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Review

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. From a beginners perspective - a fantastic map into the artBy A. J. KITCHENAs a student at a college; I chose to do a presentation on Kabuki Theater primarily because I knew nothing about it. The other scholastic references were either myopic (single element reviews) or so general as to be useless. This book put everything that I read from these other sources into perspective. Just like the movie "A Knights Tale" showed how jousting was the contemporary life affirming event of the time; Kabuki was the same thing for Japanese theater. The royalty of the 1300s decided that the Noh theater was theirs and so they killed it as entertainment for regular people. So; Kabuki Theater was born as the masses response to being left out of the entertainment. It became so wildly popular that even the upper elements of their society came to see it. Japan as a culture is trying to reach back to its roots and reinvigorate the art. Unfortunately; they didnt learn their lesson from the Edo period and so they have a state theater that re-enacts "traditional" Kabuki in a contemporary theater where every one is on tiered seating. Then you have the other theaters which are trying to keep the spirit of Kabuki alive; by presenting it as it would have been 700 years ago. With the audience sitting on mats all at the same level; seeing the stage can be a little problematic; unless you bring binoculars and manage to sit somewhere that has a clear shot at the stage. Part of the experience is being part of the audience. The other problem that Kabuki is running into is that the other forms of entertainment available removes some of the vitality of a singular feature available to the masses (as it used to be). This book detailed the different elements of the theater in such a way as to make the experience come alive for me. Just the same as going to a Shakespearean festival would have some of its appeal from having survived since the 1600s; Kabukis lineage from the 1300s makes it an event well worth seeing and experiencing. This book brought that home for me.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Should have been 4 stars; if not for the typosBy TrangThis book is a great introduction to Kabuki with clear; concise explanation of the art. As a newbie to Kabuki; I find it enjoyable and it helped me understand this exotic; mesmerizing form of theater better. However; there are way TOO MANY typos! For example; Iemon (i-e-mon) was spelled "lemon" (lemon as the fruit) and at first I was flabbergasted how lemon could murder people. This happens to a lot of Japanese names and quickly becomes very annoying.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. GreatBy AnvinGreat explanations of concepts and background of Kabuki.If you are studying Kabuki or going to attend a performance; get this book first.