The Crossover of Anime and Japanese Theatre

Kayson Carlin

Bowling Green State University

October 10, 2018

 

The Crossover of Anime and Japanese Theatre

            Perhaps the most recognizable Japanese theatre performance is Kabuki, known for it’s lavish costumes, make-up, and dramatic effects. In the late 1960’s, a new sub-genre called Super Kabuki was birthed, sometimes referred to as the “Hollywood” of Japanese theatre. Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke formed his own company with the idea of modernizing Kabuki. Ennosuke trimmed dialog, sped up the delivery of lines, and alternated fast-moving action scenes with slower ones that reveal emotion and characterization. He employed modern set, costume, and lighting designers, and revived theatrical trickery like quick costume changes, cascades of real water on stage, and flying on wires over the stage and out over the audience (Hornby p.517). This type of freedom in creativity and performance matches particularly well with anime, which commonly employs fantastical settings, complex physical actions, and deep characterization on screen. Using techniques and stunts from Super Kabuki, anime stage adaptions have found it’s niche within Japanese theatre.

Within a few years of the emergence of Super Kabuki, anime and manga were introduced to the stage. In the early 1970’s, the Takarazuka Revue, an all-female performance troupe, saw declining popularity in their productions. Fearing the end of the company, they sought after new, popular stories and adaptions to bring in greater audiences. In 1974, the Takarazuka group unveiled one of the first anime adapted performances ever; Riyoko Ikeda’s Rose of Versailles (1972). This led to an increased interest in not only theatre, but the respective source material as well. For the next 30 years, Japanese theatre would see more popular culture, such as anime and manga, make it’s way to the stage, including the supremely popular Sailor Moon in the mid-1990s. However it wasn’t until 2003, with the production of Prince of Tennis the Musical, that theatre saw such an influx of anime derived adaptions. “If you see a video clip of this musical it becomes abundantly clear who the audience is: every major event in the show is met with a chorus of screaming female voices. And the production knew who the audience was, too: there were even completely unnecessary “locker room” scenes that seemed to exist just so the protagonist could be seen taking off his shirt (Sevakis, 2017). Prince of Tennis attracted a large female audience, due to “fanservice” scenes not originally included in the manga or anime, and “arguably made it into a phenomenon” (Sevakis, 2017). Despite it’s relatively low budget, it proved to be a success and garnered demand for more adaptations.

One major overlap of stage and anime that should not be ignored, is super sentai performances, dating back to 1975. Super sentai refers to a group (literally “taskforce”) of heroes in masked disguises that fight evil, demonstrating the power of teamwork and justice. Though “Super Sentai” is technically a brand name, there are many live shows directly inspired from it, and always aimed at children. These shows often involve dramatic action scenes and exaggerated acting, as seen in super kabuki. Many times, after the super sentai performances gained enough of a fanbase, animated specials would be produced for capitalization, eventually leading to full anime series for broadcast. One facet of acting that originated in kabuki, found its way into sentai, and then took place in anime, is the concept of “mie”. Mie is a pose struck by an actor, who then freezes for a moment (Japan Arts Council, 2018), to draw attention to an important part of the play, such as the introduction of a new character, showcase powerful emotions, or even to display their costume. This transferred to sentai shows, as performers (mostly protagonists) would do a mie when they entered the stage, highlighting their arrival. Children would often call the hero’s name, similar to a kakegoe in traditional kabuki. This aspect then made its way to the animated product, and then other anime, providing a visual cue to viewers. One example is Sailor Moon, in which all the main characters have their own signature pose when they arrive to fight the bad guys. These poses then became a trademark of certain characters and turned into a tool for merchandising. Although most anime nowadays has strayed from specific posing of their characters, mies can still be seen in many superhero anime.

When talking about theatre adaptations of anime, it’s important to recognize there are three main types of adaptions; super kabuki, stage plays, and musicals. While they may seem similar, each has its own uniqueness in how it interacts with anime and popular culture. Super Kabuki is actually a trademarked name, so very few anime and manga-based performances are specifically described as super kabuki due to licensing issues. Two of the more famous ones are Naruto: The Live Spectacle (2018) and Super Kabuki II: One Piece (2015). The former is extremely faithful to the style of the original manga, while the latter combines traditional kabuki aesthetic with anime designs. For example, the majority of the actors in Super Kabuki II: One Piece have white, painted faces with bold make-up (AnimeSamurai, 2016) to further pronounce facial features. Even the costumes are reminiscent of traditional kabuki outfits, though expertly meshed with the modern style of the anime character’s; Luffy’s trademark red jacket is replaced with a red happi, incorporating historical Japanese culture.

Stage plays are the most commonly performed anime-based theatre production. Like any artistic medium, the stage play provides fans with a new experience, emphasizing interactivity and real-life immersion into the characters and their stories (Nora, 2018). These productions are given more freedom to stay faithful to the source material, in terms of costume design, action scenes, and story progression. In Yona of the Dawn (Tsubota, 2018), stage design and direction are more similar to western stage plays. There are multiple layers of backgrounds for characters to appear on, as well as hidden exits for actors to disappear at the end of their scene. Music and sound effects are prerecorded as opposed to performed live, despite the fact that traditional instruments such as the koto and shamisen can be heard in the background. The same is true for another stage play, InuYasha (Takahashi, 2017). Though the setting takes place in feudal Japan and the score is entirely composed of shakuhachi (bamboo flute), koto, and the like, the music is prerecorded for convenience. It’s also worthwhile to note that some scenes contain prerecorded dialogue for the actors to lip sync; this is usually done during a scene with complex choreography to prevent the actors from using all their stamina, as well as provide better audio quality to the audience.

There’s no limit to the type of adaptions produced; 2018 will see a stage play about scantily-clad girls fighting evil with magical katanas (Animate Times, 2018). A new play of the science fiction series, Gundam 00, will debut in 2019 (Sunrise, 2018), though it’s not yet known if the signature giant robots will be large puppets or projections.

The third category of anime theatre is musical adaptions. While some are akin to stage plays with musical numbers thrown in, a substantial amount are centered on a specific singer and/or band. These are unique because they’re based on Japan’s “idol culture”. Recent years have seen a surge of fictional girl groups and boy bands, especially when it comes to mobile games. Players can dress up the singers, tap along to their songs, and unlock stories that progress the over-arching plot. As the mobile game’s popularity increases, so does the chance for an adaption of either anime or live-action musical. More often than not, the games are developed into anime series, followed by musical stage performances featuring the voice actors from the original game. This is something to note because the themes and narrative are exclusively music-centered, as opposed to a storyline in which songs are simply added to further development. As an example, High School Star Musical, or Starmyu (NBC Universal Entertainment Japan, 2016) is about a group of boys who attend a high school for rising stars in music and dance. The songs are performed only when the characters are giving some sort of concert within the script, as opposed to a seemingly random musical number that appears in western musicals. This differentiates anime musical adaptions from other types of anime-inspired theatre, because it specifically focuses on the music as a way to sell the product (i.e. the anime, game, or merchandise of a favorite singer). In a way, this could be described as “idol theatre”, as it is always about an idol group of some sort rising to stardom.

Production for anime-inspired theatre is usually taken on by large troupes in major cities, such as Tokyo, Kyoto, or Osaka. This is because acquiring the rights to said anime can be difficult and expensive, as the licensing belongs to either the original manga artist or the animation studio. At this time, it is unknown how negotiations are made in terms of profit/sales and financing between the theatre and license holders. Some theatres, such as Himawari Group, specialize in only a few anime based productions of Rurouni Kenshin (2019), and Free! Dive to the Future (2018). Most of their performances however, are non-anime based (Himawari, 2001). On the opposite spectrum is 2.5 Dimensional Musical Association, an organization that only does productions based on anime, manga, and video games. 2.5 Dimensional Musical Association, also known as 2.5D Theatre is described as “theatrical presentations based on Japanese manga, popular animation, and video games. The meaning implies such theatrical shows exist somewhere between 2D, the realm of manga, anime, and video games, and 3D, the realm of the theater” (Japan 2.5 Dimensional Musical Association, 2013). Though the name of the company explicitly includes “musical”, there are also performances of stage plays, comedy, and drama. Previous productions include Sengoku BASARA (2009), Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (2013), Death Note (2015), and Touken Ranbu -Online- (2017). 2.5D Theatre also employs cutting edge technology in their shows, such as drones, holograms, and video projections. They even offer special glasses that will translate the play directly on the eye piece as subtitles, in one of four languages (F. Corinna and F. Gali, 2016). Technological advancements can propel theatre, especially in the case of anime, where realism is not of great concern.

Different types of theatre itself has also influenced a variety of anime series. Kabuki-bu (2017) is a recent series that focuses on a boy attempting to create a kabuki club at his high school. Another recent series, Hanayamata (2014), centers on a blonde-haired foreigner who comes to Japan to learn dances such as kagura and yosakoi. The story follows her efforts to get Japanese locals interested in the traditional art. Bungaku (puppet theatre) is represented in Puppet Master Sakon (1999), though is not centered on the art itself, rather taking a supernatural mystery route. Series such as Glass Mask (2005) and Kaleido Star (2003), involve theatre more explicitly as both settings take place in acting and performing troupes, dealing with the challenges that arise when on stage. Theatre, both western and eastern, greatly influence the narrative and composition of Princess Tutu (2002), in which episodes are displayed as if it were a stage play. Even anime without an obvious element of Japanese theatre can sometimes find ways to sneak in this cultural aspect. For example, in Macross Frontier (2008), a science fiction story about fighting aliens in giant robots, the main character comes from a prestigious kabuki family where he is famous for his female roles. Furthermore, it takes place in a hybrid city of Tokyo and San Francisco, displaying characteristics of Japanese theatre as well as Chinese opera and American plays.

Interestingly enough, the west has seen some Japanese anime and manga on its own stages. In 2014, Company One in Boston, Massachusetts, debuted Astro Boy and the God of Comics, based on the internationally famous manga artist Osamu Tezuka and his 1950’s manga (Aucoin, 2014). When looking at theatrical productions of pop culture in both America and Japan, there’s a contrast between audience’s expectations. Westerners are familiar with plays that rely heavily on dialogue and technical realism, with little in the way of acrobatic choreography. After all, if they wanted to see action, wouldn’t they go to a movie instead? These plays clearly require a suspension of disbelief that is not often asked of Westerners (Sevakis, 2017). Japanese audiences, on the other hand, have familiarity in imagining and expressing what isn’t tangible. A good example is the use of fans, particularly in kabuki and rakugo, where the fan can be used in place of the actual object, such as a weapon. For Western audiences, it would be much more acceptable to have the actual prop, but in Asian theatre it is considered perfectly believable. Such techniques ‘transcend the nature of what is possible’ (Ivanova and Vickery-Howe, 2017), allowing for the fantastical side of anime and manga to show through. they carry a tremendous expressive potential because they engage the audience’s spatial, interpersonal and linguistic aptitudes which allow them to create meaning by drawing simultaneously on images and movement, gesture and body language, acoustics (chant and rhythm) and dialogue (Ivanova and Vickery-Howe, 2017).

The crossover between anime and theatre is a strange, but not a completely uncalled for practice. Given the immense popularity of anime, in both Japan and overseas, it was only a matter of time before it made its way into other creative aspects. Just as theatre has been influenced by anime, so has anime by theatre, as the arts are irrevocably intertwined. It could be argued that this has a negative aspect; some claim that combining a high culture entertainment as theatre with popular culture only brings down its sophistication, and should be kept “pure”. Others argue that incorporating pop culture breathes fresh air into theatre, which risks growing stale. When done well, however, anime and performing arts can have a symbiotic relationship. It definitely encourages appreciation for the craft of theatre and for the anime fan, it brings them closer to the stories and characters they love (Nora, 2018). After all, both are mediums used by storytellers to invite others into another world.

 

 

References

A., Nora. “Of Song, Dance, and Anime: A Look At Anime Stage Play Adaptations.” 15 February 2018. Akibento. <https://akibento.com/blog/2018/02/15/song-dance-anime-look-anime-stage-play-adaptations/&gt;.

Animate Times. 舞台『刀使ノ巫女』メインビジュアル解禁. 5 10 2018. <https://www.animatetimes.com/news/details.php?id=1538722857&gt;.

Aucoin, Don. “Company One’s ‘Astro Boy’ a sci-fi parable with punch.” 22 July 2014. The Boston Globe. <https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/theater-art/2014/07/21/company-one-theatre-astro-boy-and-god-comics-sci-parable-with-punch/8UZZbOgXmMeUUc7fkvSBmK/story.html&gt;.

F., Corinna and Gali F. Blog and News. 2016. <http://animeonstage.com/?page_id=22&gt;.

Himawari. 事業紹介. 2001. <http://www.himawari.net/about/company.html&gt;.

Hornby, Richard. “Kabuki Goes Hollywood.” The Hudson Review 61.3 (2008): 516-522.

InuYasha. By Rumiko Takahashi. Tennozu Galaxy Theater, Tokyo. 19 April 2017.

Ivanova, Maggie and Alex Vickery-Howe. Dramaturgy of Mobility: Crossover and Fusion. Melbourne: La Trobe University, Theatre & Drama, 2017.

Japan 2.5 Dimensional Musical Association. 2.5D AiiA Theatre. Shibuya, 2013. Brochure.

Japan Arts Council. Mie. 2018. <http://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/dglib/modules/kabuki_dic/entry.php?entryid=1272&gt;.

NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan. Shuffle Revue. n.d. 7 October 2018. <http://star-mumu.com/sr/&gt;.

Samurai, Anime. “Anime Stage Plays.” YouTube, 11 May 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVhXmWqxTKXcqbvd1yOCs2Oc_dgDCv668&gt;.

Sevakis, Justin. Answerman. 8 February 2017. <https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/answerman/2017-02-08/.111904&gt;.

Sunrise. 舞台『機動戦士ガンダム00』. 27 August 2018. <http://www.gundam00.net/stage/&gt;.

Takarazuka Revue Company. History. n.d. 10 October 2018. <http://kageki.hankyu.co.jp/english/history/index.html&gt;.

Yona of the Dawn. By Fumi Tsubota. Dir. Takuya Matsumoto. EX Theater Roppongi, Tokyo. March 2016.

Beyond the Binary: Gender Performances in Asian Theatre

Kayson Carlin

Bowling Green State Univeristy

November 28, 2018

 

Beyond the Binary: Gender Performances in Asian Theatre

Recent years have seen a surge in attention to issues concerning gender, as if the topic were a new phenomenon. However, history is saturated with gender issues, from defining what gender is exactly, to determining what role one should play in life based on genitalia, to debating if gender has a spectrum of identities or forms. In the world of arts, the line between male, female, and other is frequently blurred, especially in the performing arts which pays great attention to the human form. Theatre is notorious for crossing this line. It should be noted though, that the idea of gender itself varies from region to region. What is considered masculine, feminine, or androgynous in western theatre differs from that of Asian theatre. As such, theatre in Asia includes great variation when it comes to performances on the gender spectrum.

Japan has one of the most notable reputations for gender bending not only on the stage, but in other popular entertainment as well. There exists a sort of androgyny for what is considered attractive, as seen in comics, television, film, and celebrities. This could be partially explained by Japan’s history of cross-dressing entertainment, such as Takarazuka and Kabuki’s onnagata.

The term onnagata refers to a female impersonator on the kabuki stage. Women in kabuki groups often consisted of nothing more than prostitutes (Bowers p.44) or were considered too “alluring” for the audience to watch, and resulted in their nation-wide ban on performing in the mid-17^th century. From 1629 on, male actors, the onnagata, played women’s roles (Leiter p.495). Such actors were specifically designated female roles rather than portraying both men and women on stage. Far from what may be thought in the west, this was, and still is, a respected art. In the onnagata‘ s early years, roles of power went to male-role actors while dance was the onnagata‘s specialty (Leiter p.502). From this portrayal of women, the onnagata created an idealized version of femininity, based on what men thought women should be like. They created an abstract idea of a woman, becoming a stylized version instead of someone specific (Scott p.3). Some accounts even included these actors who would live as women to better understand and perform femininity. Kabuki crossdressing is mainly a matter of men dressing as women rather than the reverse (Leiter p.512), though this later changes when women are allowed to perform again.

In 1629, any appearance of women on stage were forbidden, and until the 19^th century the ordinance remained tacitly in effect (Bowers p.44). Women were limited to behind-the-scenes work, such as costume construction. In the late nineteenth century, western-style theatre was introduced to Japan and challenged the custom that only men were allowed to perform on the stage (Chen p.54). Due to it’s influence, the constraints on gender began to loosen, and women stepped into the light. Although theatre offered women a platform, its policy was heavily informed by the male stance, and its categorization of gender roles on the stage, in fact, accorded with Japanese social expectations of men and women (Chen p.58). The Takarazuka Revue, founded in 1913, was one of the first all-female performing groups in Japan. Less than a year later in 1914, The Takarazuka Girls Revue gave its first performance in the Paradise Theater, a converted indoor pool (Takarazuka Revue Company). Despite women playing the roles of men, the gender binary is strictly enforced. On the Takarazuka stage, gender is constructed in two categories; one is the otokoyaku (an actress playing the male role) and the other is the musumeyaku (an actress playing the female role). The categorization of otokoyaku and musumeyaku reinforces gender stereotyping of both male and female roles (Chen p.64). The two different genders on the Takarazuka stage are made distinct by the use of stylization in gesture, movement and voice; the otokoyaku emphasizes masculinity as she plays the male role whereas the musumeyaku highlights femininity as she plays the female role (Chen p.58). It’s interesting to note that while male characters (specifically love interests) attempt to adhere to the binary, they are not extremely”manly”, and instead are portrayed as androgynous with a masculine edge. Similar to the onnagata, otokoyaku is the idealized version of what women want men to be; strong and capable yet in touch with his feminine side.

China has an extensive history of traversing gender, most notably Mei Lanfang who was regarded as the greatest nandan (female impersonator) in living memory (Li p.39). This type of cross-dressing, male to female, can be said to have existed several hundred years prior to the Tang Dynasty. The earliest recorded instance of female cross-dressing (female to male) is found in the eighth century Tang Dynasty when actresses played the role of the male officer in a theatrical act known as “The military counselor” (Li p.33). However Chinese opera, and theatre in general, has gone through dramatic changes depending on political authority. In the Yuan Dynasty, under Mongol rule, male and female performers were free to appear on stage together. In fact, women prospered in theatre; the first fully developed Chinese theatre to emerge in the Yuan Dynasty favored female players and female cross-dressing (Li p.40). Furtermore, each play was, very uniquely, written as either a female role-type script (danben) or a male role-type script (moben). Despite this categorization, there were female players who, apart from playing the leading female role, also cross-dressed to play the leading male role, and equally certain that there were also men who played the leading male role (Li p.50). In the subsequent Ming Dynasty, however, such freedom was reigned in due to backlash of “not being Chinese enough”. Basically, anything that flourished in the Yuan Dynasty was seen as Mongolian, and needed to be replaced with more “Chinese” ways of thought. It was with this re-emergence of Neo-Confucianism under such conservative return to “Chinese” culture in Ming China that women were tightly confined to the private sphere (Li p.58). As such, began the stage practice of separating male and female actors. Due to these resrictions, cross-dressing became a necessity for the sake of the performance, especially for female roles, as women were restricted from public stages.

When discussing gendered performances in Chinese theatre, it’s important to mention “The Butterfly Lovers”, arguably the most celebrated folk tale in Chinese culture (Li p.109). The general narrative revolves around Zhu, a girl disguised as a boy in order to attend a prestigious school, and her male best friend, Liang, who is unaware of her true gender. After studying together for three years, Zhu is called home for an arranged marriage. She reveals her true gender to Liang, and despite falling in love, she is forced into her arranged marriage. Liang soon becomes ill, and dies, and at his funeral, Zhu commits suicide by throwing herself into his tomb. The two are then said to have turned into butterflies. While the story itself plays with gender, theatre has taken it to a new level for performance. The character of Zhu bends gender expectations, and as such, can be difficult to cast. Historically speaking, when women were prohibited from the stage, men would play female roles, as mentioned above. The actor for Zhu, then, would be a male, playing the role of a female, disguised as a male, resulting in a double cross-dressing act. In the Yuan period, when women performed on stage, the character of Liang would occasionally be played by a woman. In these instances of cross-play, it is important to note that the traditional Chinese construction of masculinity manifests itself in a variety of representations and is in many ways different from today’s Euro-American notions of masculinity (Li p.125). Therefore, having men and women playing oppsite sexes, is less transversive than western expectations. Today, “The Butterfly Lovers” is a popular performance put on by the Yueju opera in mainland China, which is basically female and is dominated by female players, although there are often a couple of male actors in each troupe (Li p.112). In the staging, on the physical level of the players, there are two women; while on the level of dramatic representation of the characters, it is a man and a woman (Li p.125), though the character of Zhu complicates which is which. The gender-bending of this play is a cornerstone in Chinese theatre and gender theory.

India has a complex approach when it comes to gender and theatre. Like Japan and China, Indian theatre has a history of dividing performers along the gender binary of male and female. However, in India there are people known as hijra, who are culturally recognized as a third gender, neither male nor female. This adds another layer to gendered performances on stage that is unique, though somewhat ambiguous and under researched.

Chhau is a performance belonging to the three contiguous States of Jharkhand (Seraikela), Orissa (Baripada) and West Bengal (Purulia), involving vigorous dance movements based on mythology, and is traditionally performed by males (Mehta p.1). Some movements, however, are modeled after the daily housework of women, such as sweeping, fetching water, and grinding spices. The Chhau dance at Purulia does not have many female characters, since its themes are from episodes of the epics of Mahabharata that do not have such characters. Women as performers have not yet been introduced to Chhau at Purulia, while Chhau at Seraikela and Mayurbhanj have an array of female characters and women as participants (Mehta p.10). Traditionally, Chhau had restricted women as performers, as the only women who performed in public were dancers known as devdasis, a type of courtesean or prostitute. Therefore Chhau is a heavily male dominated art form having had the traditional hegemony of not only male performers, but teachers and instrumentalists as well (Mehta p.39). Hijra, who are more commonly born male or intersex, were then designated to female roles (if there were any). Often this was one of the only ways to earn money, as their gender ambiguity caused scorn and adversity in mainstream society. Even today women do not have exclusionary rights to female performance roles as male artists continue to perform the female roles (Mehta p.74), though this is rapidly changing as there is no official decree banning women on stage. Where this leaves the hijra is unknown.

The common thread seen not only in Asian theatre, but theatre around the world is the restriction of the female sex at one point or another. As a necessity, cross-dressing proliferated, and blurred the lines of gender. Men performing female or feminine roles took precedence, despite the existence of women playing male roles, partly due to the fact that there was not much academic concern of them until fairly recently. In fact, some performers cannot be distinguished between male or female, resulting in being overlooked by historians. Thus, the gender binary of male and female in theatre is constantly being rewritten as new information comes to light. Perhaps in the future, this binary will be replaced by a spectrum of sex, gender identity, and gender expression, if it hasn’t already.

 

 

References

Banerji, Anurima. Odissi Dance: Paratopic Performances Of Gender, State, And Nation. New York University: UMI, 2010.

Bowers, Faubion. Japanese Theatre. Toronto. Canada: University of Michigan Press, 1952. Book.

Chen, Yilin. “Gender and homosexuality in Takarazuka theatre.” Performing Ethos 1.1 (2010): 53–67.

Kothari, Sunil and Avinash Pasricha. Odissi, Indian classical dance art. University of Michigan: Marg Publications, 1990. Book. 26 November 2018.

Leiter, Samuel L. “From Gay to Gei : The Onnagata and the Creation of Kabuki ‘s Female Characters.” Comparative Drama 33.4 (2000): 495-514.

Li, Siu Leung. Cross-Dressing in Chinese Opera. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2003.

Mehta, Gouri Nilakantan. Pan Indian Identities Of Female Performers. Miami University: UMI, 2004.

Scott, Margaret. “Transformer Controversial Kabuki star Tamasaburo Bando.” Los Angeles Times 22 May 1994. Newspaper.

Takarazuka Revue Company. History. n.d. 10 October 2018. <http://kageki.hankyu.co.jp/english/history/index.html&gt;.