①中学生・高校生の部 最優秀賞
受賞者名： 田代一裕

様Innovation of Nohgaku
Nowadays, as globalization spreads, more and more aspects of Japanese culture arebecoming known and practiced throughout the world. It could be argued, however, that sometraditional arts such as Nohgaku, Kabuki, and Japanese Classical Dance, which I have beenpracticing since I was three, have not spread internationally to the same level. One reason forthis may be flexibility. Indeed, sumo, judo, sake and green tea, which have been adopted inother countries, are already not only a Japanese culture, but continue changing steadily ineach country. In order to internationalize Nohgaku, I think the key is to attempt to escapefrom the idea that Japanese folklore culture (unlike tradition) is Japanese-occupied property.
In other words, we should extract only basic concepts from a certain thing and re-interpretand reconstruct it with a new paradigm. Japanese entertainment, which is said to be a classic,"tradition" and “weathered shell,” are included together. It is surely important to break theshell from there, extract only the tradition, put it in some other paradigm, and rebuild it.
Although some conservative people say that “it is absolutely not acceptable to change thetradition," its essence stands out only by breaking the shell and extracting essence, and that iswhat “preserving the tradition” means. I would like to suggest the innovation of Noh fromthree perspectives relating to contents of the program, stage, and education.
Firstly, doing a fusion with different cultures will greatly help to internationalize Noh.
For example, in June this year, for the first time in 54 years, Mr. Hosho Kazuhusa performed
the Christian program "Resurrection of Christ" at the Cancelleria Palace in Vatican City. This
was a very innovative attempt, and necessary for people involved in traditional performing
arts to explore such a way of performance that matches this era. Some people may claim thatcombining other religions into the program will harm Noh’s essence. However, since Noh isa flexible traditional art inherently, it retains the possibility to create mutual understanding

beyond the framework of religion. Therefore, I believe that such an attempt will create
people's understanding of diverse ideas.
Secondly, shaking ourselves free from the existing idea of what a Noh stage is will makeNoh more flexible and enable more people to encounter it, both in Japan and overseas. Forexample, there is an outdoor Noh stage on the top of Mt. Uryu in Kyoto, in which only thepillars are built into the four corners of the stage. In other words, they have extracted the pureessence of the Noh stage, and this is why it stands out. In the same way, it is possible to play
Noh in various places, and, in the extreme case, it can also be played in urban space. Somepeople say that we should emphasize and preserve the tradition of Noh theater. There isundeniably some truth in this, but the performance in such a new way and new environment
would make people familiar with Noh and provide opportunities to experience appreciation
more easily.
Finally, further development of Noh requires human resource skills and technologicalskills. In order to internationalize Japanese traditional arts, it is necessary not only to excel inlanguages, but also to have a lot of human resources who can deeply understand our cultureand at the same time have the ability to create new ideas. That is to say development is notpossible only with excellent performers. In order to adapt to the times it is necessary to spark
innovations and create a new tradition. For instance, adopting technology to provide
multilingual commentary at Kabuki-za has enabled thousands of foreigners to enjoy,understand and appreciate this traditional art. Embracing technological advances may also
allow us to protect and share the traditions of Noh.
In conclusion, fusion with foreign culture, reconsidering our view of a Noh stage, andhuman resource cultivation arguably could greatly contribute to the globalization of Noh.
Noh was kept frozen for 700 years centered on folklore, thus making it difficult for
reinterpretation like Kabuki. Moreover, we need strong determination forinternationalization. If Noh can be encouraged to be open and to be open to being modified,then, similar to Open Source software, innovative artists who want to participate in thisrevolution will also appear. I believe there is a difference between tradition and lore. Lore isjust the shell, unable to change. True traditions are the essence adapted and able to withstandchange. We must recognize Noh as our wonderful tradition, not our lore.