Kabuki Techniques

Two of the greatest stars of Japan’s kabuki theater reveal what has only rarely been seen: the actual acting techniques used in this most difficult and splendid of theater forms. Onoe Shoroku II and Onoe Baiko VII discuss and demonstrate their craft in conversation with the well-known author of works on Asian arts, Faubion Bowers. Includes film of great kabuki performances of the past. These great kabuki actors make the mechanics of theater kata (poses) clear and show some of the gestures and nuances of body language that communicate specific emotions and situations. Baiko, a famous player of women’s roles, performs a classic woman’s speech in full costume and heavy white-face make-up, and then does the same scene again in plain face and simple clothes. He shows how the Japanese fan speaks in its own language. He and Shoroku act out a fight scene; Shoroku demonstrates one of kabuki’s elaborate exit walk sequences, and compares different ways of making stylized gestures.

Directed by Merrill Brockway, Kabuki Techniques leans on a strong ensemble — Shōroku Onoe II, Onoe Baiko VII, Faubion Bowers — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 1969.