Conserving Kabuki, Celebrating Broadway
At the end of last month, the Japan Foundation invited nine Indonesian playwrights for a comparative study of theaters of both countries. Tempo's Seno Joko Suyono joined the dramatists on a 14-day tour of Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, Hiroshima and Kyoto. Seno writes the report; monolog 'king' Butet Kertarajasa makes a comparative study as an actor and Sitok Srengenge compiles the synopsis of a Japanese drama inspired by the ritual of whaling in Flores, Indonesia.
December 18, 2000
A cold winter breeze was blowing in the room of a kabuki (Japanese traditional theater) building in Tokyo. Though drizzling outside, a crowd of women took no care and hastily moved toward the ticket counter of the Kabuki-za—the largest and oldest kabuki house in Japan—for a ritual. In the theater hall they watched the performance marked by heavy intonation and slow dialog, the players wearing flamboyant costumes and trying to express
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