Amongst the traditional theatres performed in contemporary Japan, kabuki stands out quite distinctively in terms of popularity and consistently attracts a large audience - for details of its historical development see Japanese theatre before 1868.

Nowadays kabuki is regarded an entertainment business as well as a preserved cultural asset. Shochiku Co Ltd, a private theatre business company, enjoys a pre-eminent position in the presentation of kabuki and has priority contracts with almost all kabuki actors when they appear on stage. Shochiku owns Kabuki-za, kabuki’s home theatre, and gives month-long limited productions every month. Besides Shochiku, the National Theatre also regularly offers kabuki performances. However, although kabuki actors appear at both Kabuki-za and the National Theatre, the repertoires offered at the two venues are quite different. In general, Kabuki-za presents the more popular and entertaining shows featuring star casts, while the National Theatre hosts repertoires which are considered to be more historically and academically significant. Consequently a performance at Kabuki-za (matinee or evening) will generally comprise a compilation of popular excerpts from well-known classics, while the National Theatre will usually offer a multiple-act play in its entirety, from prologue through to conclusion.

The other tradition theatre genre which still commands wide popular support in contemporary Japan is bunraku, a distinctive style of puppetry with a narrator and shamisen accompaniment. The Bunraku Association is a public entity supported by the government which is responsible for preserving and presenting bunraku.

The Bunraku Association presents regular performances in its home theatre, the National Bunraku Theatre of Osaka, and also gives three-week limited performances twice each year in the small theatre of the National Theatre in Tokyo. Bunraku is particularly popular in Tokyo where tickets are usually sold out quickly.

Noh and kyogen are both very traditional genres with a long and distinguished history which date back to the 14th century. Preserved in various schools, most of which pass the traditional skills down from generation to generation, noh and kyogen are usually presented in purpose-built venues to a more specialised audience. In recent years several local governments have constructed new theatres specially-equipped to host noh and kyogen performances.