From its hair-raising horror films to its numerous urban legends, Japan enjoys a particularly strong connection with the supernatural. This is hardly a recent development. Paranormal elements within Japanese folklore stretch back several centuries, with Yōkai (supernatural beings), Yūrei (ghosts) and Bakemono (monsters) appearing as early as the 14th century, in the moralistic Buddhist and Shinto dance dramas known as Noh. However, as the National Museum of Asian Art at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, highlights, these figures would not appear in popular entertainment till the Edo period, which began in 1603. The Museum’s ongoing art exhibition Staging the Supernatural: Ghosts and the Theater in Japanese Prints explores the role that supernatural beings played in Japanese theatre at the time, through its presentation of woodblock prints and illustrated books detailing their appearances in both Noh and the more informal Kabuki theatre forms. The exhibition is on from March 23 to October 6, 2024, and is co-curated by Kit Brooks, the Japan Foundation Assistant Curator of Japanese Art and Frank Feltens, Curator of Japanese Art. The duo join STIR in an interview to discuss the catalyst that shifted paranormal beings in Japanese folklore from moralising entities to characters in mass entertainment and to highlight an interesting connection between Japan and China.

The Edo period began with the consolidation of power by Tokugawa Ieyasu after winning the Battle of Sekigahara (1600), which ushered in an era of economic and political stability within Japan. This saw the rise of a new urban, middle class, known as chōnin, who had more free time on their hands than commoners from eras past, and as a result, could spend more time engaging with art. They were also far more literate than previous generations of Japanese citizenry and the paranormal characters that they were familiar with began to be separated from their superstitious contexts.

As Brooks and Feltens tell STIR, “Theatre played an important role as entertainment, social connector and expression of a new self-confidence among urban society, with audiences taking an active interest in actors’ lives, both on and off the stage.” This can be evidenced by the titles of some of the artworks presented in this article: One will note the attention paid to accurately recording the names of actors and the roles that they performed, similar to the cast listing one would find on a Western playbill. This suggests that at least some of the actors in the Japanese theatre circuit at the time were recognisable public figures. Returning to the curatorial duo, they explain that both Noh and Kabuki were popular, with Kabuki being much more accessible—akin to going to the movies today—versus the closed-off ritualistic background of Noh. Ghost stories captured the attention of the masses because of their thrilling plots, and sometimes even drew on contemporary events or urban tales, and turned them into plays, either sensationalising or satirising them.

Theatre played an important role as entertainment, social connector and expression of a new self-confidence among urban society, with audiences taking an active interest in actors’ lives, both on and off the stage. – Kit Brooks, The Japan Foundation Assistant Curator of Japanese Art and Frank Feltens, Curator of Japanese Art

Some of the stories that were acted out on stage present a cultural link between Japan and China. Historically, the neighbouring powers have engaged in an exchange of ideas since the Jomon period (400 BCE). While the Edo era saw Japan become increasingly insular, this did not entirely prevent external influences from trickling in. Furthermore, enough time had already passed for Chinese myths, or myths involving China, to enter the Japanese consciousness, where they have since remained and have become hybridised with Japanese elements.

The curatorial duo tell STIR, “The exhibition spans the late Edo period through the Meiji and Taishō eras. Some of the plays covered in the exhibition are based on Chinese legends, such as the Noh play Shakkyō (Stone Bridge), which talks about a mythical bridge guarded by two lions that the Japanese monk Jakushō is said to have encountered during travels in China.” As they point out, many established characteristics of female Japanese ghosts, for example, developed from Chinese myths and legends. These have persisted through to the present day, featuring heavily in Japanese horror movies.

Staging the Supernatural features a vibrant body of ink illustration works and marks the first time that the National Museum of Asian Art has undertaken an exploration of the paranormal, as it appears within the theatre medium. The museum’s offering is certainly compelling for the highly expressive art that is on display, but perhaps what will remain with audiences well after the show ends will be the realisation that the interests, motivations and fears of people in the 1600s were comparable to our own.

‘Staging the Supernatural: Ghosts and the Theater in Japanese Prints’ is on view at the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, from March 23 - October 6, 2024.