This is an in person only event in the British Library Knowledge Centre Eliot Room. 
 
The distinguished mask-carver Kitazawa Hideta demonstrates the process of carving the iconic traditional masks of the Japanese noh theatre, one of the oldest continuing performance forms in the world.  
 
But what makes a good mask? What does an actor require from it? How are the strengths of the mask activated? Akira Matsui, a master actor from the Kita School of noh discusses these questions with Kitazawa Hideta, giving fresh insight into the significant relationships between actor and mask, and mask and carver. Translation is provided by noh actor, musician and composer, Richard Emmert. 
  
Followed by a book signing by Kitazawa Hideta of his newly published book ‘Noh and Kyogen Masks: Tradition and Modernity in the Art of Kitazawa Hideta’. 
  
Doors and Bar open at 18:00. If you’re attending in person, please arrive no later than 15 minutes before the start time of this event. 
  
Half price tickets available for Members, Students, Under 26 and other concession groups.  
 
Part of From Tradition to Modernity a series of events in August and September 2024, including an exhibition at the Embassy of Japan, that seeks to illuminate the vital position that noh holds in Japanese culture and history and offers UK audiences a unique opportunity to engage more deeply with this classical art form. 
 
Matsui Akira is an actor-teacher of the Kita School of classical noh based in Wakayama, Japan. He began studying noh at the age of 7 and took on numerous child roles. At age 12, he became a ‘live-in apprentice’ to Kita Minoru the 15th head of the Kita School. He has for over 50 years been active teaching, performing and collaborating with international performers in over 25 countries. In 1998, he was designated an Important Intangible Cultural Asset by the Japanese government and has been awarded four major cultural prizes from the Wakayama Prefectural and City governments. In 2016 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Royal Holloway, University of London.  
  
Kitazawa Hideta is a wood sculptor and noh mask maker based in Tokyo. He learned traditional wood carving of Buddhist and Shinto statuary from his father, Kitazawa Ikkyo, and later studied noh mask carving. He currently produces classical noh and kyogen masks and has been designated a master craftsman by the Tokyo Metropolitan government. Kitazawa has also created numerous shinsaku “new” masks for foreign language noh productions, notably those of Theatre Nohgaku, as well as for other noh-influenced plays. He has given workshops and demonstrations in Japan and internationally and a book on his work entitled Noh and Kyogen Masks is published by Prestel in Autumn 2024.  
 
Richard Emmert is professor emeritus at Musashino University, Tokyo, where he taught classical noh and Japanese and Asian traditional performing arts. Born in Ohio (USA), he is a certified Kita school noh instructor and has led noh performance workshops worldwide. Founder of Theatre Nohgaku, he has composed noh music for numerous English noh productions for which he was awarded the Koizumi Prize for 2019. He recently composed music for a French noh and arranged music for a Spanish noh. He co-authored a series of seven noh performance guides and authored the six-volume The Guide to Noh of the National Noh Theatre, both for Tokyo’s National Noh Theatre.  
  
The British Library is a charity. Your support helps us open up a world of knowledge and inspiration for everyone. Donate today.