"In principle, those under the age of 23 are allowed to have no experience, and with guidance from a living national treasure," this is a condition for recruiting trainees for the traditional performing art "Puppet Joruri Bunraku,"
which was born in Osaka in the Edo period.

Bunraku trains many of its "technicians" on stage through a training system, but this year's number of applications was reduced to zero. For the first time since the system was introduced, the people involved were worried.

(Osaka Broadcasting Station Reporter Sachiko Inoue)

Osaka's proud traditional performing art "bunraku"

"The Dawn of the World, The Night Falls, If You Face Your Death, The Frost of the Adashigahara Road, Disappear in One Step, The Dream of Your Dreams"

Osaka National Bunraku Theater in Japan Bridge.

The program of the day was Chikamatsu Monzaemon's "Sonezaki Shinchu".
It is a work that depicts the first tragic love between Tokubei, a servant of a merchant family who is accused of an innocent crime, and a courtesan in a new land.

The dolls that express the delicate emotions of the characters, the narration of Tayu that invites you into the world of the story, and the shamisen that conveys the scene through sound form a trinity to depict the abyss of the human heart.

Zero trainee applications? Unprecedented

Bunraku is not a hereditary system, and many of its technicians have been trained through its own training system.

But this spring, not a single person applied for the training.

This is the first time since the system began.

What is happening to Osaka's proud traditional performing arts?

We asked the National Bunraku Theater, which trains trainees.

"I've been running the training system for more than 50 years, but I'm very shocked because there have been so few applications,"

said Fumio Yanagawa of the National Bunraku Theater, who is in charge of training trainees, who couldn't hide his bewilderment at the first situation.

The requirements for applying for trainees are men who have graduated from junior high school or above, and in principle, they are 23 years old or younger. Experience is not required.

During the two-year training, you will learn the basics of dolls, tayu, and shamisen, and choose a specialty from these three.

In addition to this, students learn koto, kyogen, songs, Japan dance, tea ceremony, etc., and the course is free of charge.

After completing the training, you will be able to perform on stage as a technician.

The number of applicants varied from year to year, and although there were nearly 2 applicants in the Showa era, it has been decreasing in the last 3 years or so.

There is also a view that the decrease in the number of applications may have been due to the spread of the new coronavirus.

The number of spectators visiting the theater exceeded 10,4 a year in the first year of Reiwa before the coronavirus pandemic, but in Reiwa 6 years, it was just under 1,10, and the number of visitors has not yet returned.

Mr.
Yanagawa: "It is quite difficult to analyze why the number of trainee applications has decreased, and I think there are also factors such as the declining birthrate, economic trends, and the flow of students looking for a job."

I feel that it may be a high threshold, especially for young people.

The story is set in the Kamakura and Edo periods, and the dialogue is not in modern language.

In addition, some of them are more than 2 hours long when viewed through a single performance, so they are not as casual as in a typical stage or movie.

The deadline for recruiting trainees is February every year.

Since there were no applications this year, the National Bunraku Theater decided to take the unusual step of extending the deadline until April 4.

Will there be any applications?

The only trainee who joined last year was

Since there were no applications for this year, only one trainee who joined last year remains.

What is the only trainee's reaction to this situation?

Ryo Furuya, 2, who is in his second year of training, became interested in bunraku when he was a high school student.

Furuya, who was learning the shamisen, was taken by his mother and was fascinated by the coolness of bunraku that he saw for the first time.

After graduating from university, I turned down a job offer from an IT-related company and decided to enter the path of bunraku.

Mr. Furuya chose dolls as his specialty.

Bunraku training is a tough one, and it is said that it takes 23 years to become a full-fledged person.

A puppeteer who controls one puppet by three people, the master, the left, and the footman, is no exception, and it is said that "30 years of footwork, 1 years of left-handedness."

"It's so hard to memorize that it almost punctures my head," says Furuya.

However, his expression was lively despite his words.

When I asked them how they felt about the lack of applications, they replied:

Mr.
Furuya: "It's tough, it takes a lot of determination, and it can be hard, but I think the fun outweighs it. Training is hard, and you can't just come and feel free to come, but if you want to do it even a little, I want you to come and experience it."

I also asked Living National Treasures

We also talked to the instructor who teaches Mr. Furuya.

This is the living national treasure of puppeteers, Kanjuro Kiritake.

In order not to extinguish the fire of bunraku, I am teaching young people.

Kanjuro, whose father was a puppeteer, entered this world at the age of 14 and is now in his 57th year.

He is highly regarded as a puppeteer who plays a variety of roles with emotion, from the delicate gestures of women to the bold leading roles.

I took the plunge and asked.

The reason why young people don't come is that the threshold for bunraku is high, and there is an image that training is difficult.

Kanjuro Kiritake
: "I have heard that there is a shortage of human resources in every job, but I think what we are doing is a special type of work. The world is becoming more and more convenient, and we are in an era where we can do anything without moving, but our performing arts are very time-consuming, such as using one doll for three people. However, there are many things that cannot be born without doing troublesome things. I think this is very interesting. It may not suit the current era, but I want to express to customers the fun that comes from it, so I can't miss that hassle anywhere. I want people to know the appeal of such time-consuming things."



But I want young people to come.

Mr. Kanjuro carefully talked about his painful heart, choosing each word.

So, what should we do to make young people understand the fun that comes from taking time?

Kanjuro Kiritake:
"It's hard to come up with a good idea, but bunraku is not hereditary, so anyone can do it, whether it's tayu, shamisen, or dolls.

What to do Bunraku?

On April 4, the deadline for submissions, two applications were received at the theater.

However, none of them were selected due to non-meeting conditions, and this year's training could not be held, which is an unusual situation.

As a special case, the Bunraku Theater has decided to continue accepting applications this year without setting a deadline.

A selection examination will be held at the time of application, and if there are successful applicants, the course will be opened and a two-year training will be conducted.

Mr
. Fumio Yanagawa, Training Officer at the National Bunraku Theater: "In order to continue the performing art of bunraku for a long time, we need a younger generation of trainees. We have to do something."

From this fiscal year, Bunraku Theater plans to start initiatives to broaden the interests of young people, such as visiting schools and holding bunraku experience classes as part of its training project.

"Bunraku is a performing art that you can understand as you get older," says a person involved. On the other hand, in principle, the age of trainees is 23 years old or younger.

If we are to recruit trainees without changing the conditions, we must be wise on how to appeal to young people.

Bunraku has survived wars and disasters and has continued for 300 years since the Edo period.

How will we overcome the waves of the Reiwa era?