Edward Gordon Craig and the International Reception of Bunraku: Transmission of the Puppet Images in Gakuya zue shūi, and the Networks of Modernism between Japan, Europe, and the United States

This paper investigates the influence of the traditional Japanese puppet theatre, bunraku, on Edward Gordon Craig, against the background of its international reception. The main focus of the paper is the transmission of the puppet images in the book Gakuya zue shūi, written at the beginning of the 19th century, which explains the construction of the bunraku puppets with many illustrations. Craig’s strong interest in bunraku can be seen in the fact that he traced these illustrations repeatedly, mentioned them in his essay, and published them. Tracing the transmission routes of the images, this paper also reveals complex networks of modernism spanning Japan, Europe, and the United States, within which there was a growing international interest in bunraku. Finally, this paper analyses Yone Noguchi’s article “The Puppet-Theatre of Japan” and Craig’s “Postscript” in his Puppets and Poets as examples of cultural interactions.