ay a female, dress and cosmetics play an important role in the performances. Costumes used are elaborate, detailed, and show the traditional dress of historical Japan. The primary form of cosmetics is called kumadori. The Asia Society’s 1988 Video Letter: Noh and Kabuki translates kumadori as "making shadows" (1). This involves spreading pale makeup over the actor’s entire face and then applying a traditional stencil of vivid pigments that express the mood or emotion of the character. Different colors also express values and traits of a character. The Asia Society’s Video Letter also explains the variety and meaning of color scheme. It says, "The two most common colors used are red, which denotes virtues such as bravery, strength, and justice, and dark blue, which expresses negative traits like jealousy and fear. Black, terra-cotta, bronze, and gold are common as well." (1). ("Noh and Kabuki" 1)Another way that emotions were shown in kabuki was through its narrations. In kabuki a narrator usually speaks each character’s lines and explains their actions as the actor performs the movements described. This narration is accompanied by tradutitional Japanese music consisting of a shamisen (Hamamura 91). Schauwecker’s Guide to Japan defines a shamisen as "a kind of guitar with only three strings" (1). (GTJ Kabuki 1)Kabuki is performed on a stage made of a hanamichi and a rotating platform. The hanamichi is similar to a footbridge and extends through the spectators. It is primarily found in the left-hand side of the auditorium. It spans from the back to the front of the auditorium and is constructed with planks made of lumber. The hanamichi is a meaningful component in kabuki. All pieces are composed and executed with the premise that the theater will have a hanamichi. The rotating platforms contain gadgets and trapdoors to add special affects to kabuki (GTJ Kabuki 1). A positive effect of a rotating stage is that...
