Mon 18/5 19:00
Kyogen Theatre: Susugigawa / Kagyu / Fukuro

An evening of Japanese kyogen theatre, a comedic form entertaining audiences since the 14th century! 

Kyogen Theatre is a professional ensemble that, since 2001, has been dedicated to the creative translation, production, and performance of Japanese kyogen comedies in Czech—a theatrical form inscribed on the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. It is the only European theatre company consistently working with the kyogen genre in its native language. The ensemble was founded on the initiative of Pardubice-born Czech playwright, director, and mime Hubert Krejčí, Japanologist Ondřej Hýbl, and Japanese master of the traditional Kyoto Okura school, Shigeyama Shime.

Kyogen (often translated as “mad” or “elaborately embellished words”) represents a comic theatrical form which, like Noh theatre, developed from the originally Chinese sarugaku performances. The genre flourished in the mid-14th century and has been continuously performed ever since.

For the Pardubice audience, the company will present three farces from its rich repertoire.

Susugigawa (The Great Laundry) is based on the French farce Le Cuvier, adapted into kyogen form, and today ranks among the most popular plays of the genre (performed in Japan since 1952). It tells the story of a henpecked husband forced into household chores by his wife and mother-in-law. When tasked with washing kimonos in the river, he deliberately lets one drift away; his wife tries to retrieve it but is carried off by the current. The husband seizes the opportunity and attempts to gain authority as head of the household by rescuing her.

Kagyu (The Snail) follows a master who sends his servant to find snails for their supposed medicinal properties. The simple-minded servant has never seen one, and mistakes a sleeping yamabushi monk in ritual attire for a snail. He persuades him to come along; the monk agrees on the condition that the servant sings to him. Later, the master catches them dancing and wants to punish the monk, but the monk casts a spell that forces him to dance as well. The play is considered more demanding due to its dance sequences and precise timing, and belongs among the more technically challenging kyogen pieces.

Fukuro (Owls) builds on the classic motif of an inexperienced monk. A younger brother cannot understand what has happened to his older sibling, who returns from the mountains behaving strangely. He seeks out an ascetic monk, who agrees to visit and pray. The peculiar method by which he attempts to check the patient’s pulse reveals his questionable abilities. Together they conclude that the older brother is possessed by an owl spirit, and the monk attempts to expel it through a “sacred union with a crow.” The situation escalates—soon there are two possessed, and even the exorcist himself does not escape the affliction.

The event takes place as part of the Textconnexion 2026 project, with financial support from the Pardubice Region and the City of Pardubice.

www.kjogen.cz

Admission: 300 CZK (students and disability card holders receive a 50% discount at the door)

Předprodej akce