Japanese kabuki is one of the most impressive spectacles in world theatre: a spectacular, heavily costumed affair played by an exclusively male cast. This is one of Japan’s most famous ‘onnagata’ – cross-dressing – actors, Nakamura Shibajaku VII, who has portrayed princesses and courtesans at venues all over the world. Getting ready for work has never been this laborious …
I was in Nanjing recently and was astonished by Bian lian 变脸. The face changing, or “bian lian” in Chinese, is an important aspect of Chinese Sichuan opera. Performers wave their arms and twist their heads, and their painted masks change repeatedly.
I am a great fan of masks in performance, and this is a wonderful clip (courtesy of my colleague John) of some exquisite masks made by Wladysław Teodor Benda who was a Polish-American painter, illustrator, and designer. He was an accomplished mask maker and costume designer. His sculpted, papier-mache face masks were used in plays and dances and often in his own paintings and illustrations. In this film from 1932, he is demonstrating some of his creation
If you ever find yourself in Hanoi, go see Nhà hát Múa rối Thăng Long. Really interesting, with so much history and a real taste of the performance culture of an incredible people.
There are 3 links below, all useful, but the blog Vietnam, Water and Puppets is an excellent source of information.
http://www.thanglongwaterpuppet.org/?/en/Home/
http://vietnamwaterpuppet.wordpress.com/
http://www.thingsasian.com/stories-photos/1239
And a few videos to put you in the picture
Theatre Room Asia 