Bunraku

Bunraku (文楽^?), also known as Ningyō jōruri (人形浄瑠璃), is a form of traditional Japanese puppettheatre, founded in Osaka in 1684.

Three kinds of performers take part in a bunraku performance:

• Ningyōtsukai or Ningyōzukai—puppeteers
• Tayū—the chanters
• Shamisen players

Occasionally other instruments such as taiko drums will be used.

The most accurate term for the traditional puppet theater in Japan is ningyō jōruri (人形浄瑠璃^?). The combination of chanting and shamisen playing is called jōruri and the Japanese word for puppet (or dolls, generally) is ningyō.

Bunraku puppetry has been a documented traditional activity for Japanese for hundreds of years.

Originally, the term "Bunraku" referred only to the particular theater established in 1612 in Osaka, which was named the Bunrakuza after the puppeteering ensemble of Uemura Bunrakuken (植村文楽軒), an early 19th century puppeteer on Awaji, whose efforts revived the flagging fortunes of the traditional puppet theater.

Bunraku puppets

The head

The heads of the puppets ("kashira") are divided into categories according to gender, social class and personality. Certain heads are created for specific roles, others can be employed for several different performances by changing the clothing and the paint. The heads are in effect repainted and prepared before each presentation.^[4][5]

The preparation of the hair constitutes an art in and of itself. The hair distinguishes the character and can also indicate certain personality traits. The hair is made from human hair however yak tail can be added to create volume. The ensemble is then fixed on a copper plate. To ensure that the puppet head is not damaged, the finishing of the hairstyle is made with water and bee's wax, not oil.^[6]

The costume

Female Puppet.

The costumes are designed by a costume master and are composed of a series of garments with varying colors and patterns. These garments typically include a sash and a collar as well as an under robe (juban), an inner kimonokitsuke), a vest (haori) or an outer robe (uchikake). In order to keep the costumes soft they are lined with cotton.^[7] (

As the clothing of the puppets wear out or are soiled the clothing is replaced by the puppeteers. The process of dressing or redressing the puppets by the puppeteers is called koshirae.

The stage

The musician’s stage (Yuka)

This is the auxiliary stage upon which the gidayu-bushi is performed. It juts out into the audience area at the front right area of the seats. Upon this auxiliary stage there is a special rotating platform. It is here that the chanter and the shamisen player make their appearance, and, when they are finished, it turns once more, bringing them backstage and placing the next performers on the stage.^[8]

The partitions (Tesuri) and the pit (Funazoko)

In the area between upstage and downstage, the three stage positions, known as "railings" (tesuri). Located in the area area behind the second partition is oftentimes called the pit and it is where the puppeteers stand in order to carry out the puppets' lifelike movements.

Small curtain (Komaku) and Screened-off Rooms (Misuuchi)

This stage looks at the stage from the angle of the audience, the right side is referred to as the kamite (stage left), while the left side is referred to as the shimote (stage right). The puppets are made to appear and then leave the stage through the small black curtains. The blinded screens are just above these small curtains, and they have special blinds made from bamboo so that the audience cannot see inside.