National Theatre 国立劇場

Experience kabuki and bunraku at the National Theatre

The National Theatre consists of two halls in central Tokyo where you can see performances of kabuki, traditional buyo dance, folk performing arts, gagaku court music, bunraku puppet theater and more. It opened in 1966 with the purpose of preserving Japanese traditional performing arts.

Performances of various kinds are held throughout the year. The gorgeous grounds of the National Theatre of Japan are also worth a visit, especially during the springtime cherry blossom viewing season.

Kabuki and bunraku are registered as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritages and the National Theatre of Japan is operated by the Japan Arts Council.