Paper short abstract:

Noh written by Zeami are performed by all five schools today. This presentation raises the question how the transmission of noh plays was organized. It aims at showing how Zeami revised plays written by other authors and why this practice of reorganizing and rewriting plays ceased after his death.

Paper long abstract:

Noh plays written by Zeami (1364?-?) are performed by all five schools even though not all schools are historically related to Zeami. That the plays are part of the Kanze, Hōshō and Komparu school repertoires appears logic: The Kanze school can be traced back to the family line of Zeami's nephew; the Hōshō to the lineage of Zeami's uncle; the Komparu school to his son-in-law Zenchiku. Nevertheless, the presumably unrelated Kongō and Kita schools, the latter split from the Kongō troupe in the Edo period, also perform Zeami's original plays. Even during Zeami's time, when each troupe probably had its own distinct repertoire, Zeami often performed works from other troupes, which he even revised for his performance. On the other hand, Zeami's and his son Motomasa's plays were even performed by troupes with a completely different genealogy such as the Yada troupe (Tanba sarugaku).

This raises the question how the transmission of plays was organized. This presentation aims at showing how Zeami revised plays written by other authors and why this practice of reorganizing and rewriting plays ceased after his death. For this two plays and their respective revisions during Kan'ami's and Zeami's time will be analysed: "Kayoi komachi" attributed to Komparu Gonnokami from the Komparu troupe (Yamato sarugaku) and "Kashiwazaki" written by Saemon Gorō from the Enami troupe (Kawachi sarugaku).

Paper short abstract:

During the Edo period noh theatre was frequently performed in domains, such as Kumamoto, Okayama, Kaga or Date. This presentation investigates Kurokawa noh, a local, semi-professional tradition and its role in the cultural activities of the Shōnai domain during the Edo period.

Paper long abstract:

During the Edo period noh theatre was frequently performed in domains, such as Kumamoto, Okayama, Kaga or Date. Noh actors not only travelled from Edo to the domains but were also hired as so-called okakae yakusha ('employed' actors) on a constant basis by certain daimyō. Research has shown, that the performance of noh was part of the cultural activities of the domains and most likely served as a status symbol, proofing the appropriate conduct of business in the domains.

The Sakai daimyō from the Shōnai domain (Yamagata Prefecture) also showed great interest in noh theatre. Nevertheless, it seems as if they did not hire actors from Edo nor invite them due to one fortunate fact. They had their own noh tradition close to the to the domain's capital Tsuruoka: Kurokawa noh.

The farmers of Kurokawa were able to draw large audiences to their performances in the cities of Tsuruoka and Sakata in the Shōnai domain and taught noh to villagers living in their vicinity. They even performed for the daimyō on a regular basis. This presentation investigates the local, semi-professional noh tradition of Kurokawa and its role in the cultural activities of the Shōnai domain (Yamagata Prefecture) during the Edo period relating it to other domains where nō theatre has been performed.

Paper short abstract:

Noh theatre has to adapt to the needs of modern society in order to raise the interest of young people with no knowledge of premodern literature or noh. This presentation argues that using new digital technologies might be a contemporary solution to prevent the decline of interest in noh theatre.

Paper long abstract:

Intertextuality is probably the most prominent characteristic of noh plays written by Zeami. They often draw their topics from classical literature and use expressions alluding to Waka poetry. This entwinement of literature with poetry is one reason why noh until today is considered as one of the most sophisticated theatre traditions in the world. At the same time educational institutions from primary to higher education in Japan constantly reduce the amount of classes on premodern literature. Most people have no connection to traditional culture in their daily lives, a fact that is even more true for the younger generations.

Noh obviously has to adapt to the needs of modern society in order to raise the interest of young people with almost no knowledge of premodern literature and who are most likely not enthusiastic about noh theatre. Until the twentieth century, preparing for a performance, reading libretti and even conducting research on noh theatre was almost exclusively limited to the study of various kinds of written materials. With the rapid evolution of digital technologies in the twenty-first century everyone can easily photograph, record and assemble data. The number of books and journals richly enhancing their written content with photos and illustrations of a nō performance increased significantly with the implementation of new printing techniques. Using the technological advancements, it is now even possible to create three-dimensional digital images and movies of a noh stage, where all sides of the stage can be seen simultaneously. This in itself is already interesting to look at but it becomes even more compelling when it is applied to images and especially recordings of a performance where the actual lines, modern translations and explanations are also added. The result can be used for the study of noh theatre and noh libretti. By introducing these new possibilities, I argue that being able to not just read a text but to actually see how it is performed on stage might be a contemporary solution to prevent the decline of interest not just in noh theatre but also in premodern literature in general.