The distinction between classical rakugo and new rakugo is not always clear, and a number of works such as Little Flute (a new rakugo performance created by the third Beicho KATSURA and performed by many storytellers) are deemed to be ambiguous in terms of which category they belong to.
なお、両者の線引きは必ずしも明確ではなく、多くの演者によって演じられる新作落語（桂米朝(3代目)作「一文笛」等）のように境界線上にある作品も少なくない。