Folk Performing Arts

Barbara E. Thornbury is Associate Professor of Japanese at Temple University.

• IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsA Note Regarding Names and DatesIntroduction 1. Overview Seeing the Folk Performing Arts TodayThe CategoriesOther Classification SystemsPuppets on Strings, Actors on FloatsCommunity and Performance: The Beginnings 2. A History of Scholarship in the Folk Performing Arts First StepsCultural AssetsNew Directions 3. The Cultural Properties Protection Law Prior to the LawUnder the LawAdministering the Folk Performing ArtsThe Folk Performing Arts as Cultural Properties 4. The Festival Law BackgroundThe Folk Performing Arts Promotion CenterThe Scholarly Community Weighs In 5. The Folk Perfoming Arts on Center Stage ConventionsSummits and FestivalsMuseum as StageThe National TheatreShows for TouristsTravel AbroadStudy and Performance GroupsVideo 6. Communities and Their Folk Performing Arts Today Awaji Ningyo-joruriItabashi no TaasobiMibu KyogenKurokawa NoHayachine Kagura 7. A Model for a National Folk Performing Arts Theater: The Saitama Prefectual Folk Culture Center The Folk Performing Arts of Saitama PrefectureThe Activities of the CenterA National Folk Performing Arts Theater: Pros and Cons 8. The Folk Performing Arts in Literature Shimazaki Toson: Village KabukiTanizaki Jun'ichiro: Kagura and ChabanTanizaki and Uno Chiyo: The Puppet Arts of Awaji and AwaInoue Yasushi: Lion Dances 9. Toward the Future Appendix: Nationally Designated Important Intangible Folk Cultural PropertiesNotesBibliographyIndex

"This is a book that will remain as an invaluable reference for Japan's folk performing arts. It is well researched, clearly written, and full of important information which is not available in any existing book in English or other Western language." — Benito Ortolani, Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York"The availability of the book will bring an important aspect of contemporary Japanese culture and its historical origins to the attention of readers. In short, it fills a gap in our knowledge of a significant aspect of current and historical Japan, as well as pointing out the relevance this has to readers in many other specialized areas." — Frank Hoff, University of Toronto