Yukiko

About Yukiko: 

Yukiko tells the story of the orphan girl Yukiko, whose black cat disappears. The cat is the only friend she has. She goes into the world to search for it. On her way, she faces many trials, before she finds the cast at the top of a tall mountain, the Cat Paradise. The cat has to stay in the paradise, but Yukiko can return home in the knowledge that the cat is all right.

There are universal fairytale characteristics to the story, either it is told in Japan or in Norway. The theme is the battle between good and evil forces. Christiania Teater found inspiration to the production through journeys to Eastern Asia, and studies of Eastern Asiatic cultures.

In the puppetry version, puppets, stage design, music and lighting told the story of Yukiko. The target group was children aged 3 to 7 years.

Yukiko was performed a total of 93 times. The production was invited to The International Puppet Festival in Dordrecht (Holland) in May 1989, and to a Nordic theatre festival in Umeå (Sweden) in September 1989. In November 1990 (16.-30.) Yukiko was performed aboard the culture boat Innvik, as arranged by The Norwegian Touring Theatre. The production was also performed in the counties of Rogaland and Aust-Agder, and in Eastern Norway. 

The role of Yukiko was played by Anne Thomte. 

See the entries of the other puppets from the production in Sceneweb. These are the evil empress and the cat.

SOURCES:

Anna Greta Ståhle (1976): Klassisk japansk teater, Bunraku (literally: Classic Japanese theatre, Bunraku). Forum, Berlinska Boktryckeriet.

Mona Wiig's private archive.

Donated by: Mona Wiig, 11.11.2019.

The head of Yukiko was formed from Styrofoam and fortified with cotton gauze and glue. It was pasted and polished with fine sandpaper. The head was small and narrow, and the face was painted white. The irises were made from small, black pearls, placed in a slant, and marked with grey. The nose and the mouth were also small. The hair was made from black silk threads, reaching to the middle of the cheeks. The throat was made from soft leather, and it could be moved. Yukiko's costume was a kimono sewn from cotton fabric, silk, and chiffon, with colours in orange and yellow. The wide belt beneath her chest was coloured in greyish pink with flower patterns in white. The sleeves of the kimono were wide, sewn from two different layers of fabric. Small white hands, made from wood, hung out from the sleeves.

The puppet Yukiko was inspired by Japanese Bunraku puppets, which are traditionally steered by three very experienced puppeteers. Yukiko was steered by one puppeteer, whose one hand moved the puppet itself, whereas the other hand moved the puppet's arm and hand. During the performance, the puppeteer could switch which hand steered the head and which hand steered Yukiko's arm.

A solid, black handle of wood was fastened to the back of Yukiko's head, and the puppeteer could hold this handle and use it during the performance. The soft throat in leather gave many opportunities to move the head. The kimono could hide the puppeteer from her chest and down to the floor. The fabrics reached wide and could also be used to signal strong emotions.

The wide sleeves of the kimono hid the arm and the hand of the puppeteer. This made it possible to switch hands between the head/body and the arm/hand. This switch was important in creating the illusion that the puppet had two arms with which to express itself.

Yukiko was steered by Anne Thomte.

Bunraku is supposedly the most refined form of puppetry in the world. This form of puppetry is performed by a Jõruri singer, who gives voice to the Bunraku puppets, accompanied by a musician playing the Shamisen. The Shamisen is a string instrument, originally from China, made by cat skin. The music and recitation developed first, and puppets were added during the 1600es. It would take decades before dramatic theatre was developed from this. Until 1705, the puppets only were visible to the audience, but from 1705, the style changed, and the performers came onstage with the puppets. As did the Jõruri singer and the Shamisen player, both of whom were placed to the side of the stage. The word Bunraku stems from the puppeteer Bunraken, who lived towards the end of the 1700es. 

Traditionally, three puppeteers steer each classic Bunraku puppet. The most experienced holds the puppet with his left hand, moving the head, the eyes and the mouth, through a complicated system of springs and strong strings. With his right hand, he moves the puppet's right arm and hand. His closest collaborator stands to the left, steering the puppet's left arm. The third player, also a man, is the youngest. He goes bent behind the puppet, moving its feet and legs. Throughout history, Bunraku players have always been men.