When one visits Hong Kong for the first time, the choices for a night out on the town can be overwhelming. Good advice for suggestions can be found at the concierge desks of ones best Hong Kong hotels , with directions or even transportation to the show or the restaurant provided by the hotel. One of the interesting activities that can often times lead to an experience above and beyond theentertainment is to check out the local art and theater scene. There are a myriad of theaters and styles to choose from, but one will be doing oneself a favor should they find a theater that performs traditionalNoh plays. Noh was a theater of Japan created by two close friends. In the beginning the style was dramatic and passionate, but today has developed into a very poetic and peaceful art form.
Early forms included ritualistic dance moves of the Shinto traditions, as well as gymnastics and juggling. Ballads and poems were often chanted as well. Masks play and essential role in the performance and the masks differaccording to the characters being portrayed and their place in the storyline. The main character is called the shite. If the actor or the character is an older man, they will where the mask. Others that will where maskes include women, as well as will the younger actors or those portraying supernatural elements. If the main character is an adult male then a mask will not be worn. None of the characters that enter the stage following the main actor will where masks either. Once one has become familiar with the plays, they will recognize the different characters as more shows are seen. Another important prop is the fan. This is often not used as a fan, but as another prop significant to the story such as a pipe, a sword or a bottle, anything really.