Bitef

su osnivali domačinstva u jednom mestu. Živeli su kao Cigani, odbijajuči miran život i zaštitu, oslobođeni od bilo kakvih ograničenja. Vremenom su menjali način života, ali su te grupe i dañas u velikoj meri obavijene velom misterije. Mi smo glumci, ali u suštinskom smislu, kao članovi grupe, sledimo stil ovih Kugutsu pozorišnih grupa starodrevnog Japana. Magbet je prva Shakespeareova drama koju je Yuki-za pokušao da postavi na pozornicu, (Druga je bila Hamlet.) Magbet je remekdelo poznato širom sveta koje su, koristeči razne metode, izvodile mnoge pozorišne grupe. U početku nas je zabrinjavalo pitanje do koje mere četno uspeti da izrazimo veliku Shakespeareovu zamisao, ali, srečom, predstava je naišla na odobravanje publike kao da je napisana za Yuíd-za. Osečamo da smo, raznolikošču lutaka, lutkara i glumača, uspeli da uhvatimo nešto od raznolikosti kod Shakespearea. I pored nekih neznatnih skračenja, naš Magbet je ostao verán originalnoj verziji. Nadamo se da čete uživati gleda-

juči našeg Magbeta, koga izvode male, ali sjaine lutke.

Yuki Magosaburo Lutkarstvo u Japanu može se grubo podeliti na dva stila. U prvom, tri čoveka izvode manipulaciju tako da lutku upravo vode ruke trojice lutkara; Lutkarsko pozorište Bunraku, iz Osake, predstavnik je ovog stila. Drugi stil pretpostavlja manipulaciju lutkama pomoču žice, tradicionalno je vezan za Edo (današnji Tokio), i nazvan ito ayatsuri ningyo - marionete pozorišne grupe Yuki-za. Istorija Yuki-pozorišta može se pratiti 352 godine unazad. Njegova istorija može se nazvati istorijom japanskih marioneta. Kao i ostale tradicionalne japanske reproduktivne umetnosti, tako su i japanska lutkarska pozorišta prešla dugu istoriju izvođenja za izbirljivu publiku odraslih. Zbog ovih is-

torijskih okolnosti, umetnički nivo Yuki-za marioneta postao je do te mere rafiniran da se njegov ekvivalent teško može naci u bilo kom delu sveta. Bogata izražajnost marioneta, omogučena njihovim karakterističnim kretnjama, obečava dalje umetničke mogučnosti. Yuki-za ne nastavlja samo da izvodi svoje klasične marionetske predstave več nastoji da stvara razne savremene drame, ne bi li ono što je najbolje u tradiciji préñela duhu ovog vremena. U našim predstavama lutkari glume, kao što to čine i marionete kojima rukuju, tako da su njima obuhvačene i gluma, i vizuelne projekcije. Sve to doprinosi predstavljanju višeslojnog pozorišnog prostora, bogatog različitim elementima mise en scenea, kao i prevazilaženju žanrova. Yuki-za putuje na dva točka - klasičnem i savremenom repertoaru - pristup koji se danas ne može nači ni ujednom japanskom pozorištu, što, ujedno, čini glavnu karakteristiku Yuki-pozorišta. Siguran sam da če vas naša predstava zadovoljiti.

A Message from Youkiza A distinguishing feature of performances by Youkiza is that in certain cases a single puppeteer will manipulate several puppets through a performance. When performing several roles, a puppeteer may create an organic relationship between the roles, or on the other hand may make a complete switch on changing puppets. In this performance of Macbeth, Magosaburoh Youki and his puppet will embody the hero Macbeth, while the other puppeteers will be moving and changing behind their puppets. We would like you to keep this in mind as you watch the play. This technique is part of our effort to create what we call a Kugutsu Troupe. Roughly speaking, Kugutsu troupes were wandering groupes of players that appeared in Japan during the Heian Period (loth century). They did not identify themselves on the registers, and never settle down in one place. They lived like gypsies, refusing to five in peace under protection; but free from all restrictions.

Since they changed their life-styles with the changing times, these groups are still shrouded in mystery. We are actors, but on the most fundamental level, we regard ourselves as members of the group succeding the style of these native Kugutsu troupes from ancient Japan. Macbeth was the Youkiza's first attempt to mount a work by Shakespeare. (The second was Hamlet,) Macbeth is a masterpiece known to all over the world and has been performed by many groups using various methods. At first we had felt anxious how far we could express the grand conception of Shakespeare, but fortunately it resulted to meet with public approval as if it had been written for Youkiza. We feel that with the multiplicity of puppet, and actor, we have succeeded in capturing something of the multiplicity of Shakespeare. Our Macbeth is faithful to the original version, except for a few minor cuts. We hope you enjoy our Macbeth today, performed by little but great puppets.

Yuki-za’s Macbeth The marionette play Macbeth was born out of ten years’ cooperative endeavor between Yuki-za and myself. The Yuki-za Marionette Company has a long tradition, with the inheritance of superb techniques and a classical repar tory. Without remaining content with their legacy, however, they have continued their daring renovative attempts, to make their tradition live and vibrate at each given time of history. This very attitude of trying to fuse tradition with modern times is in itself the heritage that this singularly unique company succeeded through its long history. Bacause of the heritage of this attitude, Yuki-za has lived through some three hundred years, while many other traditional marionette companies died out as time demanded it. Furthermore, Yuki-za not only continues to be »traditional«, but it is very much alive and active as a theatrical company resonating with the modern time. I was in the midst of the Japanese avant-garde theatre movement of the '6o's when my relationship with Yuki-za began. They decided

to adapt several plays from the avant-garde theatre repetory into their marionatte performance. The first play they chose was Shojo Kamen (A Maiden's Mask) by Kara Juro, a most representative avant-garde playwright of the 60's. In the play I acted a lead role, and I was fascinated by the young and fresh art of Yuki Sessai, an elder of Yuki-za with whom I was at least two generations apart. His manipulation of a traditional female marionette came to life brilliantly in this avant-garde play of a new generation. Ever since this fortunate encounter, I have continued to work with Yuki-za on the average of one production a year. In working with them, I experimented on my own counter approaches to meet Yukiza’s unique staging techniques: a marionette and its manipulator performing on the same floor, a marionette and an actor playing against each other, and the puppeteer delivering lines (in the majority of traditional Japanese puppet theatres, puppets are manipulated to the chant of joruri- balad drama - and other styles of chant.) The production of Macbeth was suggested by myself, and is one of the plays born .out of our cooperation. It was adapted ofr Yuki Magosaburo XI, the current company representative, and has been produced repeatedly. The initial idea I had about this famous play by William Shakespeare was to delineate the hero Macbeth's inner struggles as a relation between the manipulator and the manipulated. A further interest in presenting Yuki-za’s Macbeth is that the performance is strongly supported by the tight ensemble performance of the Company, as wellas by Sessai's traditional method representing Lady Macbeth's madness. To prepare for the Festival performance of our Macbeth, we began rehearsing the play from the start to reach into the further depth of the play, while following the former directorial foundation. My hope as a director is that this play is appreciated as an expression of those of us living in the modern era, not in terms of cultural difference between the East and the West, or not in terms of traditional marionette techniques unique to Japan. I believe that this feeling is shared by the members of Yukiza, which decided to bring only this marionette Macbeth in preference over all other marionette plays in their repertory. □ Sato Makoto.