rousseau and Wollstonecraft wrote revolutionary books in Europe that changed the way people thought about themselves and what rights they should be born with; they led people to question the state and fight for what they believed to be justifiably right.

As Stiller 's thesis contends, the hula tradition has been largely preserved and advanced due to the efforts of women in both the foreground – as soloists and desirable performers – and in the behind-the-scenes, or what Stiller prefers to call the "underground, what happens backstage during teaching and preparation (210-11). Throughout the twentieth century, the "staging…[and] continuity of the performance tradition" has been promoted and shaped by "the hands of women" (211). This is a fascinating social observation, surprisingly devoid of any overt value judgments from Stiller 's end.

"A Philosophy of Theater « " East of Mina. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.

Even though the lack of an elaborate set design focused the audience’s attention solely on the performers, it also detracted from the performance as it created no connection of the audience with the setting or, at least, with the important themes. The set designers could have created some sort of background that resembled the emotions expressed throughout the various individual acts or could have even contributed with better props that enhanced the audience’s connection to the performances. Despite the dynamic colorful projections, there was little relationship between the lighting design with the entire performance. It attempted to evoke complementing emotions to the dancer’s movements and the music by using a variety of colors and shapes and it was also used to mark the beginning and ending of each act. Nonetheless, the message remained very abstract and hard to grasp, which did not help to enhance the vicarious experience. Given that this was more of a dance performance rather than a theatrical one, there was not a lot of room for character transitions on and off the stage, yet the lighting would have contributed effectively to the performance if it had been more integrated with the characters’ movements and not just projected on a screen as a separate act. Finally, the costume design attempted to create the same effect as the lighting and stage design by using colors and patterns that reflected the emotions of the performance on-stage. The costumes of some performances showed more elaboration, such as in the ones in “Belinha,” while others were less sophisticated and around plain clothes. Nonetheless, as was the case in “9:35, 11:10, 12:45, 2:20, 4:10,” using plain clothes did not necessarily detract from the performance as it created a connection with the setting and important

From countries across the world, such as China, Indonesia, and Africa, to the United States, theatre is all similar in implementing theatre. Such productions including Raja Edeupus, Master Qi and Monkey King, and Julius Caesar all show different sides of their own culture throughout the piece. For example, Raja Edeupus shows their Indonesian culture through their praising of a master and their artistic design within costumes and setting. Much like the Chinese culture widely expressed in Master Qi and Monkey King that utilized martial arts with dancing to implement a story. Likewise, Julius Caesar played in Africa, shows traditional African dancing through drums and song to show their own political beliefs. In America, we also have productions

In early eleventh century Japan, circa the year 1021, noblewoman and lady-in-waiting Murasaki Shikibu published The Tale of Genji, widely renowned as the world’s first novel. The work is set in Shikibu’s contemporary Heian period of Japan, in which political and social ranks dictated society’s functioning and heavy prejudices were placed on those deemed unsuitable for the affairs of public court life. Women fell under this umbrella of outsiders, meant to live primarily behind screens and closed doors only to be seen by their father and husband. It is believed that Shikibu wrote such a tale of forbidden romance and whimsical court affairs to bring life to her fellow women who shared in such a limited existence. This single piece of literature manages to wholly represent the Heian age of Japanese history, embodying the period’s culture and seamlessly incorporating a broad spectrum of themes of civilization.

This paper provided an opportunity to take a deeper look into the country of Japan by conducting a Global Cultural Analysis. Throughout this paper the following four research areas were explored: 1.What is the major elements and dimensions of culture in Japan? 2. How are these elements and dimensions integrated by locals conducting business in Japan? 3. How does U.S. culture and business compare with the elements and dimensions of culture integrated by the locals conducting business in Japan? 4. What are the implications for U.S. businesses that wish to conduct business with Japan?

They are the ritualization in Japanese culture, women’s implicit expression of love, women’s hierarchy in 18th Japan, and how the landscape of Japan influences the prosperity of Geisha culture.

It is no secret that for centuries, the Japanese woman has been, to most observers, a model of elegance and graceful beauty. A picture of a kimono-clad, modest, and often silent woman has been plastered everywhere, allowing for the upmost passive subjection. If we look deeper into this image of woman, can we tell if this picture is complete? How do these women painted in representative images far in the modern world? The ideal woman in Japan is expected to be both a good wife, and a wise mother. Though these seem like reasonable expectations, there is a much deeper meaning to them that has shown signs of being outdated. During the 1800’s and 1900’s, women were subjected to society’s vision of them, and could not break free for fear of the

To what extent does stage design impact, influence, and enhance a traditional Kabuki theatre performance, more specifically, in the eighteenth century play Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees) written by Takeda Izumo II, Namiki Senryû I, and Miyoshi Shôraku?

In Kabuki theatre, everything that is seen on the stage is the result of a meaningful inner dynamic which completes the performance by the coordination of the actors with all the various components of the mise-en-scène and then by the traditions of all the various elements being assembled into an organic whole (Kawatake 1990, 247).