Story performance of puppetshow

Ningyo Joruri is one of the three major traditional performing arts in Japan, along withNoh and Kabuki.

The performance form of telling stories through puppetry originated in the Edo period andhas been passed down to this day.

ln Japanese, “Ningyo”means puppet, and “Joruri” was originally a kind of storytelling.On the stage ofNingyo Joruri, performers called tayu tell stories, and the stringed instrument “Shamisen”uses soundto express the scene.Accompanying the storytelling and sound is a puppet performance that is as vividas real people.The three are in harmony and work together to interpret a wonderful story.This is Ningyo Joruri, a comprehensive performing art unique to Japan.

Ningyo Joruri originated from “storytelling”, which is to tell stories with rhythmic tunes accompaniedby music. The musical instruments used at first were biwa or fusuma (beating the rhythm with a foldingfan), and in the 16th century, the shamisen began to appear, and thus “Joruri”came into being.And inOsaka in the 17th century,Joruri was integrated with puppet shows, and “Ningyo Joruri”was born.Speaking of puppet shows, you may think that the     story content is for children, but in fact, NingyoJoruri performances are mostly based on historical stories or historical events, or on themes such aslove between men and women and parent-child love, such as the famous work “Sonezaki Shinju”thathas been passed down to this day.Ningyo Joruri has developed into an entertainment loved by adults.

Soon, Ningyo Joruri began to spread from its birthplace, Osaka, to local cities and began to be performed in various places. ln particular,Ningyo Joruri was very popular in Tokushima Prefecture inthe Shikoku region.Many puppet theaters have been established here since the Edo period, and peoplehave set up outdoor theaters for Ningyo Joruri performances in the courtyards of shrines.Currently,there are more than 20 puppet theaters in Tokushima Prefecture, and performances are held almostevery day at the Awa Jurobei Mansion in Tokushima City.

The main content of the performance is a story about family disputes that occur in the local area,vividly showing the love between parents and children. When showing the reunion of parents andchildren, the puppet will slightly shake its shoulders and gently touch its lowered face with its hands.The acting is so realistic that it even gives the audience the illusion that the puppet is really crying.What makes this stage performance possible is the technique of three people controlling one puppet,which is unique in the world.The three people control the movements of the head, right hand, lefthand, and feet respectively, making the puppet’s movements realistic and delicately expressing thepuppet’s behavior and mood.Add to that the ups and downs of the tayu’s rap and the lingering soundof the shamisen, and the sound and the puppet’s movements become one, thus interpreting the colorful world of puppetry.

Ningyo Joruri is performed not only in Tokushima Prefecture but also all over the country. The puppetshow’s story depicts the inner world of people in a delicate way, which makes people linger.