Okamoto Hôichi - the master

Okamoto Hôichi.



I am writing about an extraordinary experience I have had with a pupper theater. Due to the fact that I am in Wroclaw I am getting to know new forms (new for me) of art. One of the professors (he says :by chance) showed us a performance by Mr Okamoto. The master pupeteer was suffering from cancer and his last performance was made into a (kind of) a documentary film. 
It was his saying goodbye to the puppet he worked with all his life. It's difficult for me to say "puppet", because it was like watching another human being with him on the stage. His proficiency in leading the puppet was unbelievable, but no words can describe what I felt. (Perhaps it's me who lacks the right "language" to describe it).
The division between the real and the artificial emphsizes the ontological value of the artwork (a masterpiece). It opens up area for discussion of life and death, of what values in life... 
The real (the puppeteer) will die eventually, the artificial will die with him, but will live as well - it has always been dead (as a form)... but it is not dead at all in the hands of the master. It has its own life, its own form, it's been granted life as if God created it.
It is a touching performance - and again I would not like to call it a performance - it's a masterpiece. I remember, after one of the performances of "Grenadier - King" a scultptor came up to Henry and said to him "now it is time to be quiet for a while". That is exactly how I felt after waitching this. I am definitely "smarter" now. It has become a part of my artistic experience.  



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