Masuda City Tourist Information Center

Masuda String Pupets Show on May 21nd (SUN)
Place: Shimane Arts Center 'Grand Toit' Small Hall
Opening Time 13:00, Curtain Time 13:30
Entrance Fee 500yen (General)
Program: Kotobuki-sanbaso, 'Amagasaki' of Ehon Taikoki, 'Sushiya' of Yoshitsune Senbon-zakura, Shishi-no-ikkyoku

ring Puppets
(Intangible Folk Cultural Assets of Shimane Prefecture)

String Puppets shows began in the late 19th century in Masuda city.

Sankichi Yamamoto, a puppeteer, gave up his business because string-puppet shows became unpopular in Tokyo. He drifted to west, the Kansai area and eventually he arrived at Masuda. He was welcomed by a traditional theater music group “Komatsuren”. Komatsuren started the string-puppet show under Sankichi’s instruction. The components of Masuda String Puppets are puppeteers, a reciter, a shamisen musician and an assistant puppeteer.

Puppeteers are above the stage and give delicate movements to almost 70cm puppet using a small board called yotsume. The marionette is tied to the yotsume board with a number of strings that can range from 13 to 18. It requires experience and skill to control the puppets and make them move as if they were alive.

String-puppet theaters in Tokyo, like Yukiza or Takedaza, operate modernized  performance, but Masuda String-puppets Theater operates in old form. It is said only Masuda String-puppets Theater preserves the classic style of string-puppet performance.

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