Jo-ha-kyū facts for kids

Jo-ha-kyū (序破急) is a cool idea from traditional Japanese arts. It's all about how things should move and change. Think of it like "start slow, speed up, then finish fast!"

This idea helps guide many different Japanese activities. You can see it in the Japanese tea ceremony, in martial arts like kendō and karate, in traditional plays, and even in special kinds of poetry.

Jo-ha-kyū first came from gagaku, which is a very old style of Japanese court music. It helped people understand how different parts of the music fit together. Later, a famous Noh playwright named Zeami really explored this idea. He thought Jo-ha-kyū was a universal pattern for how everything moves and changes.

Jo-ha-kyū in Theatre

The idea of Jo-ha-kyū is super important in Japanese theatre. It's used in many ways in plays like Noh, kabuki, and jōruri. It helps decide how plays are chosen for a day, how acts are put together, and even how actors move.

How a Noh Play Works

Zeami, in his writing called "Sandō" (The Three Paths), described the perfect Noh play as having five parts, or dan.

• The first part (jo) starts slowly and sets a good mood.
• The second, third, and fourth parts (ha) build up the excitement and drama. The biggest moment, or climax, happens in the third part.
• The fifth part (kyū) quickly finishes the play, bringing things back to a peaceful and happy ending.

Jo-ha-kyū in Jōruri and Kabuki

This same five-part idea was later used in jōruri and kabuki plays. These plays often have five acts, keeping Jo-ha-kyū in mind.

Takemoto Gidayū, a famous jōruri storyteller, was the first to explain the pattern behind these five acts. They are similar to the five types of Noh plays that might be performed in one day.

• The first act is about "Love." It starts nicely with gentle themes and pleasant music to get the audience interested.
• The second act is about "Warriors and Battles" (shura). It might not have actual fighting, but it usually has a faster pace and more intense story.
• The third act is the main climax of the whole play. It's often full of strong feelings and sad events. This is where the story reaches its most dramatic point.
• The fourth act is a michiyuki, which means a journey. It helps calm things down after the intense third act. This part often has a lot of singing and dancing instead of just talking.
• The fifth act is a quick ending. All the loose ends of the story are tied up, and the play finishes on a good note.

Jo-ha-kyū in Poetry

The Jo-ha-kyū pattern also became important in Japanese poetry. In 1356, a person named Nijō Yoshimoto made it a rule for certain types of linked poetry, like renga and haikai, in his collection called Tsukubashū (菟玖波集). This helped give these poems a clear flow from beginning to end.

See also

• Dramatic structure
• Kishōtenketsu, a different 4-part structure
• Shuhari
• Three-act structure
• Yonkoma