Glossary
ai: kyōgen actor who retells the plot during the interlude between the first and second acts of many noh plays
aioi: term describing two distant pine trees in the noh play Takasago as paired or even married
atarashii kankan: “new sense-sense” coined by the writer Ryütanji Yū to describe the feeling of modanizumu in Japan
au: noh songs in which the chant and drums are rhythmically matched
awazu: noh songs in which the chant and drums are rhythmically independent rather than matched
Ayame-kai: international literary society which Noguchi Isamu founded to promote modernism in Japan
benshi or katsuben: the film narrator who stood or knelt to the left of the screen in full view of the audience and interpreted the film
budō: the samurai warrior arts
bunraku: puppet theater
bushido: a term for the austere samurai warrior code in Tokugawa Japan; also the title of an Edo period play reinterpreted by Ito Michio for the Washington Square Players
butoh: a modern form of Japanese dance that features extreme tension throughout the body
chado: tea ceremony
chigo: adolescent acolytes of Buddhist priests
Chigo monogatari (tales of acolytes): a popular literary form that emphasized a monk’s physical and spiritual relationship with the chigo
daimyo: Japanese feudal lord
doji: temple acolyte; the Cherry Sweeper in Tamura
Domonkai: the school of modern dance Ito Michio founded in Japan
eboshi: a formal Japanese hat
fushi-zuke: noh chant composition
Gagaku: Japanese court music
giri: ancient codes of honor followed by samurai warriors
hashigakari: a bridgeway extending from the noh stage for the entrance of performers
hashira: the pillars in each of the four corners of the square noh stage
hayashi: noh orchestra
higashi: decorated confectionery; often eaten during the Japanese tea ceremony
hiranori: one of the most common rhythmic structures in noh; the (usually) twelve syllables of poetry are distributed over an eight-beat rhythmic pattern
hokubun: a full-ranked performer of noh
hosonuno: a narrow cloth made of woven feathers that symbolizes unrequited love in Nishikigi
iemoto: leader or family head of the schools of Japanese performing arts
issei: a noh verse pattern typically sung during the entrance of the shite
jidaigeki: films about samurai of the Edo period
jiutai: noh chorus of eight to ten performers who kneel stage left
Jiyū Gekijō: Free Theater founded in 1909 for the purpose of staging western dramas
kabuki: Japanese dance-drama influenced by noh
kagura: sacred dance; performed in Takasago to celebrate a perfect sovereign
kakagoe: drum calls performed by noh drummers
kakeai: noh dialogue or recitative sung in unmatched rhythm
kakikurasu: tormented/darkened
kamae: posture or stance of the noh actor; pelvis tipped forward, knees bent, upper body strong
kana: Japanese written characters
kata: standard forms in Japanese arts; in noh, the gestural sequences and established drum patterns
katazuke: choreography
Kawanakajima: location of the legendary battle of the Takeda and Uesugi samurai clans in 1561
kenbu: Japanese sword dance
kensho: the configuration of the noh auditorium with audience seating on three sides of the stage
kiri: in noh, the closing section of a play
kitsune: legendary Japanese fox
kokata: child actor in noh; the role of an emperor or highly ranked official is often performed by a kokata
koken: stage assistants who kneel at the back of the noh stage
kokorogake: the “mental attitude” associated with the instruction in samurai warrior arts (budō)
kotsuzumi: noh shoulder drum
Kuannon: Sino-Japanese spirit of mercy
kuden: tradition
kurogo: “man-in-black;” a stage assistant who is considered “invisible” in kabuki
kyakurai: “the effect of doubling back”; Zeami uses the term to refer to an enlightened return to the yūgen of boyhood
kyōgen: comedic plays, often staged as interludes between noh plays
mai: dance
mie or kimaru: codified poses struck at emotional moments during a kabuki play
Miho no Matsubara: pine grove at Miho Bay; setting of Hagoromo
mo: “no or not”
modanizumu: movement advocating original artistic expression and a source of popular fashion in Japan in the early 1900’s; term derived from modernism
mondō: prose dialogue in noh
monoguruimono: fourth category noh plays about mad people
montsuki: formal Japanese attire, worn in informal noh performances
Mukei Bunkazai Sōgō Shitei: “Intangible Cultural Property Holder”
mugen noh: dream play
naga-bakama: long trousers
naginata: long blade; carried by the Young Man/Cuchulain in Theatre Nohgaku’s At the Hawk’s Well
nanori: a naming verse that introduces the noh character
natori: stage title or name; surname is typically the name of the school
nihon buyo: traditional Japanese dance
Nihon Nōgakukai: Japanese Noh Society
Nihon Puroretaria Geijutsu Renmei: Japan League of Proletarian Arts
nimaime: “second” performer in kabuki, typically a good-hearted but flawed romantic character
Nippon Gakujutsu Shinkōkai: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
nishikigi: “brocade trees” or decorated sticks that serve as love charms
nōkan or fue: noh flute in the orchestra or hayashi
oi-matsu: a large pine tree painted on the back wall of the theatre
omiai: traditional arranged meeting or marriage
ōmugaeshi: “parrot-like repetition;” imitative pedagogy used in noh lessons
onna mai: in nihon buyo, “female dances”
otoko mai: in nihon buyo, “male dances”
ōtsuzumi: noh hip drum
ōzayū: zigzag stepping pattern in noh
rensageki: chain dramas juxtaposing filmed kabuki scenes and live performance
Ryōan-ji: famous rock garden in Kyoto
ryū: schools or guilds (there are five in noh)
sashi koye (sashi-koe): a “flow-along tune;” a type of noh sashi sung in a smooth manner
sayū: a common kata for concluding a noh dance
seiza: kneeling with legs folded beneath your body and buns resting on heels
sensei: master or teacher
sensu: small folding fans
seppuku(o): ritual death
shigin: style of reciting classical poems
shikake-hiraki: common noh kata; step forward with arm point then backward step as arms open
shikisanban: three rites; noh plays that are particularly sacred and traditionally require performers to engage in a period of “purification”
shiori: weeping gesture in noh, hand moves toward eye
shimai: noh dance
shingeki: Japanese modern theater or “new drama”
Shinkyo Gekidan: New Cooperative Theater Company
shite: central actor or soloist in noh
shōdan: a sung verse pattern in noh
shōshimingeki: films about ordinary people in modern Japan
shudō: “the way of (loving) youths” (not to be misunderstood as a sexual identity)
shūgen: a “congratulatory play” used at the beginning and end of the full noh sequence
suriashi: noh walking technique; literally “sliding foot”
taiko: stick drum
taiyu: master actor
tanka: Japanese poetic form similar to haiku but with two additional lines of seven syllables
tateyaku: “standing role” or leading man in a kabuki play
tennin: celestial spirit or angel; in Hagoromo, the angel from the palace of the moon
Tessenkai: a performance group with the Kanze school of noh
tōitsu imeiji: “unifying image”
Tokugawa bakufu: rulers during the Edo period (1600-1867)
Tsukiji Shōgekijo: or Tsukiji Little Theater; often cited as “Japan’s First Modern Theater”
tsukizerifu: a noh verse announcing “we have arrived”
tsukurimono: literally “built thing;” stage properties in noh
tsure: companion
ukiyoe: Japanese wood prints
utaibon: books for chanting noh text or libretto
utai: noh chant
wagashi: delicate confectionary traditionally served with tea
wakashu: the apprentices of samurai/nenja
waki: the watcher or witness role in noh; often a traveling monk
wakizure: companion of the waki
yūgen: the profound, mysterious, and elegant beauty associated with noh
Zō-onna mask: worn by young women and divinities in noh
