The Love Suicides at Sonezaki © Photo by Tomoko Ogawa
For one-night only, Japan-America Society of Houston (JASH) in partnership with Japan Society, New York present National Bunraku Theater.
Witness a stunning production of traditional Japanese puppet theater, with two quintessential climaxes from bunraku repertoire: Date Musume Koi no Higanoko (Oshichi, the Greengrocer’s Daughter) and Sonezaki Shinju (The Love Suicides at Sonezaki). Known for its globally influential three-person puppet manipulation technique invented in the mid-18th century, bunraku has been designated as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. Featuring scenography by Kazuo Oga, art director for many classic Studio Ghibli anime such as My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke, this performance offers Americans a rare opportunity to glimpse the rich culture not only of bunraku, but of Japan’s second-largest city ahead of Expo 2025, held in Osaka.
National Bunraku Theater is part of a North American tour produced and organized by Japan Society, NYC, that will make stops at Aratani Theater (Los Angeles, CA; September 28), Quick Center for the Arts (Fairfield, CT; October 1), and The Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.; October 8 & 9) before making their Texas debut.
Reserve tickets are available for $75.00 and General Admission tickets are available for $65.00. Use early bird code BUNRAKU at check-out for $10.00 off until October 1, 2024.
The U.S. tour of National Bunraku Theater is produced by Japan Society under partnership with Japan Arts Council, which is supported, in part, by Japan Cultural Expo 2.0, All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd., Kikkoman Corporation and Suntory Holdings Limited. The program is also supported by the John and Miyoko Davey Foundation and Takenaka Corporation.
This program is part of Houston’s celebration of the U.S.-Japan Tourism Year 2024.
This performance of National Bunraku Theater is funded in part by the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance.
Performed in Japanese with English supertitles.
The cast in the photo differs from the program.