The study examines how local activities contribute to the preservation of traditional performing arts as an intangible cultural heritage by analyzing components of heritages and setting up preservation frameworks. As a case study, the Japanese traditional puppet show, “Ningyo-Joruri,” of the Shimoina region in Nagano prefecture is examined. Ningyo-Joruri is a composite performing art consisting of musical performance of traditional instruments (shamisen), narration by narrators (tayu) and performance of puppets (ningyo) in traditional sets. The study clarified that necessary elements for preservation include finding and maintaining successors (performers), gathering galleries of public performances, teaching traditional skill and technique, arranging or managing essential tools and sets, maintaining or reconstructing stages for performances and practices. In this case study, these elements have been appropriately preserved while the preservation method has radically changed since the early-modern age.