狂言とは
狂言は奈良時代に中国から伝わってきた散楽（滑稽な物真似や曲芸等）が日本古来の芸能的要素と結びつき、平安時代には猿楽と呼ばれるようになり、神社仏閣の擁護のもとで洗練され、そこから室町時代に狂言が確立していったといわれています。そして16世紀頃までに、狂言は人間の百八の煩悩を笑う人間劇として完成されていきました。
狂言という言葉は、もともと仏教用語として使われ、道理に合わない物言いや飾り立てた言葉を意味する語ですが、それが転じて、しぐさとせりふを演劇の中心とした科白劇を狂言と呼ぶようになりました。狂言は能と一緒に頻繁に演じられるようになり、今日でも能とは密接な繋がりがあります。
What is "Kyogen"?
Kyogen traces its roots back to Sangaku (an entertainment form involving comical mimicry and acrobatics that was introduced to Japan from China during the 8th century) and gradually came to be known as Sarugaku in the Heian period (794 to 1185), as it was refined and modified under the auspices of Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. By the 16th century, it evolved into an established art form, in its own right, that mocked and parodied the 108 earthly temptations postulated by Buddhism.
Although, the term Kyogen (which literally meant "mad words") initially was used only in a Buddhist context, it later came to be associated primarily with this humorous form of drama that combined elements of slapstick and satire with witty dialogue for the primary purpose of making the audience laugh. Kyogen came to be frequently performed together with Noh plays, and is closely linked to Noh even to this day.
萬狂言
和泉流狂言の名家 野村万蔵家一門の組織を、2000年を機に八世万蔵（五世万之丞）が萬狂言（よろずきょうげん）と命名しました。代々受け継いできた技と心を重んじ、古典を正しく美しく守り伝えていくことはもちろん、これまで様々な新作の輩出や、狂言と他芸能・文学とのコラボレーションにより斬新な作品を生み出してきました。
自主公演は、年間で東京４回（春夏秋冬、1・4・7・10月）と地方定例公演（不定期、金沢・福岡・大阪）を開催。いずれも社団法人日本ユネスコ協会連盟の御後援、並びに2004年度より文化庁芸術創造活動重点支援事業として御支援をいただいております。また、2007年度は、文化庁「本物の舞台芸術体験事業」に採択されました。今後も、全国各地で、また広く海外にも視野を広げて展開してまいります。
What is "Yorozu Kyogen"?
In the year 2000, on the eve of the 21st century, the distinguished Nomura Mannzo family’s own interpretation of the Izumi Kyogen style was named "Yorozu" by its head at the time, the eighth Manzo, Nomura Mannojo V (the fifth). The Chinese character 萬 or "yorozu" means "myriad" or "multi-faceted"The new name better reflects the true nature of this truly multi-faceted Kyogen school, which on the one hand highly values and perpetuates the classic techniques as well as spirit of Kyogen as they have been handed down from generation to generation; while on the other hand, pursuing innovations and versatile collaborations with other performance arts as well as written media.
In Tokyo, regular performances are scheduled during each of the four seasons every year (in January, April, July, and October) while frequent regional performances are also held (on an alternating basis in the cities of Osaka, Fukuoka, and Kanazawa) with the support of the National Federation of UNESCO Associations in Japan as well as Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs (Promotional Prioritized Support Program for Creative Artistic Activities [since 2004]). Moreover, in 2007, the Yorozu Kyogen was certified by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs as an "Authentic stage art performance discipline in the school curriculum”. In this global century, the Yorozu Kyogen School extends its perspective beyond Japan’s shores as it ambitiously strives to bring the art of Kyogen to a growing audience.
