Traditional Japanese Bunraku: Puppet Theater

Bunraku is one of the major traditional theaters of Japan that arose in the 17th century and was established as a performance genre when a puppet theatre was set up in Osaka, Japan. Bunraku is a unique Japanese form of Puppet Theater that represents traditional legends and plays of both historical and contemporary interest. The puppets are well known because of their fascinating and artistic features. They are life-size, beautifully hand-carved wooden rods with detailed costume and interesting facial expressions. These puppets, whose articulation has evolved over time, are handled by up to three expert puppeteers - depending on the complexity of the figure. A trained singer recites the dialogues, while the puppets are manipulated to the sound of a small orchestra of up to ten Japanese traditional instruments. This is for all in an exquisite art in which the harmony and synchronization between all parties are essential during the representation. A traditional performance includes puppets, puppeteers, the narrator and

it is deduced that Ohatsu’s puppet construction had play an enormous role in order to convey the story and the feelings in the most effective way. The specific features the puppet has been constructed with are the essential contribution to the whole outline of the story. Unlike other ones, the design of Ohatsu’s puppet is highly sophisticated. Its particular features are fundamentally made to help achieving the perfect harmonious level required to leave the audience amazed. The puppeteers’ work is also crucial in order to maintain the strong emotions throughout the play. They express these emotions in a beautiful way and knowing the heroic nature of the character Ohatsu, they can perform a convincing high standard