Cultural Context and History:
Puppetry came to Japan in the 11th century from Central Asia. Bunraku style puppetry was created in the 17th century in the city of Osaka, the third largest city in Japan. Osaka is still home to the National Bunraku Theatre of Japan.
Bunraku was created through two separate performance styles merging together:
Bunraku was created through two separate performance styles merging together:
- puppetry, whose Japanese name is ayatsuri
- chanting and singing with narration, which in Japanese is translated to joruri
Materials and Construction:
Bunraku puppets feature a head and torso, and hands and feet that are attached with string. The puppet does not have an actual body. The body is created by carefully wrapping the kimono around the puppet to create a chest, stomach, and arms and legs. Talented puppet makers spend a great deal of time designing how the clothing will hang on the body of the puppet to make this illusion truly effective.
Performance Style:
- A performance is usually broken up into two segments: one section in the early afternoon, and the next section into the late evening. But more often than not, one Bunraku play can take an entire day to perform.
- The stage is broken up by partitions, which conceal some of the body of the puppeteers, and also make it look like the puppet is walking when actually it is floating in the air.
Interesting Facts:
- Female puppets are never made with feet or shoes, because when Bunraku was created it was a cultural custom that Japanese women never showed their feet. That tradition is still followed.
- One character might have five or more different heads created for them to show changes in emotion or physical appearance.
- The costumes that the puppets wear are 2/3 of the size of an actual human costume. And the same fabric and materials are used for puppets are also used for traditional Japanese actors.
BeginJapanology Video on Bunraku Puppetry
Watch the video below and fill out the sheet which accompanies it
Just for Fun:
A Contemporary Bunraku Puppet
A modern take on an old tradition: from The Lion King on Broadway: the character Timon is created by using some traditional Bunraku elements, and also giving it a more modern twist: the puppeteer is only one person, and is coloured to be like the grass that Timon the lemur would eat.
Watch this video where the puppeteer who performs Timon in the Las Vegas production demonstrates how the puppet works, and how what he has to do as a puppeteer to make him come to life: