Japanese Wood Carving by Hideta Kitazawa san
Noh theatre is a refined, courtly art characterized by subtle movement and minimal dialogue. One of the world’s oldest forms of theatrical performance, it originated in the fourteenth century from a synthesis of Chinese music, rural Japanese folk dances, and comic mimicry. Because Noh actors were trained to be restrained in motion, woodcarvers fashioned masks for the actors to be able to express facial emotions.
As the plot of traditional Noh plays centered on supernatural and mysterious themes, the masks often took the form of crazed men and women, wild creatures, or demonic visages. The masks do not feature any moveable part, yet their intricate design allows for a slight tilt of the head to make the difference between the appearance of anger and that of happiness.
Saturday afternoon, November 17 an enthusiastic group was treated to a free demonstration of Noh mask wood carving by world-renowned carver Mr. Hideta Kitazawa, whose specialty is fashioning masks for the Noh stage. His expertise in this traditional craft is recognized by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs as an integral component of Japanese culture and it was both a thrill and pleasure to be able to see him in action. The Ministry describes him as “…an enthusiastic Noh mask sculptor involved in the production of Noh masks for the house of Manzo Nomura, a living national treasure. In addition to creating traditional Noh masks, he has also been highly received outside of Japan, earning great praise for the masks he sculpted for a Noh interpretation of Shakespeare’s King Lear performed in San Francisco in 2011…”
Mr. Kitazawa came to us courtesy of the Japanese Language Education Resource Centre at the University of Winnipeg. Both Dr. Jeffrey Newmark and Dr. Ray Silvus of the University of Winnipeg made presentations on Noh in traditional and contemporary Japanese culture to lead into the demonstration. We are grateful to attendee Terumi Kuwada for the images seen here.