The Kuroda Puppet Troupe (黒田人形座) is a traditional Japanese puppet troupe in the style commonly known as ''ningyō jōruri'' or
bunraku
(also known as ) is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in the beginning of the 17th century, which is still performed in the modern day. Three kinds of performers take part in a performance: the or ( puppeteers ...
based in the city of
Iida in
Nagano Prefecture
is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...
. Founded in 1688, the Troupe has performed continuously to the present.
History
Kuroda focuses on preserving the traditional style of puppet operation originally introduced to them by itinerant puppeteers from
Awaji Island. The Troupe's current performance hall was constructed in the 1990s by the government of Iida and is built in a traditional style. The Troupe also performs several times a year at Suwa Shrine (located next to their current hall) and the Iida Puppetry Festival. Until the construction of their new puppetry hall, the Kuroda Troupe performed in a traditional theater originally built in the late Edo period. Now designated as a national treasure, the theater stands on the grounds of the Suwa Shrine.
The Kuroda Puppet Troupe also hosted a summer puppetry training program in 2006 for
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
students at the Kuroda Puppetry Hall in conjunction with the
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...
and the American-based Japanese theater group,
Bunraku Bay Puppet Troupe {{Short description, American puppet troupe
Bunraku Bay Puppet Troupe (known since 2011 as "Bunraku Bay Puppet Theater") is an American puppet troupe that performs the traditional Japanese puppet drama commonly known as ''ningyō jōruri '' or Bun ...
.
See also
*
Bunraku
(also known as ) is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in the beginning of the 17th century, which is still performed in the modern day. Three kinds of performers take part in a performance: the or ( puppeteers ...
References
Information on Kuroda from the city of Iida's webpage
Bunraku
Puppet troupes