Kabuki Way of Relation with Nature; Reciprocity
So what is eco-friendly about Kabuki?
According to Simon, it is first important to understand that Kabuki is an art with a history of cutting away every waste and surplus. Kabuki was originally a theatre performed by the lower class as an entertainment for ordinary people in the Edo period (around 1600). It evolved over the years, creating countless plays and rough rules called YOSHIKIBI, which means beauty of form. How the characters are dressed, how they move, how the music starts, everything is formatted so that the audiences know what is happening without superfluous explanation. Reality is created through surreal expression. This formatted beauty is the underlying concept of the simple stage setting.
Kabukiza follows the four seasons by putting on plays related to the season, and the food actors eat on stage are delicacies of the season too. These days we are able to eat all kinds of food throughout the year, but ecologically it is healthier to eat seasonal food. “SHUN” will be the Japanese word for seasonal, something very special to Japanese cuisine. (People order the plate if it says SHUN!)
The stage settings are traditionally eco-friendly too. Mud paints are used instead of lacquer, all for beauty, but good for the environment as a result. Also all the large props on stage are carefully designed so it can be easily built, taken down, and rebuilt again. After the play closes, all settings will be taken down neatly, and each pole or decoration will be numbered and stored so that it can be reused for another setting of another play. Those who ever built a prop for a class play must be aware of how difficult it is to design large props in such manners. These techniques have been descended for generations.
We must admit that not many Japanese industries remember this way of designing Cradle-to-Cradle, but Kabukiza is still realizing a sustainable business.
Simon analyzes Japan and probably the whole world of modern capitalism, that they put too much importance on the “Result” of work instead of cherishing process. There is too little space to enjoy loose sensibility, to enjoy the fun process of creating value. “ONKO CHISHIN （温故知新）” is a Japanese saying meaning to search in the past for new knowledge. “It is impossible to realize an ecological way of living if we keep losing our sensibility. I want more people to come see Kabuki and gain new ways of thinking from this traditional and dynamic art”.
Thank you Simon!
Link to Kabukibito → http://www.kabuki-bito.jp
Sorry only in Japanese, but you will get to see some pictures of Kabuki…
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