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134 Panel 3Monogatari (Tales of Tohno) in 1910, introducing theregion’s colorful folk tales and ghost stories.The region preserves several very old forms of folkdance. One is Shishi-Odori, a very energetic jumpingdance. It’s a kind of “lion dance” using huge masks thatare part-deer, part-lion, and that feature enormousmanes made from shaved wood bark.Another is Hayachine Kagura, an ancient maskeddance performed at Hayachine Shinto Shrine in themountains. Kagura is a type of dance performed atShinto shrines. Experts think that Hayachine Kagurashows the original form of Noh Theater, before itreached the capital of Kyoto and was refined after the14 th century. It has been preserved for centuries byvillagers who have their own groups of performers andeven a local hereditary iemoto, Mr. Suzuki.Shishi-Odori is still going strong, with groups of youngfarmers training and dancing at festivals. But thevillage of Hayachine is ageing, and Mr. Suzuki has noheir. The tradition, which has lasted for so long, is insome danger. It was moving to watch Mr. Suzuki, whois very old and had recently had a stroke, put on themask and dance for us. We could see a world of ancientart that might not survive the modern age.Downtown KabukiIn centuries past there were many traveling Kabukitroupes in Tokyo and in the provinces, but in the early20 th century they were combined into the “GrandKabuki” based in Tokyo. Grand Kabuki is performedby famous artists in big theaters. The level of art is veryhigh, with large orchestras of traditional instruments,painted stages, brocade costumes, and beautifully madewigs and makeup. The manner of speaking is verystylized, as are many of the movements.In fact, some of the small Kabuki troupes didn’tdisappear but went “underground” into small theatersin the old downtowns of poorer neighborhoods inOsaka and Tokyo. One of these theaters is the NaniwaClub in the Shinsekai area of Osaka. I went to see atroupe called Hisho.Unlike at the Grand Kabuki, where people sit veryquietly and clap politely at the end, the audience forHisho was lively, eating and drinking, shouting theirappreciation, and even tacking wads of Y10,000 notesonto their favorite actor’s kimonos. The Hisho troupeis basically one family, with set pieces performed by thegrandfather, grandmother, aunt, father, and evenyoung children. They wore blond wigs, had costumesmade of day-glo synthetics, and danced to pop musicwhile lit by strobe lights. It was Kabuki adapted tointernational pop culture.At the time of its beginnings in the early 1600s, Kabukiwas the art of the people; the pop culture of its day.Nowadays people think of it as “traditional art,” but inOsaka one could see how it grew out of pop culture.Mangkunegaran PalaceThe royal courts of Java preserve a rich tradition ofdance, gamelan music, costume, textiles, ritual, andphilosophical teaching. Their dance is similar toJapanese Noh theater in that the pace is slow andstately, the mood contemplative and abstract. Thecourts themselves, led by hereditary Sultans, andprizing small but important differences between eachother, are similar to Japan’s iemoto (hereditary schoolsheaded by grand masters).Of these, Mangkunegaran Palace, a princely house inSolo dating from 1756, is one of the leading centers oftraditional performance in Indonesia. Its pendopo(open-sided performance hall) is one of the oldest andlargest in the country, and its ruling family placesmuch emphasis on preserving old forms of dance andmusic, and teaching them to Indonesians and foreignstudents.I studied in Solo from August 2006 until July 2008,and again from February to July 2011 on the APIfellowship, and during those years spent much timeviewing performances and studying at MangkunegaranPalace.Mangkunegaran’s emphasis on tradition is actually anadvantage in a globalized age. People around the worldwant to see the highest and best example of old artforms, and so they are drawn to Mangkunegaranbecause of its quality. It is proof that something thatseems very traditional and local can have aninternational appeal.However, it doesn’t happen just by accident.Mangkunegaran Palace works hard on outreach toIndonesians and foreigners, including providing publicperformances on Wednesdays and by organizing theThe Work of the 2010/2011 API Fellows