Torch Lit Noh Play

The annual Takigi Noh or torch lit Noh play will be held this weekend in Kasuga Grand Shrine and Kofukuji Temple, Nara.　First performed in 869, this torch lit Noh play has the longest tradition among torch lit Noh plays performed in Japan. (From this year on, Takigi Noh is scheduled on third Friday and Saturday of May. Next year's Takigi Noh is on May 18 and May 19.)

Noh plays at Kasuga Grand Shrine are performed in older styles of Noh which you are unlikely to see in a theatre.

Schedule

May 20(fri)
11:00~ 12:15@Maidono(Dancing Hall) in Kasuga Grand Shrine
 Noh play: "Okina"
17:30~20:30 @Nara Park(an area adjacent to Kofuji Temple and in front of Nara Prefectural Building)*
 Noh play: "Iwafune"
 (Torches will be lit after Noh play "Iwafune")
 Kyogen play(comical play): "Onigawara"
 Noh play: "Kagetsu"

May 21(sat)
14:00~15:15@Wakamiya Shrine (near the main hall of Kasuga Grand Shrine)
 Noh play:"Katsuragi"
17:30~20:30 @Nara Park(an area adjacent to Kofuji Temple and in front of Nara Prefectural Building)*
 Noh play: "Hagoromo"
 (Torches will be lit after Noh play "Hagoromo")
 Kyogen play(comical play): "Tsukuzukushi"
 Noh play: "Nue"

*If rains, plays are performed in Nara Prefuctural Culture Hall(Nara-ken Bunka Kaikan). (map: see point A)

Tickets: 4000yen per person
Sold at the entrance of each venues. =May 20= 10:00 ~ @Kasuga Grand Shrine, 15:00~@Kofukuji Temple. =May 21= 13:00~ @Kasuga Grand Shrine, 15:00~ @Kofukuji Temple.
Tickets are good for one day. With one ticket, you can enjoy a day-time Noh play at Kasuga Grand Shrine and night-time torch lit Noh plays in Nara Park.
Limited free seats are available, but to get best views to enjoy performances buy a ticket. (No free seats at Nara Prefectural Culture Hall) As the performances are put on an outside stages, you might be able to have free views of performances from a distance.

Sue
-NARAWALK guide