Spaces

The contemporary noh stage has a distinctive architecture. Reflecting its origins as an outdoor structure, the performance areas are covered by a roof. A platform for the chorus (jiutai za) extends to stage left, and another extension to the rear (atoza) allows space for the instrumentalists and stage assistants to be seated and joins a bridgeway (hashigakari) off to stage right that leads backstage via the mirror room (kagami no ma). The audience sits around the stage to the right and front. 

In the past, stages like this were erected outdoors on shrine or temple precincts and within castle structures. Quite a few of these remain, some still being used for annual performances. Modern noh stages retain this architecture but place it within a larger theater hall. In some cases, a building was constructed around a preexisting outdoor stage. The aerial view below has labels on the parts of the stage.

Kagami no ma (mirror room). The dressing room leading onto the stage.

Agemaku (curtain) A five-color curtain lifted with sticks from the side for major exits and entrances, pulled slightly open at the side for some entrances.

Hashigakari (bridge) Passageway between the mirror room and the stage proper used for entrances and exits, and also as a side acting space.

Atoza (rear-stage area) The instrumentalists and stage attendants sit here.

Honbutai (stage proper) Square area where most of the action takes place.

Jiutaiza (chorus seat) Six or eight chorus members sit in this extension at stage left.

Kagami-ita (painted pine) The constant backdrop, allegedly representing the yōgō no matsu on the precincts of Kasuga Shrine, Nara.

Kirido-guchi (small side door) Inconspicuous entrances and exits are done through this back door.

Shite-bashira (shite pillar) The upstage right pillar supporting the roof. The shite stands here for the opening sections of the majority of nō.

Fue-bashira (flute pillar) The upstage left pillar. The flute player sits near this pillar.

Metsuke-bashira (eye-fixing pillar) The downstage right support pillar. Although an inconvenience for the audience, this pillar helps orient the masked performer whose vision is highly restricted.

Waki-bashira (waki pillar) The downstage left pillar. The waki sits near this pillar for much of the play.

Kizahashi (stairs) Non-functional today except as a center orientation marker for the masked shite. A remnant from when shrine buildings were used as stages, in the past the stairs were presumably used for entrances, and for members of the audience to present items to the actors.

Shirasu (sand) or pebbles separate the world of the stage from that of the audience. Alternatively, water (as at Itsukushima Shrine, Hiroshima) or moss (Higashi Honganji, Kyoto) serves to separate the performance area from the audience.

San-no-matsu (third pine) The small potted pine in the shirasu area in front of the bridge closest to the curtain.

Ni-no-matsu (second pine) The middle small potted pine next to the bridge.

Ichi-no-matsu (first pine) The small potted pine in front of the bridge closest to the stage proper.

The external structure of the noh stage with square projected acting area, roof, pillars, and bridge leading off at an angle is not the only defining characteristic. Just as important is the allocated use of areas of the stage. Areas within the square main stage are named and have specific associations with characters (shite, waki, tsure, etc.) and with actions that take place in them. One might say the stage space is coded for the way it is used.

The performers who basically stay in one place throughout the performance sit in specific places (za), named for them: the chorus sits in the chorus space (jiutaiza), the flute player in the flute seat (fueza), etc. In addition, the stage proper is divided into nine squares, each with a name that gives an indication of this coding. For instance, the waki sits in the waki square (wakiza downstage left). The characters announce themselves in the “name announcing” square (nanoriza), the first square (upstage right) reached upon entering the main stage. This square is also called the “constant square” (jōza) because it is a spot for pausing, and a place from which action begins and to which action returns.

Jōza (upstage right) “Constant” square where things begin and end and where the shite stands for a long time. Also known as the nanoriza or “name announcing place” because this is where the waki (if unaccompanied) and others announce who they are.

Wakishō (mid stage right) “Waki front” square from the point of view of the waki.

Sumi (downstage right) “Corner” square. The closest area to the audience. Key gestures are often performed here, like looking out at the moon, or into the distance.

Shōsaki (downstage center) “Front center” square, a spot for significant action, and a common place for setting certain types of smaller props and platforms.

Wakiza-mae (downstage left) “Waki seat” square. For much of a piece, the waki sits here.

Jiutai-mae (mid stage left) “In front of the chorus” square.  Often secondary characters sit here.

Fueza-mae (upstage left) “In front of the flute player” square.

Daishō-mae (upstage center) “In front of the large and small hand drums” square. Large props like huts are placed here. Action can begin here and move forward along the central axis.

Shō-naka (center stage) “Front center” square. The shite sits at center stage for important narrative sections, such as the kuse segment or when telling a story (katari). The aikyogen sits here to relate the background story of a place to the waki during the interlude between acts.