ALTERNATIVE TO NOH AND KABUKI

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Most people have heard of Kabuki and Noh, but Japan has another trditional form of theater - bunraku.

Bunraku is a kind of puppet theater. The puppets are quite large, and each puppet is operated by three puppeteers. The puppeteers are visible on stage, but they are dressed all in black with black hoods over their heads to help the audience "filter them out".

The puppets have gorgeous costumes and are capable of very sophisticated movements. In fact,sometimes it is easy to forget you are seeing a puppet and not a human actor. The sets are very impressive too. If you attend a Bunraku performance you should take a lunchbox. The whole performance lasts about 4 hours, with a lunch break in the middle. People eat their obento in the auditorium or in the lobby on seats and benches provided.

Bunraku is not theater for children. The stories are similar to kabuki, and sometimes the same plays are performed in both. However Bunraku performances are much cheaper to attend than kabuki, possibly because Bunraku is designated a cultural treasure in Japan and subsidized by the government.