Traditional Asian Theater
China
Peking Opera
Beijing
The Peking Opera House
• China’s National Opera
• Originated in the late 18th
century
• Synthesis of music, dance,
art, and acrobatics
• Known for acrobatic fighting
• Costumes come from Ming
dynasty no matter what time
setting.
Make-up
Stage set up
Japan
Noh
Theater
Noh Theater in Japan
• Came of age in the 14th century
• Buddhist monks used it as a teaching tool
• Performed on a simple, almost bare stage
and like classical Greek tragedy, uses only
two actors and chorus
• Tone tends to be serious
• Many short plays together in an evenings
entertainment
Zeami - the Father of Noh Theater
Kabuki Theater
Kabuki Theater of Japan
• Over 400 years old
• Originated as middle
class theater
• Actors do not speak
• Narrator describes
the scene, comments
on the action, and
even speaks portions
of the dialogue
Cont.
• Originally performed
by all female cast
• Government forbid
women on stage
• Make-up very
important
• Melodramas centered
around climactic
moments as opposed
to plots
Bunraku