Masks, costumes, fans and properties help define the people and scenes appearing in nō, their types forming a basic language for identification. The dressing of a character and the construction of props before a performance are complex operations that prepare the spiritual focus as well as the external image of a figure. In addition, dedicated artisans create these stage tools, which are carefully stored in the theaters or actor’s homes. Beautiful artifacts in their own right, nō masks and costumes have also been collector’s items for the last four hundred years and today constitute important museum holdings around the world.
Contributor: Monica Bethe