Among the various recent news from the Nohgaku Performers’ Association (Nōgaku kyōkai) is the announcement of their beautiful new logo, representing the silhouette of a nō stage – four pillars topped with a roof. In the announcement statement it is explained that the four “pillars” in the logo symbolize the four types of nōgaku performer (shite, waki, hayashi, kyōgen), while the roof is the ideogram for “person”. The logo represents the transmission of knowledge from person to person, constituting the history of nōgaku’s ancient tradition.

While the four types of performer represent those who stand on stage, it is worth remembering that there are many other people working “backstage”, including mask carvers, costume weavers, and fan makers, without whom nō and kyōgen performances would just not be possible.