Bunraku: Japanese puppetry performance to be staged for free at CCP

Experience Bunraku at the CCP for free. Photo: Japan Foundation, Manila

Spare a day this month to experience the centuries-old Japanese puppet theater known as bunraku—free of charge.

The Japan Foundation, Manila is hosting "PuppetXchange: Arts of Puppetry from Japan and the Philippines," a performance with a bonus lecture from the Ningyojoruri Bunrakuza and the Teatrong Mulat ng Pilipinas (MULAT Theater).

Two shows, both followed by a short talk, will be staged at the Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino at the Cultural Center of the Philippines on August 16 (Tuesday).

Fresh from their shows in New Delhi and Kuala Lumpur, Ningyojoruri Bunrakuza will be performing excerpts from "The Red-Hot Love of the Greengrocer's Daughter", a popular piece based on the true story of a woman who committed arson in an attempt to be with the man she loves.

The Ningyojoruri Bunrakuza will be performing The Watch Tower scene, the thrilling climax of the piece where the woman tries to be reunited with her lover.

MULAT Theater, meanwhile, will be performing "Ang Paghuhukom: and "Ang Awit ng Bayan." The latter is a Bunraku-inspired adaptation of a Manobo folklore.

The Bunraku has been hailed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. It is a theatrical form tells gripping stories with the aid of puppetry and music. — Aya Tantiangco/BM, GMA News

For inquiries, contact the Cultural Center of the Philippines at (+632) 832-1125 or the Japan Foundation, Manila (JFM) at (+632) 811-6155 to 58 and email@jfmo.org.ph. Visit www.jfmo.org.ph and www.facebook.com/jfmanila for updates.