Why Are NOH Masks So Scary? The Reason They Are Often Used in Horror Scenes of Anime/Video Games

●Kongo School Noh “雪 Yuki/Snow” (My master acting as the main character)
https://youtu.be/Nl4bkbzMUz0

Even if you’re not a noh theater trainee like I am, I’m sure you’ve seen noh masks somewhere before. They often show up in many anime and video games as something scary but many of my friends don’t even know about their connections with the traditional stage culture. Noh theater is a mask play, so obviously they are crucial items within the show.

However, if they are simply stage items, why are they all so scary looking? Is NOH all about horror stories and ghosts?

Today, as a noh theater trainee in Kyoto, I will talk about the history of both noh theater and noh masks and explain what the 3 most famous noh masks represent.

Also at the end of the video, I will talk about the 3 reasons why noh masks are created to be so spooky and scary, so I hope you can enjoy this video till the end.

Deepening your understanding towards noh masks will not only be a chance for you to know more about the traditional theater art, but it will also allow you to enjoy anime and video games that they appear in too.

[Time codes]
0:00 Let's START!
1:54 The History of Noh and Noh Masks
5:13 The Three Major Noh Masks
8:32 Why Noh Masks are Creepy
13:03 Today's Conclusion

▼Who is Shogo? What is this channel about?▼
https://youtu.be/nhEamHfzyyg

▼Related videos in this channel▼
-What are the 3 main differences between Noh theatre & Kabuki play? The 600 years of history!
https://youtu.be/lp3wWpx04Ro
-The Complex Relationship of Shintoism & Buddhism! The Answer to "Are Japanese Really Non-religious?"
https://youtu.be/gr0hxKznLTA
-The stories of 5 most famous men who committed seppuku! Minamoto no Yoshitsune, Oda Nobunaga, etc.
https://youtu.be/qF24Y8TRT9o

▼MY DREAM▼
https://youtu.be/EgowIV_kagA

“To make every Japan lovers’ dream come true, by making Japan a more secure, comfortable, and safer place for everyone to visit, study, and live in”

I will be using the profit I gain from this channel at restaurants, hotels, and cultural facilities in Kyoto to introduce them. The more you watch the videos on this channel, Kyoto and Japan will become a more exciting place, and you can support your own and others’ dreams in the future even more.

▼Join our Membership▼
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn7DCb9ttrcw9h3vh9dfnVw/join

●Membership benefits
-Limited behind-the-scene videos
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=UUMOn7DCb9ttrcw9h3vh9dfnVw
-Weekly live stream
-Priority reply to comments

Every single yen we earn from this membership, we will be donating to groups of people who are fighting to solve social problems in Japan, the Japanese schools where foreign students can study, or use it to spread the works of people working with traditional culture in Japan to preserve the arts they are doing.

▼[Sub-channel] “Shogo’s Podcast”▼
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZAe1VayWxp5NLO4Net78DA
Please subscribe!!

The perfect channel to learn about Japanese culture and history in your spare time, during your walk to school or work, and when you are cooking or doing house chores.

Not only will I be covering the topics in this main channel, but also some topics that you will only be able to enjoy in the sub-channel, like answering questions I receive, and my opinions towards some of the comments.

▼[Listen to the real voices of the Japanese] "Voices from Japan series"▼
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpIWoYf9KNFXxLyeQa85jDudDKqkwPg-2

▼[For YOU traveling to Kyoto] "Kyoto Hidden Gems" series▼
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpIWoYf9KNFU2YmZtyfKJi9-MCpycAPWy

▼Instagram▼
https://www.instagram.com/lets_ask_shogo/
*Please ask me questions through the DM here!（⚠️I do not use e-mail）

▼Shogo’s profile▼
Hello everyone, and thank you for watching my videos!

I’m Shogo, a Kyoto born & Hiroshima raised Japanese, that grew up in Michigan USA for 6 years, and studied Mandarin in Beijing university for a year! I live in Kyoto now, as I train in Iaido(katana), Sado(tea ceremony), and Noh theatre(traditional stage art).

In this channel, you can take a closer look at Japanese traditional culture, tips on traveling to Kyoto, and social problems in Japan. So learners and lovers of Japanese language and culture, be sure to subscribe to enjoy more content!

If you enjoyed this video, please hit the LIKE button, and share with your friends and family! My goal is “to achieve 1,000,000 subscribers by January 2023”, so your help would mean a lot!

♪Music♪
おとわび
https://otowabi.com/category/material/japan

♪Sound effects♪
効果音ラボ
https://soundeffect-lab.info/

♪Pictures♪
かわいいフリー素材屋 いらすとや
https://www.irasutoya.com/

#nohtheater #nohmasks #nohgaku #japanesereligions #japanesegods