Sara McGaughey
Google
Short Review: If you get a chance to watch a Bunraku play (or part thereof) at the National Bunraku Thatre in Osaka, don't miss it!! We have been to Japan a number of times, and this is a truly special and rare experience. Each main puppet character is operated by three puppeteers, with intricate gestures and expressions. The vocal skill and emotion of the 'narrators', who are central to the play and accompanied by musicians, is astonishing.
Long review with tips: We saw a 9 hour performance of "The Treasury of the 47 Ronin" at the National Bunraku Theatre in Osaka -- a classic tale, and the one on which the 2013 movie "47 Ronin" (with Keanu Reeves) is based.
We suspected a 9-hour show might be tedious but, instead, were captivated during the first 4 hours (even without the dashing Keanu Reeves). So we bought tickets for the second half during intermission.
The Theatre is roomy with very comfortable seats; staff exceptionally polite and helpful (with informative demonstrations in the small museum on the operation of the puppets and helpful guides); and there is an excellent audio guide.
Some tips from our experience:
(1) You get a discount if you buy ticets for the full show from the outset. We paid 16,000 yen each for the full show (14,000 if bought both 'parts' together). But you can also buy cheaper tickets for short sections if you just want a 'taster'.
(2) You can buy online for Part 1 or Part 2 (but not the smaller sections), but we bought our tickets at the box office on the day. Very easy.
(3) Take the advice of the box office where to sit. Generally centre and right side are best, as you get a good view of both the puppeteers and narrators/ muscians who drive the performance.
(4) Get the english audio (800 yen). I think other languages are also available. We made the mistake of not getting it for the first two acts (we got a little lost), and ducked out in a short breat to get one. It describes key points of action and some interesting nuances. The audio is not a line-by-line translation and left plenty of quiet periods. This was fortunate, as part of the joy was allowing the music, narration and puppetry to evoke emotion and experience, rather than being constantly 'told'.
(5) Try to spend a few minutes beforehand in the little museum in the theatre. The demonstrator of the puppets' components (maks, limbs etc) was very kind and informative, showing how the puppets worked and explaining various meanings of gestures -- which was useful knowledge during the performance.
(6) Pick up the free "Introduction to Bunraku" brochure (green, white and orange cover) in the lobby. These were thrust in our hands by attentive staff. Well designed and very informative.
(7) Obento boxes, etc (food) are sold in the lobby during breaks at not unreasonable prices, but we took our own rice balls (onigiri) and water.
Perhaps it is not fair to compare, but of Kabuki, Noh and Bunraku, I found the Bunraku puppet theatre the most extrordinary and captivating for its ability to convey historical narrative of contemporary relevance AND human emotion.
Hope this review helps... :-)
