kyogen
Japanese comedic theater
Kyogen is a form of traditional Japanese comic theater performed between acts of Noh drama.
Where Noh is solemn and stylized, kyogen provides comic relief through slapstick, wordplay, and satire of human foibles—masters outwitted by servants, pompous lords humiliated.
The plays are short, performed without masks, and spoken in an exaggerated comic style: The kyogen interlude had the audience laughing.
Raised performance platform
- actorsThose playing roles
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
- audienceGathered viewers collectively
- chantingRhythmic repetitive vocalization
costumes · fan · mimicry · gesture · vocalization · ad-lib · timing · physicality
Absurd, laughable situation
- slapstickExaggerated physical humor
- humorAmusing quality
- buffooneryLudicrous or silly conduct
- clowningPlayful comic behavior
jest · merriment · wit · parody · drollery · comedic · trickster · servant
Of the Middle Ages
- JapanEast Asian archipelago nation
- feudalOf tiered landownership
- ritualCeremonial set of actions
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
folklore · morality · didactic · school · lineage · transmission · UNESCO
Satirical imitation
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- mockeryScornful ridicule or travesty
- lampoonHarsh public mockery
- clergyOrdained religious officials collectively
feudal · merchant · farmer · hypocrisy · pretension · foible · humiliation · reversal
Cut to create form
- woodenMade from timber
- lacqueredCoated with hard gloss
- exaggeratedMade larger than reality
- grimaceTwisted expression of displeasure
stage
Raised performance platform
- actorsThose playing roles
- dialogueSpoken exchange between parties
- audienceGathered viewers collectively
chanting · costumes · fan · mimicry · gesture · vocalization · ad-lib · timing · physicality · improvisation
interlude
Pause between sections
farce
Absurd, laughable situation
- slapstickExaggerated physical humor
- humorAmusing quality
- buffooneryLudicrous or silly conduct
clowning · jest · merriment · wit · parody · drollery · comedic · trickster · servant · master
medieval
Of the Middle Ages
heritage · folklore · morality · didactic · school · lineage · transmission · UNESCO
parody
Satirical imitation
clergy · feudal · merchant · farmer · hypocrisy · pretension · foible · humiliation · reversal
carved
Cut to create form
- woodenMade from timber
- lacqueredCoated with hard gloss
- exaggeratedMade larger than reality
- comedycomedy, jokes, humor, puns, sarcasm
- Asian theaterkabuki, noh, Beijing opera, bunraku, Peking opera
- Japanese Artskabuki, noh, bunraku, gagaku, taiko
- Japanese theaterkabuki, noh, bunraku, Bunraku, gagaku
- Japanese LiteratureNorwegian Wood, Rashomon, Confessions, Kappa, Genji
- theatreBroadway, acting, theatre, stage, actor
kyogennoh
Classical Japanese dramatic form
tragedy · tragic drama · Greek tragedy · Shakespearean tragedy · liturgical drama