Foreign Audiences Laugh at a Wooden Doll as 400-Year-Old Kabuki Targets the Global Market Again

【Financial News | Tokyo = Correspondent Seo Hye-jin】When a box onstage opened, a wooden doll dressed in an ornate yellow kimono emerged. The sculptor Hidari Jingoro placed a mirror in the doll's sash after it came out of the box. Moments later, the doll slowly raised its head after seeing its reflection in the mirror. It loosened its stiff limbs, bent at the waist like a person and began dancing, moving its fingertips delicately. Laughter and applause erupted from the audience.
Foreign audience members in nearby seats alternated between watching the stage and portable electronic devices displaying an English script and scene explanations. They laughed whenever the doll comically imitated Jingoro's movements and applauded enthusiastically when the dance ended.
This was a scene from the Kabuki work "Kyo Ningyo," which took the stage at Kabuki-za in Tokyo's Ginza district at 7:02 p.m. on the 17th. The roughly 30-minute comedy uses dance and acting to depict the commotion that unfolds between the sculptor Jingoro and the doll he created.
New audiences are discovering Kabuki, a Japanese traditional theater form that has continued for more than 400 years. Interest has grown since director Lee Sang-il's film "Kokuho," released last year, became the highest-grossing Japanese live-action film ever. Shochiku, the producer and promoter of Kabuki, is lowering the barriers for younger and international audiences. Without changing the performances themselves, it is drawing in new viewers by reducing price and language barriers while once again targeting overseas markets.■ New audiences double after the success of "Kokuho"Kabuki is Japan's representative traditional theater form, combining song, dance and acting, with male actors performing every role. Although it has a history spanning more than 400 years and is recognized as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, dialogue filled with archaic expressions and lengthy performances can be barriers for first-time viewers.
One factor bringing in new audiences is the film "Kokuho." Released last June, the film made its world premiere in the Directors' Fortnight section of the 78th Cannes Film Festival before enjoying a long theatrical run. It grossed more than 20 billion yen, or approximately 172.8 billion won, making it the highest-grossing Japanese live-action film ever.
About 25,000 people visited Kabuki-za for the first time from July through December last year. The number of new visitors, which had previously stood at around 2,000 a month, nearly doubled to an average of about 4,000 per month. Including other theaters, more than 30,000 new visitors came during the same period.
However, not all of this can be attributed to the "Kokuho effect." Last year also marked Shochiku's 130th anniversary, bringing major attractions such as the name-succession performance of Onoe Kikugoro VIII and productions of Kabuki's three major classics. Senda Manabu, manager of Kabuki-za, explained in a March interview with Toyo Keizai Online, "While these major hits were already drawing attention to Kabuki, the influence of 'Kokuho' made it an even bigger topic."
To turn this growing interest into actual attendance, Shochiku is lowering price and language barriers. It operates "Hitomaku-miseki," or one-act seating, which allows visitors to watch just one work during a lengthy performance. Last October, it began selling same-day remaining seats at half price to people aged 25 and under. Since June this year, the program has been expanded to those aged 30 and under.
English explanations are also available for international audiences. The portable electronic devices used in the audience that day displayed an English script and scene descriptions in sync with the performance. The aim is to lower price and language barriers while keeping the performance itself in its traditional form.
Actors in their 20s who are expected to lead the next generation of Japanese Kabuki will take the stage in London next year. They are Ichikawa Somegoro VIII and Onoe Tatsunosuke III, whom we met that day at the "Take" rehearsal room on the fourth floor of Kabuki-za. Born in 2005 and 2006, respectively, the two will make their overseas stage debuts side by side in London next January.
Somegoro said he has no plans to change Kabuki itself for the overseas performance. "At present, I have no plans to make any special changes just because it is overseas," he said. "I am looking forward to seeing how audiences respond when we show them the Kabuki we usually perform."■ "If they are not entertained, they do not come back": London return after 17 yearsThe actors are also eager to meet overseas audiences in person. Tatsunosuke said, "Japanese audiences remain in their seats even when they think a performance is not entertaining, but overseas audiences sometimes do not return to their seats after the intermission if they find it uninteresting."
He continued, "When they like something, they respond with tremendous applause. As an actor, I appreciate that they clearly show when something is entertaining and when it is not."
Shochiku is expanding its overseas performances. In April this year, it held a European tour introducing Kabuki in Paris, Rome and Cologne.
The next stop is Britain. On Jan. 30-31 next year, Somegoro and Tatsunosuke will present three works at Sadler's Wells Theatre in London: "Fuji Musume," "Yuki no Shakyo" and "Meoto Dojoji." Shochiku's London Kabuki performance will be its first there in approximately 17 years, since 2010. It will also be the first overseas stage for both actors.
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