Dengaku and Omi Sarugaku, which had been strong competitors in the previous generation, were driven out almost completely in this period, and Muromachi bakufu treated Kanze-za preferentially as the head of sarugaku.
前代には有力な競争相手であった田楽や近江国猿楽がこの時代にはほとんど駆逐され、観世座が猿楽の筆頭として室町幕府に重用された。