Noh or Nō (Japanese: 能) is a major form of classical Japanese musical drama that has been performed since the 14th century. Together with the closely-related kyogen farce, it evolved from various popular and aristocratic art forms, including Dengaku, Shirabyoshi, and Gagaku. Kan'ami and his son Zeami brought Noh to its present-day form during the Muromachi period. It would later influence other dramatic forms such as Kabuki and Butoh. During the Meiji era, although its governmental patronage was lost, Noh and kyogen received official recognition as two of the three national forms of drama.
Noh is unique in its slow, spartan grace and its use of distinctive masks.
Noh is a chanted drama, and for that reason, some people have dubbed it Japanese opera. However, the singing in Noh involves a limited tonal range, with lengthy, repetitive passages in a narrow dynamic range. Clearly, melody is not at the center of Noh singing. Still, texts are poetic, relying heavily on the Japanese seven-five rhythm familiar to all who know the earlier waka and the much-later haiku, with an economy of expression, and an abundance of allusion.
The Noh play takes place on a sparse stage made out of Hinoki (Japanese Cypress) wood. The stage is bare with the exception of the "kagami-ita", a painting of a pine-tree at the back of the stage. There are many explanations for this tree, one of the more common being that it symbolizes a means by which deities were said to descend to earth in Shinto ritual. Another unique feature of the stage is the "Hashigakari", the narrow bridge to the left of the stage that the principal actors use to enter the stage. This would later evolve into the Hanamichi in Kabuki.
In contrast to the unadorned stage, costumes are lavish. Many actors, especially those in the shite role, wear rich silk brocades.
There are four major categories of Noh performers: Shite, Waki, Kyogen, and Hayashi.
- The Shite are the most common form of actor in Noh. They perform various functions, including:
- "Shite" (Primary actor)
- "Tsure" (Shite's companion)
- "Jiutai" (Chorus, usually 6-8 actors)
- "Koken" (stage assistant, usually 2-3 actors).
- The Waki perform the role that is the counterpart or foil of the Shite.
- The Kyogen perform the aikyogen interludes during plays. Kyogen actors also perform in separate plays between individual noh.
- The Hayashi are the instrumentalists who play the four instruments used in Noh theater, the transverse flute (nohkan), hip-drum (okawa or otsuzumi), the shoulder-drum (kotsuzumi), and the stick-drum (taiko).
A typical Noh play will involve all categories of actors and usually takes 30-120 minutes. There are approximately 250 plays that are performed in the current repertoire. There are five categories of Noh plays, organized roughly by subject:
- 1st Category: God plays
- 2nd Category: Warrior plays
- 3rd Category: Woman plays
- 4th Category: Miscellaneous plays.
- 5th Category: Demon plays.
Okina/Kamiuta is a unique play that combines dance with Shinto ritual. It is considered the oldest Noh play.
The Tale of the Heike, a medieval tale of the rise and fall of the Taira clan, originally sung by blind monks who accompanied themselves on the biwa, is an important source of material for Noh (and later dramatic forms), particularly warrior plays. Another major source is The Tale of Genji, an eleventh century work, sometimes called the world's first novel. Authors also drew on Nara and Heian period Japanese classics, and Chinese sources.
There are about 1500 professional Noh actors in Japan today, and the art form continues to thrive. The five extant schools of Noh acting are the Kanze (観世), Hosho (宝生), Komparu (金春), Kita (喜多), and Kongo (金剛) schools. Each school has a leading family known as Soh-ke, and the head of each family is entitled to create new plays or edit already existing songs. The society of Noh actors is quite feudalistic, and strictly protects the traditions passed down from their ancestors.
According to Zeami, all Noh plays should create an aesthetic ideals called 'Yugen', meaning subtle and profound spirit, and 'Hana", meaning novelty. Noh truly represents the Japanese culture of finding beauty in subtlety and formality.
Famous Noh Plays
(Categorization is that of the Kanze school)
- Aoi no uye -- "Court Lady Aoi" (Category 4)
- Dojoji -- "Dojoji" (Category 4)
- Hagoromo -- "The Feather Mantle" (Category 3)
- Izutsu -- "The Well Cradle" (Category 3)
- Matsukaze -- "Pining Wind" (Category 3)
- Sekidera Komachi -- Komachi at Sekidera (Category 3)
- Shakkyo -- "Stone Bridge" (Category 5)
- Shojo -- "The Tippling Elf" (Category 3)
- Yorimasa -- "Yorimasa" (Category 2)
- Yuya -- "Yuya" (Category 3)
Masks in Noh Plays
The masks in Noh (能面 nō-men or 面 omote, feature) all have names.
Usually only the Shite, the main player, takes the mask. However, in some cases the Tsure may also take a mask, particularly for female roles. The Noh masks are used to portray a female or nonhuman (divine, demonic or animal) character. There are also Noh masks to represent youngsters or old men. On the other hand, the Noh actor who takes no mask plays a role of an adult man in his twenties, thirties or forties. The side player, waki, takes no mask either.
When used by a skilled actor, Noh masks have the ability to depict different emotional expressions according to head pose and lighting. An inanimate mask can have the appearance of being happy, sad or a variety of subtle expressions. Studies by Michael J. Lyons of the ATR Intelligent Robotics and Communication Labs in Kyoto, Japan, and Ruth Campbell, at University College London, have explored this aspect of the masks [1].
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