Shimbashi Kabuki, Program B
Three Thieves Named Kichisa
The Demoness of Mt. Togakushi
Onoe Ukon was good, as always.
November Grand Kabuki, Matinee
"KANADEHON CHUSHINGURA -The Treasure of 47 Loyal Retainers-"
Acts 1 and 3: The Helmet Appraisal and the Sword Incident
Daimyo lords from around the country gather for an important ceremony in the presence of Tadayoshi, the younger brother of the shogun. Under the watchful eye of the official Moronao, lords Enya Hangan and Wakasanosuke have been charged with making sure everything goes according to protocol. Enya Hangan's wife Kaoyo is asked to identify a helmet to be used in the ceremony. Moronao is in love with Kaoyo and tries to woo her, but Wakasanosuke stops him. In return, Moronao uses his position of authority to berate the young lord and Wakasanosuke decides to kill Moronao.
But the next morning at the shogun's mansion, Wakasanosuke's head retainer bribes Moronao to keep his master from causing an incident and although Wakasanosuke is about to attack Moronao, the aged official's groveling stops him. As a result, though, Moronao is frustrated and angry and vents his feelings on Enya Hangan, especially after Hangan innocently brings him a letter in which Kaoyo refuses Moronao's love. Moronao steadily insults Hangan, who tries to ignore the pressure, but finally draws his sword and attacks. Drawing a sword in the shogun's palace is a crime punishable by death, but Moronao himself escapes with only a slight wound as others within the mansion hurry in to stop Hangan.
Act 4: Enya Hangan's Suicide
Emissaries from the shogun arrive at Enya Hangan's mansion to announce that he has received the strictest penalty for his actions. He is ordered to commit ritual suicide and his household is to be disbanded. Hangan's hate for Moronao grows when he hears that Moronao has received no punishment. Hangan waits and waits for his head retainer, but he does not arrive. Finally, Hangan plunges in the blade. At that moment, his head retainer Yuranosuke arrives from their home province. With his last breaths, Hangan gives Yuranosuke the knife he used to commit suicide and tells him to take revenge. Now that the clan has been disbanded, Hangan's men become masterless samurai. Though some urge an immediate attack on Moronao, Yuranosuke bids them not to do anything rash. When alone in front of the closed mansion gates, though, he secretly reveals his determination that his lord will not have died in vain.
Travel Dance: The Fujitives
After the death of his lord, the retainer Kampei and his lover, the lady-in-waiting Okaru flee to Okaru's home, a farmer's house in the country. Kampei feels responsible for the events since he was having a romantic tryst and was not at his master's side at the crucial moment. He tries to commit suicide, but Okaru stops him and convinces him that they should go to her home as husband and wife and wait for the right moment for him to be reinstated.
October Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
YOSHITSUNE SENBON ZAKURA(Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees)
This play was first performed in the Bunraku puppet theatre and is an epic story about the famous 12th century general Yoshitsune. After the end of the war between the Genji and Heike clans, the Genji clan was victorious, making its leader Yoritomo the ruler. But even though his brother Yoshitsune’s brilliant strategies were responsible for the victory, Yoritomo came to suspect Yoshitsune of treason and made him a fugitive. Although Yoshitsune is the title character, the main characters of the play are actually different and this month features the acts of the play about the Heike warrior Tomomori and the acts about the magical fox Tadanobu.
-Tokaiya and Daimotsu-no-ura (Tokaiya Inn and Daimotsu Bay)-
Yoshitsune books passage on a boat to Kyushu, but the captain is actually Taira no Tomomori, a general of the Heike clan that Yoshitsune helped to defeat. Tomomori was supposedly killed by Yoshitsune in the final battle of the war between their clans, but in this play, he is shown as surviving, living in disguise with the child emperor Antoku and his nursemaid. Tomomori uses the opportunity to try to take his revenge on Yoshitsune, but is defeated again. Holding a giant anchor, Tomomori plunges to a watery death.
-Yoshinoyama (Mt. Yoshino)-
This is a musical travel scene. Hearing that Yoshitsune has taken refuge in the mountains of Yoshino, Yoshitsune’s loyal retainer Tadanobu and his lover Shizuka go to try to meet him there. Although Tadanobu keeps disappearing, he always appears when Shizuka plays the precious drum that she received from Yoshitsune. In dance Tadanobu recounts episodes from the Gempei war, including the battle in which his brother died to save Yoshitsune's life.
-Kawatsura Hogen Yakata (The Mansion of the Priest Kawatsura)-
Yoshitsune has taken refuge in the mountains of Yoshino at the mansion of an old ally. Tadanobu arrives but has no recollection of Shizuka being placed under his care. Shizuka herself soon arrives with the other Tadanobu and after an investigation they discover that he is actually a fox. In a touching story, the fox tells how he took on human form to be close to the hand drum, which is made from the skins of his fox parents. Moved, Yoshitsune gives the fox the drum and he flies away joyously.
September Grand Kabuki, Matinee
RYOMA GA YUKU -Saigo no Ichinichi (Sakamoto Ryoma's Final Day)-
This is a dramatization of the last section of the tremendously popular historical novel by Shiba Ryotaro (1923 - 1996) about Sakamoto Ryoma (1836 - 1867), a visionary revolutionary at the end of the Tokugawa Period who brought various rival factions together to battle the shogunate and would have led Japan boldly, if he had not been assassinated in a bloody battle.
TOKI WA IMA KIKYO NO HATA AGE(Mitsuhide's Rebellion)
Based on the true historical story of Akechi Mitsuhide who betrayed his lord Oda Nobunaga and ruled Japan for a few short days before being defeated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, this play focuses on Mitsuhide and his tortured relationship with the arrogant and unreasonable lord Nobunaga. It is one of the few period plays by Tsuruya Namboku still performed today and brings the same sharp psychological insight and eye for the attractiveness of evil characters that make his ghost plays and plays about commoners so powerful.
OMATSURI(The Festival)
A special gala version of the favorite dance showing people at a festival. This month, the top stars in kabuki will appear as gallant firemen bosses, geisha and dancers at a festival to say farewell to Kabuki-za.
KOCHIYAMA
The tea priest Kochiyama is a skilled thief and extortionist, but cannot turn down a request to help those in need. He disguises himself as a high-ranking priest to try to gain the freedom of a girl held by a powerful samurai lord because she will not become his mistress. Using the famous poetic cadences of the late 19th century playwright Mokuami, Kochiyama not only succeeds in his mission to rescue the girl, but he manages to extort a fair amount for himself.
August Grand Kabuki
TEMPO YUKYO ROKU (Record of an Unruly Life)
A low-ranking warrior is universally disliked for his dissolute behavior but he reforms for the sake of his small son who later becomes Katsu Kaishu, one of the leading figures of the Meiji Restoration of 1868. A modern historical play, it was written by Mayama Seika, one of the most important Japanese dramatists of the twentieth century.
ROKKASEN SUGATA NO IRODORI (The Six Poetic Geniuses)
A rare full-length performance of a humorous series of dances, which show the ancient poetic geniuses famous from classical Japanese literature, reinterpreted to the tastes of Edo period audiences. Ono no Komachi, the only woman of the six, was famous as a great beauty and in this dance, all the other poets are in love with her. The first dances are filled with the atmosphere of the Heian Period imperial court, but then changes to a contemporary scene.
OKUNI TO GOHEI (Okuni's Vendetta and Love)
This play was written by the famous 20th century novelist Tanizaki Junichiro. Okuni has set out on a vendetta against a former lover Tomonojo for killing her husband. When she finds him, he reveals that he has actually been following her all the time during her long search disguised as a traveling priest. Tomonojo begs for her forgiveness, but Okuni is still forced to kill him, as he has seen that she has fallen in love with her servant Gohei who has accompanied her on her journey.
KAIDAN CHIBUSA NO ENOKI (The Ghost and the Milk-Giving Tree)
Based on a Rakugo story by Sanyutei Encho, this is a showpiece for the star actor who plays multiple roles, culminating in a thrilling fight scene in a waterfall where he switches rapidly from one to another. An artist named Hishikawa Shigenobu is killed by a handsome samurai named Isogai who makes love to Shigenobu's wife Oseki. He carries out the murder with the help of Shigenobu's honest, but simple minded, servant Shosuke and the tattooed villain Uwabami no Sanji. But the baby is rescued by the ghost of Shigenobu and finally the boy avenges the death of his father by killing Isogai.
Tokyo National Museum
SOMETSUKE - The Flourishing of Underglaze Blue Porcelain Ware in Asia
108 Tripod Dish (Lotus and heron design in underglaze blue), 109 Dish (Waterwheel design in underglaze blue with celadon glaze), 110 Dish (Snowscape design in underglaze blue)
Sakurahime
The 10th Shibuya-Cocoon Kabuki Show
Sakurahime
By Nanboku Tsuruya IV
Director: Kazuyoshi Kushida
Cast: Kanzaburo Nakamura, Senjaku Nakamura,
Hashinosuke Nakamura,Yajuro Bando, Shichinosuke Nakamura,
Takashi Sasano, and others
July Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
NATSU MATSURI NANIWA KAGAMI (The Summer Festival in Osaka)
This popular play originally from the Bunraku puppet theater shows the pride and spirit of honor of commoners in Osaka. Danshichi, a gallant fishmonger, does everything he can to protect the weak young son of his patron with the help of his companion Tokubei and the older Sabu. Although even Tokubei's wife Otatsu heroically helps out, in the end, Danshichi is betrayed by his evil father-in-law Giheiji and, in the most famous scene of the play, must kill him in a mud-covered fight in a lonely alley with the shouts of the local festival nearby.
TENSHU MONOGATARI (The Legend of Himeji Castle)
Tenshu Monogatari creates the romantic and fantastic atmosphere for which the playwright Izumi Kyoka is famous. Princess Tomi, a mysterious immortal spirit in Himeji Castle, lives in an elegant feminine world of her own at the top of the castle tower. She eagerly awaits a visit from her friend Princess Kame with her strange priest-like retainer. But an encounter with the handsome young warrior Zushonosuke brings her into the world of human beings and she is moved to sacrifice all to help him.
June Grand Kabuki, Matinee
To me, this is the best program in a few years.
***
SHOFUDATSUKI KONGEN KUSAZURI (The Tug-of-War Over the Amor)
A short dance in the oldest style of Kabuki, leisurely and full of humor, combining the charm of an onnagata female role specialist with the larger-than-life heroism of the bombastic aragoto style of acting. The strong woman Maizuru stops the powerful, but rash, warrior Goro from rushing to a fight by pulling on the set of armor he is carrying.
FUTATSU CHOCHO KURUWA NIKKI -Sumoba (The Sumo Wrestlers)
"Futatsu Chocho" means "two butterflies" and also comes from the fact that two sumo wrestlers who play important roles in the full length play have names beginning with "cho": Chokichi and Chogoro. Nuregami Chogoro throws a match and begs instead the younger wrestler Hanaregoma Chokichi to persuade his patron Gozaemon to give up Azuma. But Chokichi loses his temper and the two end up competing in a test of pride.
CHO NO MICHIYUKI (The Journey Through the Afterworld of the Butterflies)
When people die, it is said that their spirits become butterflies. Having committed double suicide, the butterfly spirits of Sukekuni and Komaki dance in human form remembering the time they first met and their love for each other. But their happiness is brief as they are again tormented by hell.
ONNA GOROSHI ABURA NO JIGOKU (The Lady Killer and the Hell of Oil)
This play has become phenomenally popular in modern times for its hard-boiled sensibility and sensuous killing scene with the protagonists slipping and struggling through puddles of spilled oil, but was virtually ignored at the time it was written. Written by Chikamatsu, it shows the wastrel son of a well-to-do merchant who constantly tries to borrow money from the wife of a neighboring oil merchant. Pressed for funds, he tries to blackmail her, but ends up killing her in the long, dream-like scene that gives this play its title.
Gran Torino
Gran Torino by Clint Eastwood. The must-see movie of 2009. A movie about/of life and death.
マーク・ロスコ May Grand Kabuki, Matinee
SHIBARAKU (Wait a Minute!)
More ceremony than play, Shibaraku is one of the oldest pieces in kabuki. Just as an evil villain is about to execute a group of loyal retainers, a voice calls out for him to wait and a hero of justice (Ebizo) appears to save the day. This play features the bombastic aragoto style of acting, which is the specialty of the Ichikawa Danjuro line of actors and is part of the collection of the Eighteen Favorite Plays of the Ichikawa Family.
Two Dances:
KOTOBUKI SHOJO
The shojo is a mythical sake-loving spirit that lives in the sea. In this dance, a sake seller has a mysterious customer that appears daily and drinks enormous amounts with great satisfaction. The sake seller has a dream with instructions to go by the beach with a large tub of sake. As it turns out, the customer has actually been the shojo in disguise and he drinks and dances joyfully. Starring Kaishun as the sake seller and Tomijuro as the shojo.
TENARAIKO (The Girl Returning From School)
A girl dawdles on her way home from school, plays with the butterflies in the field and dreams of love. Starring Living National Treasure Shikan.
MEKURA NAGAYA UME GA KAGATOBI
The firemen serving the fabulously wealthy Kaga clan were famous for their colorful spirit. This play features a short pageant of these firefighters combined with a dark story of the sinister masseur Dogen who uses murder, theft and extortion to satisfy his lust and greed. The actor playing Dogen doubles as one of the gallant bosses of the firefighting gang alongside the firefighter that unmasks Dogen’s villainy. Starring Kikugoro as Dogen and the firefighter that defeats him.
MODORIKAGO IRO NI AIKATA
Two palanquin bearers, one from Osaka, the other from Edo (pre-modern Tokyo), decide to stop and rest. As they do so, each boasts of the respective merits of his native town. Finally, the little apprentice courtesan they have been carrying, alights from the palanquin and joins them in their dance.
Kesako MATSUI comments here.
Shimbashi May Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
The Golden Pavilion, Nagauta lyrical ensemble and hayashi flute and percussion ensemble, and, Rakuda. The Golden Pavilion is a must-see show.
May Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
KOI MINATO HAKATA NO HITOFUSHI (Kezori)
One of the most spectacular plays in kabuki, Kezori shows a man who has grown wealthy as a smuggler and shows his exotic lifestyle and expansive spirit. A merchant named Soshichi (Tojuro) is in love with a courtesan named Kojoro (Kikunosuke). He boards a boat unaware that it is owned by the smuggler Kezori (Danjuro) who is also his rival in love. Soshichi happens to see illicit merchandise being unloaded and Kezori has him thrown into the sea. The boat revolves and Kezori poses on its prow, gazing proudly out at the world he rules. However, Soshichi survives and goes to Kojoro for help. She says that she will ask one of her patrons for money and Soshichi greets the patron only to find that it is Kezori. Magnanimously, Kezori forgives Soshichi and will help him, but on the condition that Soshichi become a member of his gang.
YUDACHI
A dance to Kiyomoto music with decadent mood of the end of the Edo era. The music was originally composed for a drama "Shiranami Gonin Onna," but it is now more often used as a music to a dance version of a scene from a drama "Kozaru Shichinosuke." Takigawa, a maid of the Edo palace, faints away by a hard roll of thunder. Shichinosuke holds her out from a palanquin. After a fighting scene, they make love in a hut.
KANDA BAYASHI
A heart-warming drama by a famous playwright Uno Nobuo (1904-1991) which shows the life of the commoners in Edo in the end of the Edo era. One day at the end of a year, a cooper Tomekichi is suspected of stealing money which the society of nenbutsu prayers has gathered for a year. Though he did not steal, he rented and paid the sum and worked very hard after that.
In September of the next year, the lost money is found and they are reconciled. Tomekichi is not angry as he also doubted them at that time, and thanks them as he could become richer by working harder.
OSHI NO FUSUMA KOI NO MUTSUGOTO (The Lovebirds)
A rare performance of a dance showing two men fighting over a beautiful woman in the guise of a sumo match only to show that the woman and one of the men are actually the spirits of birds, conjugal birds that are an image of faithful love. Starring Kikunosuke, Shoroku and Ebizo.
Shimbashi Grand Kabuki (May): Program B
Kitsunebi (The Second Foxfire Gang Boss), and Osome no Nanayaku (The Seven Roles of Osome).
April Grand Kabuki, Matinee and Evening Show
MEIBOKU SENDAI HAGI (The Troubles in the Date Clan)
This play is about the attempt to take over one of the most famous samurai households in the Edo period, a scandal that caused a sensation in its day. After the pleasure loving lord is deposed, his young son is nominally in charge, but the villains try to get at him any way they can.
The highlight of the play shows the efforts of the boy's nurse Masaoka to protect him, even sacrificing the life of her own son and features onnagata superstar Tamasaburo in this difficult role. She must confront Nizaemon as a villainous woman from the shogun. Kichiemon appears as larger-than-life villain Nikki Danjo, evil and clever, a master of magic. He appears disguised as a rat and confronts the heroic Otokonosuke, performed by Mitsugoro as a bombastic aragoto character, then escapes, walking calmly through the clouds.
The final scene is a realistic trial in which the elderly loyal retainer Geki (Karoku) confronts Nikki Danjo, but all is saved by the wise judge Katsumoto (Nizaemon) who seems to encourage Nikki Danjo, suddenly using his testimony in the end to punish him for his crimes.
The evening program begins with KEYAMURA, a play from the puppet theatre, that shows a master swordsman named Rokusuke (Kichiemon) living humbly in the countryside only to meet his fianc'e, a powerful woman named Osono (Fukusuke) and goes to avenge the death of her father, his fighting teacher. The highlight of the play is the contrast between the two highly contrasting sides of Osono's character. She is a fierce fighter on the one hand and delicately feminine when she learns that Rokusuke is her future husband.
The evening program ends with two of the greatest examples of the Kansai style of kabuki. This style is relatively realistic and features the lives of commoners in the Osaka-Kyoto region. KURUWA BUNSHO is one of the oldest classics in the repertory and shows a wealthy playboy who has been disowned by his family, but sneaks into the pleasure quarters to see his lover, the top courtesan in the quarter. The play is light-hearted and is full of word plays and comic routines. Starring the most famous couple in kabuki today, Nizaemon, representing one of the foremost families of Kansai acting and onnagata superstar Tamasaburo.
The program ends with SONEZAKI SHINJU (The Love Suicides at Sonezaki), one of the most famous plays in kabuki. Based on a real incident and first performed in the Bunraku puppet theatre in 1703, this play by Chikamatsu Monzaemon transformed the theater by showing that the lives of commoners could have as much dramatic weight as the lives of the upper classes. In recent times, its sensuous realism made it seem very modern and it has become the specialty of Sakata Tojuro, who has played the role of Ohatsu over 1,200 times and this month, performs this signature piece once more.
Historia Real de Jehanne Darc por ALOTF
Historia Real de Jehanne Darc por ALOTF-equipo blanco (11 de abril, 7:30 PM, Ikebukuro). Piesnso que un tema muy propio del teatro es lo religioso. Me parece que ALOTF, por el guion y la direccion del Sr. Matsugae, demostro un intento muy noble en la representacion de lo religioso. Por lo tanto, yo pase un tiempo muy estimulante. En verdad, la actriz, Srta. Yuka Yasukawa, represento lo religioso. Es posible vaya hacerse una actriz de estrella. Las actrices femeninas, Nakayama y Katoh especialmente fueron buenas. Los actores masculinos, excepto Kanno, demostraron esfuerzos pero insatisfechos. Ellos no tuvieron sus mundos representativos. Tal vez, falten esfuerzos filosoficos. Sr. Kanno tenga posiblidad en este aspecto, posiblemente, pero falta esfuerzos gimnasticos. Cuatro estrellas.
極付歌舞伎謎解
松井今朝子『極付歌舞伎謎解』(NHK)。この内容で690円は超安。
時代々々の最先端を取り入れ、そのときに流行したものが、時代の波に洗われながらぽつんぽつんと残っていき、今に一つの断面をなしているというふうに考えられるわけです。
なんというか保守という概念の一つの定義のような「はじめに」です。
バービカン劇場「十二夜」評 (The Times)
The Times
March 26, 2009
Twelfth Night at the Barbican
Donald Hutera
四つ星は上出来じゃないでしょうか。好評。
The Independent
Twelfth Night, Barbican Theatre, London
(Rated 3/ 5 )
A classic, lost in translation
Reviewed by Rhoda Koenig
こちらは三つ星、かなり辛い評。
February Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
RAMPEI MONOGURUI (The Fight Scene of Mad Rampei)
In order to recover a treasure, Rampei claims to go mad at the sight of a sword. But he is unmasked and the play ends with one of the most spectacular fight scenes in kabuki including a struggle on top of a high ladder held up on the hanamichi runway. Starring Mitsugoro as Rampei.
KANJINCHO (The Subscription List)
Perhaps the single most popular kabuki play, this combines dance and thrilling drama and is the most frequently performed play among the Eighteen Favorite Plays of the Ichikawa Family. Disguised as a band of travelling priests, the fugitive general Yoshitsune (Baigyoku) and his small band of retainers are stopped at a barrier. They manage to escape through the quick thinking of head retainer Benkei (Kichiemon), who improvises reading an elaborate imperial decree and gets by despite the vigilance of the barrier keeper Togashi (Kikugoro). Having escaped danger, in dance, Benkei describes their days of glory and hardships on the road to escape.
SANNIN KICHISA TOMOE NO SHIRANAMI
One of the most famous love stories in kabuki is that between Oshichi, the grocer's daughter and the temple page Kichisa. The late Edo-period playwright Kawatake Mokuami was famous for his plays about thieves and here he takes the names and themes of the Oshichi-Kichisa story to come up with the complex tale of three thieves, all named Kichisa. Ojo Kichisa (Tamasaburo) dresses as a woman and uses this to catch his victims unawares. Obo Kichisa (Somegoro) is a handsome young man, a somewhat sinister masterless samurai. Osho Kichisa (Shoroku) is the disreputable head of a rundown temple. This short scene combines beautiful poetry and a thrilling romance of outlaws and shows the chance meeting that brings the three together as blood brothers.
February Grand Kabuki, Matinee
SUGAWARA DENJU TENARAI KAGAMI
SUGAWARA and the Secrets of Calligraphy)
-Kamo Zutsumi (The Kamo Riverband) and Ga no Iwai (The Birthday Celebration)-
These are two acts of a great historical epic written for the puppet theatre about the downfall of the statesman and calligrapher Sugawara no Michizane and will feature the younger stars of kabuki. The story focuses on three brothers, who each serve one of the principals in the political affair. Matsuomaru (Somegoro) serves the villain Shihei, who has had Sugawara exiled. Umeomaru (Shoroku) serves Sugawara, as their father has. Sakuramaru (Hashinosuke) serves Imperial Prince Tokiyo.
The first act shows the romantic meeting that Sakuramaru and his wife Yae (Fukusuke) arranges between the prince and Sugawara’s daughter. But it is seen by a retainer of the villain and becomes an excuse to exile Sugawara.
The second act shows the birthday party of the father of the three brothers. Despite their rivalries, the three brothers are supposed to gather peaceably with their wives, Umeomaru’s wife Haru (Senjaku) and Matsuomaru’s wife Chiyo (Shibajaku) for their father Shiratayu's (Sadanji) birthday, but strangely enough, Sakuramaru does not appear. The brothers are named after the trees in the garden and while waiting, Matsuomaru and Umeomaru get into a fight and break the branches of the cherry tree. Shirataru sees this and disowns Matsuomaru and scolds Umeomaru for his failure in duty. In fact, Shiratayu knows that these are omens that his youngest son must die. When everybody leaves, Sakuramaru appears and sadly commits ritual suicide for being responsible for the tragedy.
KYOKANOKO MUSUME NININ DOJOJI (Two Women at Dojoji Temple)
A beautiful young woman dances under cherry blossoms at a dedication ceremony for a temple bell. She dances the many aspects of a woman in love, but is actually the spirit of a serpent, driven to destroy the bell out of jealousy. In addition to being the most famous of all kabuki dances, Musume Dojoji is considered to be the pinnacle of the art of the onnagata female role specialist. Bando Tamasaburo, whose beauty and artistic genius is renowned throughout the world, will give his definitive performance of this dance in a special double version together with young onnagata star Kikunosuke.
NINJO BANASHI BUNSHICHI MOTTOI
Chobei (Kikugoro) spends his days and nights gambling, but is finally made aware of his family's problems when his daughter takes a job in the pleasure quarters. Having received the money for her contract, he shows his good side to save a young man on the edge of suicide after losing a large sum of money, but nobody believes him, thinking that he has gambled it away. Adapted from a classical rakugo story by Sanyutei Encho, the play shows the gallant spirit of the commoners of Edo. With an all star cast featuring Living National Treasures Kikugoro as Chobei and Shikan as Okoma, the mistress of the Kadoebi brothel.
Asakusa Kabuki, Evening Show
Ippon Gatana Dohyo Iri (The Entrance into the Sumo Wrestling Ring, with Sword)
KYOKANOKO MUSUME DOJOJI (The Maiden at Dojoji Temple)
Janurary Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
KOTOBUKI SOGA NO TAIMEN
(The Encounter of the Soga Brothers and their Father's Killer)
This is one of the oldest and most classical of all kabuki plays. In the Edo period, every January, plays appeared about the vendetta carried out by the Soga brothers Juro and Goro after eighteen years of hardship. In Soga no Taimen the brothers confront Kudo Suketsune, the man responsible for their father's death. More ceremony than play, it features each of the important kabuki character types, including the bombastic aragoto style of Goro and the soft wagoto style of Juro. This month features Koshiro as Kudo, Kichiemon as Goro and Kikugoro as Juro.
SHUNKYO KAGAMI JISHI (Young Yayoi and the Spirit of the Lion)
Kagami Jishi is one of the most important dances for onnagata female role specialists and is an audience favorite. The maidservant Yayoi performs an auspicious lion dance for the shogun in his opulent palace, but she gradually finds herself under the control of the lion spirit. In the second half of the dance, the lion spirit itself appears and performs its crazed dance among peonies and fluttering butterflies. Starring Kanzaburo as both Yayoi and the spirit of the lion in a dance that he has made his own.
IWASHIURI KOI NO HIKIAMI (The Princess and the Sardine Seller)
A modern play by novelist Mishima Yukio, this recreates the leisurely, comic atmosphere of early 18th century kabuki. A sardine seller famous for his vigorous chanting falls in love with a beautiful courtesan and disguises himself as a wealthy patron, only to discover that she is actually a princess that ran away from her family after falling in love with the call of a sardine seller. Starring Kanzaburo as the sardine seller and Tamasaburo as the princess.
Shinshun Asakusa Kabuki (Matinee)
ICHIJO OKURA MONOGATARI (The Mad Aristocrat) and TSUJIGUMO. I liked Kusemai session of Ichijo Okura Monogatari. I'd love to see the complete sequence of Higaki, Kusemai, and Okuden. Kamejiro's Okura-kyo was an a little bit more intellectual aristocrat. In Tsujigumo, Kantaro was great. He was dark and scary as monk.
Zohiki Tokaeri no Matsu Ikiji Kurabe Hade na Nakacho
Zohiki, Tokaeri no Matsu, and Ikiji Kurabe Hade na Nakacho. Yamatoya (Mitsugoro) was superb. Naritaya (Danjuro) was great.
December Grand Kabuki, Matinee
Mitsugoro's Dojoji was a must-see performance.
TAKATOKI
The last Hojo regent in the Kamakura Period was arrogant and given to pleasure and in this play we see him mocked by a band of flying tengu goblins. First performed in 1884, this is one of the most famous of the 'Living History' plays that replaced the fantasies of Edo Period history plays with a new attention to historical accuracy. Starring Baigyoku as Takatoki.
KYOKANOKO MUSUME DOJOJI (The Maiden at Dojoji Temple)
A beautiful young woman dances under cherry blossoms at a dedication ceremony for a temple bell. She dances the many aspects of a woman in love, but is actually the spirit of a serpent, driven to destroy the bell out of jealousy. This is the most famous of all kabuki dances and considered to be the pinnacle of the art of the onnagata female role specialist. This month's production is very remarkable, because it stars Bando Mitsugoro as the maiden who is not onnagata but has an established reputation in dance.
SAKURA GIMINDEN
This play is rare among classics in having a political theme. It depicts a country landlord Kiuchi Sogo (Koshiro) who cannot stand the suffering of the farmers around him. A series of bad harvests has made things very hard, but corrupt officials refuse to lower taxes or relent in any way. Finally, Sogo decides to bring the case directly to the shogun, a move punishable by death. The play shows Sogo as he persuades the old keeper of the river crossing (Danshiro) to let him pass and says a final farewell to his wife (Fukusuke) and children. Meanwhile, he is watched by a villainous informer, Maboroshi no Chokichi (Mitsugoro). Finally, Sogo brings his case directly to the shogun (Somegoro), knowing that whether he is successful or not, he will be executed.
November Grand Kabuki, Matinee
KAMIKAKETE SANGO TAISETSU
In 1825, Tsuruya Namboku IV (1755 - 1829) wrote The Ghost Stories of Yotsuya, the most famous ghost play in kabuki and after a long run, followed it with Kamikakete Sango Taisetsu. This play is a blend of Chushingura with its tangled stories of loyalties and masterless samurai that ultimately avenge their master's death and the story of Godairiki, about the love between a geisha named Koman and the samurai Satsuma Gengobei which is spoiled by the jealousy of a man named Sangoro. Namboku also added a touch of humor, with a haunted house which is supposed to be the original of the one that Namboku made famous with his ghost stories of Yotsuya..
Sasanoya Sangoro (Kikugoro) is married to Koman (Tokizo), but she becomes a geisha to help him to raise the money to help his lord, a man that he has never seen. In the pleasure quarters the samurai Satsuma Gengobei (Nizaemon) falls in love with her and spends huge sums of money on her, despite the fact that he needs money for the sake of the Chushingura vendetta. Finally Gengobei gets money and Sangoro and Koman decide to defraud him of the money, which results in a massacre in the pleasure quarters. Ironically, Gengobei is none other than the unknown master for whom Sangoro was trying to raise money. This story of passion and greed takes place against the background of inexplicable fate and the strict requirements of samurai society and adds ample doses of sardonic humor, a perfect play for our times.
KURUWA BUNSHO (A Letter From the Pleasure Quarters)
- Yoshidaya-
The roots of this play go back to the earliest days of kabuki. The young lover Izaemon has been disowned by his family for loving a courtesan and now has nothing but a paper kimono. This role is a classic example of wagoto, the gentle style of acting that was popular in the Kansai region. Living National Treasure Sakata Tojuro stars as Izaemon, a role that is a specialty of his family's Kansai acting style. His lover Yugiri, the fabulous courtesan who falls ill pining away with love for him is played by onnagata female role specialist Kaishun.
Heisei Nakamura-za, Kanadehon-chushingura
Programme C. Taijo, 2nd, 3rd, Michiyuki, and 9th. Nizaemon was great.
October Grand Kabuki, Matinee
KOI NYOBO SOMEWAKE TAZUNA
Shigenoi (Shigenoi's Parting from her Son)
This play was adapted from the Bunraku puppet theater and was written by its greatest playwright, Chikamatsu Monzaemon. A young horse driver is invited to help cheer up a little princess. But the boy happens to be the son of the princess's nurse, Shigenoi (Fukusuke). She was forced to abandon him since he was the result of a forbidden relationship. Now she must turn her back on him again to keep any shame from falling on the princess.
YAKKO DOJOJI (Male Dojoji)
Musume Dojoji is based on a legend about a woman transformed into a serpent out of jealousy and who destroys a temple bell keeping her from the object of her love. The original dance shows the spirit of the woman who appears at Dojoji temple as a dancer who wants to celebrate the dedication of a new bell and does a series of dances showing the many faces of femininity. In this version the dancer is revealed to be a man in disguise and, in the highlight of the dance, transforms the romantic highpoint of the original piece into a comic scene by using masks. Starring Shoroku.
SAKANAYA SOGORO (Sogoro, the Fish Seller)
Sogoro (Kikugoro), a fish seller, has taken a vow to not drink, but when he learns about his sister's unjust murder at the hands of a daimyo lord, a death that they were told was execution for her wrongdoing, he starts to drink again. Drunk, he storms into the lord's mansion to seek an apology. This play by Meiji playwright Kawatake Mokuami is known for its realistic portrayal of members of the common class during the Edo period and highlights their fierce pride and frustration at the privileges of the dominant samurai class.
FUJI MUSUME (The Wisteria Maiden)
The spirit of wisteria blossoms dances of love in the form of a beautiful young maiden. One of kabuki's most famous and colorful dances, it will feature the dancing skills of Living National Treasure Shikan.
Gempei Nunobiki n Taki and Makura Jishi
Gempei Nunobiki n Taki and Makura Jishi. Ebizo is good. Shinzo Ichikawa was also good.
September Grand Kabuki, Matinee
RYOMA GA YUKU (Sakamoto Ryoma)
This is a dramatization of the middle section of the tremendously popular historical novel by Shiba Ryotaro (1923 - 1996) about Sakamoto Ryoma (1836 - 1867), a visionary revolutionary at the end of the Tokugawa Period who brought various rival factions together to battle the shogunate and would have led Japan boldly, if he had not been assassinated in a bloody battle. Starring Somegoro as Ryoma with Kamejiro, Shoroku and Kinnosuke.
HIRAGANA SEISUIKI - Sakaro (The Rise and Fall of the Heike Clan - Reverse Rowing)
A period play taken from the Bunraku puppet theater which combines a historical tale with the daily life of commoners. Matsuemon (Kichiemon) has married into the family of a country boatman. Having learned the special rowing skills of his father-in-law, he is invited to transport the Genji general Yoshitsune. But Matsuemon is actually the warrior Higuchi Kanemitsu, a leading retainer of a general killed by Yoshitsune and he sees this as a perfect opportunity to take his revenge. Before he can put his plan into action, though, his identity is discovered and he is captured in a spectacular battle on sea and land. Featuring Living National Treasure Tomijuro.
NIHON FURISODE HAJIME (The Serpent of Izumo)
This dance is a rare example of a story from ancient Japanese mythology in a puppet play by Chikamatsu Monzaemon adapted for the kabuki theater. As part of an annual ritual, Princess Inada has been chosen to be sacrificed to a fierce serpent that lives in the mountains of Izumo. The serpent arrives in the guise of a beautiful princess, but before it can attack it is attracted to eight jars full of sake. The jars are a trap planted by the god Susa-no-o, who confronts the beast in its true form as an eight-headed serpent, to save the princess. Starring Tamasaburo as the serpent, with Somegoro and Fukusuke.
Kosode: Haute Couture Kimonos of the Edo Period(26 July- 21 September 2008) Suntory Museum of Art
Kosode: Haute Couture Kimonos of the Edo Period -Premiere Showing of the Matsuzakaya Kimono Museum Masterpieces
Saturday, 26 July to Sunday, 21 September 2008
Clothing to adorn the body has always drawn attention in matters of beauty. During the Edo period (1603-1968), when the kosode (the predecessor the modern kimono) was adopted as the universal garment worn by high and low, male and female, the designs that enhanced its simple construction became the focus of interest, giving birth to a wide variety of decorative patterns.
This exhibition introduces over 300 excellent works shown for the first time in a single spot. It highlights Edo - period kosode, supplemented by other textiles such as Momoyama - period tsujigahana fabrics and Noh costumes, as well as the hinagata pattern books that popularized the kosode designs, plus cosmetic utensils and furniture. The publicizing of this trove, which for seventy years lay guarded in secrecy, allows for a re-assessment of the charm of the kosode as a uniquely Japanese expression and, with good fortune, will provide inspiration for new creations.
Here is the list of items you can see (Kosode_suntory_list.pdf). I liked 39, 73, 96, 171, and 173. I liked both 紗綾 and 縮緬. 紗綾 is pronounced as "saya". Matsuzakaya started its collection around 1931. So, this could be the power of Nagoya. I came to know that from Genroku era, people started to dress kimono with "suso" down. I had thought to myself that it was just Kabuki custom. I was wrong. I enjoyed the exposition.
Akasaka Kabuki
Korikori-banashi and Bo-shibari. It looks the hall is the best for musical, lamentably not properly adequate for Kabuki. So, the selection was reasonable. Since there is no hanamichi, matsubame-mono is only ok. Kamezo as Ushimusume was good. He dressed in yellow like Yaoya-oshichi as his second appearance, probably meaning that she is getting insane. The color selection is really subtle.
The 6th Kamejiro Gala
Shunkan and Kyo-kanoko-musume-dojoji. Omodakaya style of Shunkan is good. Onoe Ukon as Chidori was very good. It was reassuring to know he was good at performing Oyama. In a few years, I'd like to see him playing Fujimusume.
【後記】I failed to note that I thought he was very much like Jakuemon. Well, Mr. Kamimura, Kabuki critic, noted that Kamejiro reminded him of Utaemon. Since Jakuemon learns from Utaemon, my impression could be more or less OK.
August Grand Kabuki, second performance
TSUBAKURO WA KAERU (Yasunosuke's Search for a Home)
This is a rare performance of a modern play. A carpenter named Bungoro (Mitsugoro) is on his way to Kyoto when he gets a strange request. A little boy named Yasunosuke was left by his mother in a foster home, but was treated so badly that he ran away. He has heard that his mother is in Kyoto and begs Bungoro to take him with him. Reluctantly Bungoro agrees, but during the long journey together, he almost becomes a second father to the boy. In Kyoto, he meets Yasunosuke's mother Kimika (Fukusuke), who is a geisha, but she tells him of her own hardships and that she cannot see Yasunosuke. The play shows the heartbreaking dilemma of the little boy caught between a mother that cannot keep him and the stranger who has become a father to him.
OEYAMA SHUTENDOJI (The Demon of Mt. Oe)
One of the most famous stories about demons is about Shutendoji, the demon of Mt. Oe, who loved sake and terrorized Kyoto by kidnapping beautiful women and forcing them to serve him before he ate them. Finally, he is defeated by the famous demon-quelling warrior Minamoto no Raiko and his four followers. Starring Kanzaburo as Shutendoji and Senjaku as Raiko. Based on a classical Noh play, this is a dance that was created by the previous Kanzaburo and will be presented by his son, the current Kanzaburo for the first time. Also featuring Fukusuke, Hashinosuke, Yajuro, Kantaro, Shichinosuke, Shingo and Minosuke.
There are still relatively cheap tickets for the second performance. You should go. You can see the two great performances of today's Kabuki.
August Grand Kabuki, Third Performance
MOMIJIGARI (The Demoness at the Autumn Foliage Party)
One of the most beautiful and spectacular dance plays in the kabuki repertory. A great general (Hashinosuke) is traveling through the mountains while the autumn leaves are at their height. Mysteriously, a princess (Kantaro) invites him to join a party and all drink and celebrate. In fact, this princess is a demon and is waiting for the moment when the general will fall asleep and she can attack. She lulls them to sleep with a spectacular series of dances.
NODA-BAN: AIDA HIME
This is a retelling of Verdi's opera Aida as a kabuki history play directed by Noda Hideki, who is famous for his colorful staging and fast and funny movement and dialogue. All the characters of the original have been transformed into kabuki characters: Aida becomes Princess Aida, Radames becomes Kimura Damesukezaemon, Amneris becomes Princess Noh.
It is the age of the warring states and a battle between the Owari and Mino domains has ended in victory for the Mino domain and the defeated lord Oda Nobuhide (Mitsugoro) has been forced to send his beautiful daughter Princess Aida (Shichinosuke) as a hostage to victorious Saito Dosan (Yajuro) and she is forced to become maid to his daughter Princess Noh (Kanzaburo). Dosan wants his daughter to marry Kimura Damesukezaemon (Hashinosuke), the most powerful of his generals, but Damesukezaemon is in love with Aida. When she learns of this, Princess Noh is filled with jealousy and at the same time, Aida's father Nobuhide plots his revenge on the Mino clan.
August Grand Kabuki, First Performance
ONNA SHIBARAKU (Female "Wait a Minute")
More ceremony than play, Shibaraku is one of the oldest pieces in kabuki. Just as an evil villain is about to execute a group of loyal retainers, a voice calls out for him to wait and a hero appears to save the day. This version is a parody, though, as the hero is played by an onnagata female role specialist, who mixes the super-human strength of an aragoto hero with the soft gentleness of a kabuki heroine. Featuring an all-star cast led by Fukusuke, who appears as the heroine of justice.
SANNIN RENJISHI (Parent and Child Lion Dance)
Renjishi is one of the most popular dances in kabuki, but usually, it is a dance with father and son, in this special version, mother and father appear along with the child. In Asian tradition, the shishi is not really a lion, but a kind of mythical creature that guards the mythical stone bridge to heaven. There is also a tradition that the way a parent shishi teaches its child is very severe and in this dance, the father lion throws his son into a valley, hoping that he will have the strength to climb back up on his own. The striving of the young cub, the concern of the parents, their joyous dance when the son returns to the top of the mountain all show the love between father and son. It stars Hashinosuke as the father shishi, with Senjaku as the mother and Kunio, in real life Hashinosuke's son, as the child.
RAKUDA
This is a popular dramatization of a rakugo comic story. A petty gang boss named Rakuda (Kamezo) has died after eating blowfish. Hanji (Mitsugoro), one of his gang members, finds him and hopes to bury him, but has no money. When he tries to get the neighbors to contribute, everyone is overjoyed that such a nuisance is dead, but won't contribute a cent towards his burial. Finally Hanji pulls in a passing waste paper collector named Kyuroku (Kanzaburo) and forces him to carry around Rakuda's body and threaten to make it dance if the neighbors won't pay up. They get a great sum of money and start drinking together. But as he drinks, the hapless Kyuroku becomes surprisingly aggressive.
July Grand Kabuki, Matinee
YOSHITSUNE SENBON ZAKURA (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees)
This play was first performed in the Bunraku puppet theatre and is an epic story about the famous 12th century general Yoshitsune fleeing from the wrath of his brother Yoritomo, after the end of the war. Although Yoshitsune is the title character, the main characters of the play are actually different and this month features the three acts of the play about the magical fox Tadanobu starring Ebizo as Tadanobu and Tamasaburo as Yoshitsune's lover Shizuka Gozen.
Torii Mae (In Front of the Fushimi Inari Shrine)
Yoshitsune (Danjiro) is forced to flee from the troops sent by his brother Yoritomo. The trip will be hard and he decides that he must leave behind his lover Shizuka Gozen (Shun'en), despite her passionate pleas to remain with him. As a reminder of himself, he presents her with a precious hand drum that he had received from the emperor. Yoshitsune's retainer Tadanobu (Ebizo) rescues Shizuka from Yoritomo's troops and Yoshitsune decides to leave her in his care.
Yoshinoyama (Mt. Yoshino)
The story continues with a musical travel scene. Hearing that Yoshitsune has taken refuge in the mountains of Yoshino, Tadanobu (Ebizo) and Shizuka (Tamasaburo) go to try to meet him there. Although Tadanobu keeps disappearing, he always appears when Shizuka plays the precious drum that she received from Yoshitsune. In dance Tadanobu recounts episodes from the Gempei war, including the battle in which his brother died.
Kawatsura Hogen Yakata (The Mansion of the Priest Kawatsura)
Yoshitsune (Monnosuke) has taken refuge in the mountains of Yoshino at the mansion of an old ally. Tadanobu (Ebizo) arrives but has no recollection of Shizuka being placed under his care. Shizuka (Tamasaburo) herself soon arrives with the other Tadanobu and after an investigation they discover that he is actually a fox (Ebizo). In a touching story, the fox tells how he took on human form to be close to the hand drum which is made from the skins of his fox parents. Moved, Yoshitsune gives the fox the drum and he flies away joyously. This scene features the kabuki technique of flying through the air.
Yoshinoyama is a must-see performance. It's artistic, skillful, and beautiful.
June Grand Kabuki, Matinee
SHIN USUYUKI MONOGATARI (The Tale of Princess Usuyuki)
Most of the matinee program consists of a full-length production of a kabuki epic. This play, adapted from the Bunraku puppet theater, combines the best of kabuki -- romance, colorful spectacle and tragedy. With its numerous good roles, a large gathering of popular and accomplished actors are necessary to stage it. Rarely performed, when this play appears, it is always an event
Shin-Kiyomizu Temple
Saemon (Kinnosuke), the eldest son of the Sonobe family and Princesss Usuyuki (Shibajaku), the daughter of the Saizaki family, fall in love after glimpsing one another under the cherry blossoms of Kiyomizu temple and are brought together by their servants. The villain Daizen (Tomijuro) places a curse on a sword presented to the temple by Saemon. By framing the couple, he hopes to bring destroy their families so they cannot hinder his effort to take over the country. Saemon's servant Tsumahei (Somegoro) almost defeats this plan and is attacked by Daizen's henchmen in a spectacular fight scene with water buckets.
The Saizaki Residence
Saemon and Princess Usuyuki are charged with treason. Mimbu (Tomijuro) comes to investigate the two, and although they maintain their innocence, Daizen is able to turn the evidence against them. The compassionate Mimbu gives them a temporary reprieve, but still, must place them under house arrest, each at the house of the other's family, with Saemon at the Saizaki residence and Princess Usuyuki at the Sonobe residence.
The Sonobe Residence
Unable to prove the innocence of the young couple, their fathers are charged with cutting off their heads. Sonobe Hyoe (Koshiro) and his wife Ume-no-Kata (Shikan) allow Princess Usuyuki to escape. Saizaki (Kichiemon) appears with a head box which he says contains the head of Saemon and demands that Sonobe cut off Princess Usuyuki's head. Sonobe returns, having secretly stabbed himself to atone for letting Princess Usuyuki escape. Saizaki reveals that, in fact, he has done the same and the two, seemingly stern and villainous men reveal that they have sacrificed themselves for love of their children.
NIWAKA JISHI
The program ends with a lively dance evoking the atmosphere of an Edo period festival. The highlight of the piece is the lion dance performed by two of the handsome young men of the neighborhood.
Aoidayu in ShinUsuyuki was great. Fukusuke in Niwaka Jishi impressed me. He had dignity.
Natsumatsuri Naniwa Kagami
The 9th Shibuya-Cocoon Kabuki Show
Natsumatsuri Naniwa Kagami
Director: Kazuyoshi Kushida
Cast: Kanzaburo Nakamura, Hashinosuke Nakamura,
Kantaro Nakamura, Shichinosuke Nakamura, Takashi Sasano,
Kamezo Kataoka, Yajuro Bando, Senjaku Nakamura
I'm really impressed by Otatsu played by Kantaro Nakamura.
May Grand Kabuki at Shimbashi, Program B
May Grand Kabuki at Shimbashi, Program B. Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan (The Scary Story of Yotsuya). Very scary, indeed.
May Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
AOTO ZOSHI HANA NO NISHIKI-E
Shiranami Gonin Otoko (The Five Thieves)
Written by Kawatake Mokuami in 1862, this play focuses on the thief Benten Kozo and was inspired by a woodblock print of a sexy young man with tattoos covering his body with a woman's hairstyle and kimono. Benten Kozo is a swindler and thief who makes use of his beauty, both as a handsome young man and disguised as a beautiful woman. The sections about Benten Kozo are played frequently, but this marks a rare full-length performance that shows the stories of all five thieves in the gang who are tied together by bonds of fate and obligation.
In the opening at a magnificent temple surrounded by cherry blossoms, Benten Kozo poses as a samurai youth and seduces a princess setting off events that will eventually destroy Benten and all around him.
A beautiful young woman comes to a clothing store with her servant, but is discovered shoplifting and beaten. When she proves that she was not stealing, her servant demands compensation. However, a samurai who happens to be in the store reveals that the young woman is actually a man, and he proudly announces his name as Benten, the thief. The servant is his fellow gang member Nango Rikimaru (Sadanji) and the samurai is actually the head of the gang Nippon Daemon. However, they learn that the man they have defrauded is actually Benten Kozo’s father and the five thieves realize they cannot escape and decide to wear magnificent matching kimonos as they meet their fate. The act ends with a kind of spectacle showing the five members of the gang in their finest kimonos under the cherry blossoms in full bloom. In elaborate speeches, they each announce their name in the poetic diction for which the playwright Mokuami is famous.
Finally Benten fights off his pursuers in a spectacular fight on the roof of a temple.
Starring Kikugoro as Benten Kozo, Danjuro as Nippon Daemon, Sadanji as Nango Rikimaru, Tokizo as Akaboshi Juzaburo and Mitsugoro as Tadanobu Rihei. Also featuring Living National Treasure Tomijuro as the magistrate Aoto Saemon.
SHIKAKU BASHIRA SARU NO KUSEMAI
A new dance featuring young Onoe Shoroku who is also the head of the Fujima school of classical Japanese dance.
Shimbashi Grand Kabuki, Program A
Hikosan Gongen Chikai no Sukedachi - Keyamura (Keya Village) -
Fuji Musume (The Wisteria Maiden): Fukusuke is great.
Sanja Matsuri (The Sanja Festival)
Kioi Jishi (The energetic Lion Dance)
Ippon Gatana Dohyo Iri (The Entrance into the Sumo Wrestling Ring, with Sword)
May Grand Kabuki, Matinee
YOSHITSUNE SENBON ZAKURA (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees)
Tokaiya, Daimotsu Ura (Tokaiya Inn and Daimotsu Bay)
These are two scenes from one of the greatest classics of the puppet theatre, which has also become a classic of kabuki featuring the popular young star Ebizo in his first appearance as Tomomori. After the wars between the Genji and Heike clans, the Genji are victorious and their leader Yoritomo is now shogun. But there is a falling out between Yoritomo and his brother Yoshitsune, the brilliant general responsible for the victory. Now Yoshitsune is fleeing through the country and this play fancifully has him encounter several famous warriors from the Heike clan, who are not dead, as history has it.
Yoshitsune (Tomoemon) books passage on a boat to Kyushu, but the captain is actually Taira no Tomomori (Ebizo), a general of the Heike clan that Yoshitsune helped to defeat. Tomomori was supposedly killed by Yoshitsune in the final battle of the war, but in this play, Tomomori is shown as surviving, living in disguise with the child emperor Antoku and his nursemaid (Kaishun). At one moment the captain is a gallant commoner, but in the next, he is Tomomori, a high ranking general close to the emperor. His wife as well is a cheerful commoner who shows her true identity as a high-ranking lady-in-waiting in the magnificent robes of the imperial court. Tomomori uses the opportunity to try to get his revenge on Yoshitsune but is defeated again. Finally Tomomori holds a giant anchor and plunges into the sea.
KISEN
Kisen is part of a series of dances showing the six poetic geniuses of ancient Japan. The five male poets are all shown as being in love with the sixth, Ono-no-Komachi, one of the most famous beauties of Japan. The other dances are set in ancient Japan, but this dance suddenly jumps to the Edo period where the poet-priest Kisen wanders intoxicated by the beauties of the cherry blossoms and of Okaji, a tea stand waitress. Starring Mitsugoro as Kisen and Tokizo as Okaji.
KIWAMETSUKI BANZUI CHOBEI
In the early Edo period, gallant men like Banzuiin Chobei led the commoners. But this incurred the wrath of members of the samurai class, who were theoretically in control. This play begins with a recreation of kabuki in its earliest days, then a fight breaks out which is settled by Chobei (Danjuro). But this frustrates the ambitions of the samurai Mizuno (Kikugoro)
Grand Kabuki April, Evening Show
SHOGUN EDO O SARU (The Shogun's Surrender)
This modern play by Mayama Seika is part of a trilogy about the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate. The shogunate official Yamaoka Tetsutaro (Hashinosuke) has already pleaded successfully to the imperial forces for the life of the shogun in return for his surrender. But the shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu (Mitsugoro) begins to reconsider and now Yamaoka must plead with the shogun to surrender without a struggle as he promised or he will run the risk of having the entire country fall into civil war.
KANJINCHO (The Subscription List)
It is one of the most popular plays in the kabuki repertory and shows the general Yoshitsune and a small band of men fleeing from the wrath of his brother, now the ruler of the land. His brother has set up barriers throughout the country and as they encounter one, they only get through due to the wily stratagems of Yoshitsune's companion, the warrior priest Benkei (Nizaemon). Benkei disguises Yoshitsune (Tamasaburo) as a humble porter and claims that they are priests collecting funds to build a temple. Togashi (Kanzaburo), the keeper of the barrier, challenges them and the play is a tense battle of wits between the two.
UKARE SHINJU (The Happy Love Suicide)
Based on a novel by contemporary writer Inoue Hisashi, this is a parody of all serious love suicide plays and finally ends with the main characters flying through the air on their way to the underworld. Full of thrills and comedy and with popular star Kanzaburo making a rare flight through the theater.
April Grand Kabuki, Matinee
HONCHO NIJUSHIKO (The Japanese Twenty-Four Examples of Filial Piety)
- Jishuko
Princess Yaegaki is mourning the death of her fiancé Katsuyori, but as she burns incense in his memory, she notices the resemblance between the new gardener and her fiancé's portrait. The gardener is in fact Katsuyori, who has entered the household in disguise to regain possession of a stolen family treasure, a famous battle helmet, with the aid of an accomplice, Nureginu, a woman who also mourns for the man that died in the place of the real Katsuyori. Unfortunately, Yaegaki's father has also seen through the disguise and plans to kill Katsuyori and Yaegaki decides that she must save the man she loves. The role of Princess Yaegaki is one of the most important onnagata female role specialist roles.
YUYA
A dance-drama based on a Noh play with the same title which was originally taken from an episode in the Heike monogatari (the Tale of the Heike).
Yuya is the concubine of the warrior, Taira no Munemori who jealously keeps her beside him even though she is anxious to return home to her ailing mother. Yuya accompanies Munemori to view the cherry blossoms at the Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto where she dances at his request. Seeing the cherry blossoms fall by shower, she makes a poem: 'Though it is pity that spring in Kyoto is passing by, I fear the cherry blossoms in my sweet hometown in the east are also falling.' Impressed by her tenderness being anxious about her ailing mother, he allows her to go back to her hometown and she is delighted to go.
IREZUMI CHOHAN (Tattooed Hantaro)
A play by the early 20th century writer Hasegawa Shin, who portrayed the lives of those on the bottom of society, often gangsters forced to live their lives on the road. Though a good man, Hantaro (Kanzaburo) has a weakness for gambling. Having been forced to leave Edo due to this weakness, he marries Onaka (Tamasaburo), a woman he saves from suicide by drowning. Though Hantaro has given up gambling for the sake of the ill Onaka, her dying wish is that he return to what he loves the most, and Hantaro is unable to ignore the request of his love.
March Grand Kabuki: Matinee
HARU NO KOTOBUKI (Three Dances for Spring)
Sambaso
The Sambaso is an auspicious dance based on the ritual play Okina in the classical Noh theater which shows an old man as a symbol of longevity and the energetic Sambaso as a symbol of fertility and prosperity. With Gato as the Okina, his son Shinnosuke as the Senzai attendant and Kasho and Kanjaku as the Sambaso.
Manzai
Manzai are performers with hand drums that would go from door to door on New Year Days to perform auspicious songs and dances. This dance shows the lively songs of the Manzai, here performed by Baigyoku.
Yashiki Musume (The Samurai Lady-in-Waiting)
This dance shows two young women who are service at a samurai mansion and are excitedly going home for their one break in service for the year. Starring Senjaku and Takataro.
ICHINOTANI FUTABA GUNKI (Chronicle of the Battle of Ichinotani)
- Jinmon and Kumiuchi (The Heike Camp and the Battle on Suma Beach) -
One of the greatest stories from the Japanese tradition is the encounter of the Genji warrior Kumagai and the young Heike general Atsumori. Although they are enemies, Kumagai would like to spare Atsumori because he is the same age as his own son, but the necessities of wartime force him to kill Atsumori nonetheless and this experience fills Kumagai with disgust at warfare and makes him become a priest. This kabuki version of the story is filled with plot twists to emphasize the pathos of the situation. Starring Danjuro as Kumagai and Living National Treasure Sakata Tojuro as Atsumori, with Kaishun as Atsumori's lover Princess Tamaori.
ONNA DATE (The Chivalrous Woman)
Living National Treasure Kikugoro, stars as a woman in the pleasure quarters who swaggers and fights in the finest gallant style but who has a delicate sense of femininity as well.
KURUWA BUNSHO (A Letter from the Pleasure Quarters)
The roots of this play go back to the earliest days of kabuki. Izaemon, the son of a wealthy family, has been disowned for loving a courtesan and now has nothing but a paper kimono. This role is a classic example of the wagoto or soft style of acting that is one of the representative acting styles of the Kansai region. Nizaemon stars as Izaemon, a role that is a specialty of his family's Kansai acting style. Featuring Fukusuke as his lover, the courtesan Yugiri, Sadanji and Hidetaro as the proprietor and proprietress of the Yoshidaya teahouse and Ainosuke as a comic entertainer in the pleasure quarters.
March Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
EDO SODACHI OMATSURI SASHICHI (The Festival and Sashichi, a Son of Edo)
The fireman Sashichi (Kikugoro) is in love with the geisha Koito (Tokizo), but their happiness is ruined by Koito's greedy mother and her constant schemes to get money from them. Her plots go too far when she claims that Koito's true father murdered Sashichi's father. Already angered by what he thinks are Koito's broken promises, Sashichi attacks her on a rainy night in a famous killing scene. Also featuring Nizaemon as the villain of the play.
Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura
Fushimi Inari Shrine, The Travel Dance with the Magical Hand Drum, Kawatsuna Hogen's Mansion. I'm impressed with Kiritake Kanjuro's act.
February Grand Kabuki, Matinee
ONO NO TOFU AOYAGI SUZURI (Ono no Tofu and the Ambitious Jumping Frog)
Ono no Tofu is famous as one of the greatest calligraphers in the history of Japan and legend has it that he was inspired by the sight of a frog jumping onto a tall willow tree in the rain. This image has made it onto a hanafuda card and was a stock story of pre-war moral education. This month there is a very rare performance of a play that shows Ono no Tofu not only as a great calligrapher, but also as a powerful fighter. After elegant court noble Ono no Tofu (Baigyoku) witnesses this scene, he fights with Tokko no Daroku (Mitsugoro) a red-faced warrior like a sumo wrestler. The two unlikely combatants are evenly matched and this fight is an omen of disturbances in the land and the two joining forces to bring peace.
SUGAWARA DENJU TENARAI KAGAMI (Sugawara and the Secrets of Calligraphy)
-Kurumabiki (The Fight Over the Carriage)-
This short but energetic play is a showcase for the bombastic "aragoto" style of acting. The brothers Umeomaru (Shoroku) and Sakuramaru (Kinnosuke) are retainers of the exiled aristocrat Sugawara Michizane. They try to take revenge on Fujiwara Shihei, the man who falsely accused their lord, but are confronted by their other brother, Matsuomaru (Hashinosuke) who is a retainer of the villain Shihei. The two try to tear apart Shihei's carriage but are stopped by Matsuomaru and the powerful glare of Shihei (Karoku).
TSUMORU KOI YUKI NO SEKI NO TO (The Snowbound Barrier)
A snow-covered barrier decorated by a mysteriously blooming cherry tree provides the background for the larger-than-life story of a traitorous aristocrat disguised as a barrier guard and the beautiful woman, actually a supernatural spirit in disguise, that will defeat him. Kichiemon, Somegoro and Fukusuke star in what is considered to be one of the greatest Kabuki dance-dramas.
KANADEHON CHUSHINGURA (The Treasury of Loyal Retainers)
Act 7: The Ichiriki Teahouse
Chushingura is one of the most popular plays in the theatre and shows a true event when forty-seven masterless samurai avenged the death of their lord by killing his enemy. The seventh act is one of the most popular and shows the leader of the vendetta Yuranosuke as he is hiding his intention to avenge his lord's death by pretending to be only interested in pleasure, but also encountering key figures on his side and the side of the enemy.
Yuranosuke (Koshiro) spends his days and nights in the pleasure quarters of Kyoto in an effort to make their lord's enemy, Moronao, believe he is not planning a vendetta. His acting is so good that even men in his own group believe he has given his life up to pleasure. Moronao is not so easily convinced, though, and has sent spies, including a former retainer of their late lord, Enya Hangan, to find Yuranosuke's true intentions. Okaru (Shibajaku), the wife of one of the retainers is now a courtesan at the Ichiriki Teahouse, unaware that her husband is dead. Okaru's brother Heiemon (Somegoro), a servant in the Hangan household, has also come to the teahouse and the interaction of these characters becomes a matter of life and death and ends with Yuranosuke preparing to lead the vendetta.
Seki-no-to was very good. Kichiemon (2) looked great. Fukusuke (9) looked very beautiful. The two and Somegoro (7) danced very well. Kichiemon said that he likes this play best among the dance-dramas his biological father was good at. Fukusuke said that this is the dance-drama which made him decide to pursue Kabuki career in his youth. He saw Utaemon (5) dance this drama. There is a vague sense in the air that Fukusuke might assume the great Utaemon name in a not distant future because he has played Agemaki in Sukeroku last month, Komachi and Sakura-sprititual this month, and will star as Oiwa in May at Shimbashi. Possibly, he might assume the name in a new (when?) Kabuki-za, just like Utaemon (5) did.
Kabuki performance "Komachimura Shibai no Shogatsu"
Kabuki performance "Komachimura Shibai no Shogatsu" Kikugoro (7) said: "metabolic guys," and Kikunosuke (5) danced Oshiri-kajiri-mushi.
January Grand Kabuki(January 2 - 26, 2008) Matinee
SHOJO
The shojo is a mythical sake-loving spirit that lives in the sea. In this dance, a sake seller has a mysterious customer that appears daily and drinks enormous amounts with great satisfaction. The sake seller has a dream with instructions to go by the beach with a large tub of sake. As it turns out, the customer has actually been the shojo in disguise. The dance shows two shojo as they drink and dance joyfully. Starring Baigyoku and Somegoro as the shojo.
ICHIJO OKURA MONOGATARI (The Mad Aristocrat)
The Genji retainer Kijiro plans with his wife Okyo to enter the Okura mansion and discover the true intentions of Tokiwa Gozen (Fukusuke), the widow of the late leader of their clan. They are shocked to find that although they had believed that Tokiwa had given up on her clan's struggle against the enemy Heike, in fact, she secretly prays daily for their downfall, by shooting arrows at an image of the Heike leader. Also, though her current husband, the aristocrat Okura (Kichiemon), seems to be nothing more than a fool who spends his days dancing, it is actually an elaborate disguise. In days where one's alliances could mean death, Okura uses his disguise to survive in a turbulent political world.
A novice impression note follows. The role of Ichijo Okura requires two different acting: one fool, and the other serious. I saw Nakamura Kanzaburo (18) and Nakamura Kichiemon (2) acting this role. I think Kichiemon fits more with this role, although I like Kanzaburo's play, too. It is because Kichiemon's character as Kabuki actor is more serious than Kanzaburo's. So, we can see Kichiemon acting the serious Okura genuinely, and acting the fool quite intentionally. In the case of Kanzaburo, I see him acting the serious one more intentionally, and acting the fool more naturally. The contras favors, I think, more Kichiemon than Kanzaburo because Kichiemon the fool is more surprising figure. By the way, this post explains what Shojo is.
Janurary Grand Kabuki Evening Show
KAKUJU SENZAI
In Noh, the Okina is a dance of an old man that is a ritual for long life and prosperity. As befits the New Year's season, the evening program begins with a graceful kabuki version of this dance featuring Living National Treasure Tomijuro, one of the finest dancers in kabuki and Shikan.
RENJISHI (Father and Son Lion Dance)
Two entertainers dance a tale of the legendary shishi or lion-like spirits that live at the foot of a holy Buddhist mountain. Later, the shishi themselves appear and perform their dance with wild shaking of their long manes. The dance shows a parent shishi forcing his cub to undergo harsh training in order to grow up strong. This theme is often associated with the training a parent actor gives his son. This performance features Koshiro and his son Somegoro as the two entertainers.
SUKEROKU YUKARI NO EDO ZAKURA (Sukeroku)
The dandy Sukeroku is the most famous patron of the Yoshiwara pleasure quarters. But his reputation as the lover of Agemaki, the highest ranking courtesan in the quarter is matched by that of his tendency to pick fights. In fact, Sukeroku is the samurai Soga no Goro in disguise, and he uses the fights to find a lost heirloom sword. His search takes place in the colorful atmosphere of the Yoshiwara where processions of beautiful courtesans compete with the splendor of cherry blossoms in full bloom. All the top stars in kabuki appear in a procession of beautiful, exciting and amusing roles. Starring Danjuro as Sukeroku, one of his most popular roles and featuring Living National Treasure Shikan as his mother Manko.
Shinshun Asakusa Kabuki
Kinkakuji of Gion sairei shinkoki, and Yowa nasake ukina no yokogushi.
Exactly one year ago at Kabukiza, I saw Kinkakuji with Koshiro, Tamasaburo, and Kichiemon, as Matsunaga Daizen, Yukihime, and Konoshita Tokichi, respectively. This time at Asakusa, the actors are Nakamura Shido, Ichikawa Kamejiro, and Nakamura Kantaro, respectively. Surprisingly, Nakamura Shido performed well the role of Matsunaga Daizen. I always love the acting of Kantaro. Well, as for Kamejiro, he was trying very hard to become a true Yukihime. Kyozo (Kyoya) assisted Kamejiro. Here is his comment:
さて、年初は浅草花形歌舞伎に初めて参加致します。亀治郎丈が師雀右衛門の指導のもと、「金閣寺」の雪姫を勤められるにつき、後見の依頼を頂きました。こうして師の当たり役が次代の花形に継承さてれゆくことは大変喜ばしく、私も喜んでお手伝いさせて頂きます。ほかに愛之助丈の与三郎、七之助丈のお富による「源氏店」で下女およしを勤めます。なお、師雀右衛門は１０ヶ月振り久々に歌舞伎座に出演いたしまして、「女五右衛門」を勤めます。
As for Kirare Yosaburo, Kataoka Ainosuke performed well and I could feel Nizaemon through him. From Shichinosuke, there are a few moments I could sense the power of Tamazaburo. But, I could see how hard it is to be Otomi all the time of the show.
Narukami Fudo Kitayama Zakura
Narukami Fudo Kitayama Zakura by Ichikawa Ebizo (11). Very good.
In the very beginning of the show, Ebizo appeared alone sitting in the theater to explain his five roles using big pictures. This could be his New Year's message, but is exactly similar to the opening message delivered by Ichikawa Ennosuke (3) at his "The Ten Roles of the Date House" which I saw by DVD only. It is well-known that Ebizo adopted Omodaka-ya style at "Shi-no-kiri" of "Yoshitsune-Senbon-Zakura." When Ebizo decided to take this style, Aoidayu, a performer of Kabuki Gidayu, considered it as a "beautiful story," and recorded an important mutter of Ennosuke.
10月中旬、はやくも新橋演舞場の終演後の舞台に｢河連館｣の道具を飾り、(奥)の稽古がございました。その以前に3猿之助丈は11海老蔵丈に稽古をな さったそうですが、客席の3猿之助丈にご挨拶に伺ったところ、「よろしく。(11海老蔵丈が)一生懸命よくやってくれます。…跡継ぎ」とおっしゃいまし た。
Thus, he might do Super-Kabuki in the future. I believe he will do his way of Super-Kabuki. Anyway, his five-role performance is similar to Ennnosuke's ten-role performance. As far as I know, this Shinbashi performance is his first one as chief of the Kabuki show (za-gashira). It is said that Ebizo did not ask for advice to his father, Danjuro (12) to create the show. Instead, Ebizo asked Mr. Nakawa Shosuke to be his director. It is also well-known that Mr. Nakawa collaborated with Ennosuke on various shows which include "The Ten Roles of the Date House" among others.
In the interview for the show brochure, Ebizo declared that this show was the beginning of his search for Kabuki and that the undertone of his search was "the just rewarded and the unjust punished (Kanzen-choaku)." And, he went on to say that this is the Aragoto of his Ichikawa family. I really wish his success.
Among his roles, I like his Narukami a lot.
【後記080523】
"Aragoto Realism" of Ebizo Ichikawa
1. Introduction
Mr. Iwao Uemura, a famous Kabuki critic, reviewed Narukami Fudo Kitayama Zakura (Jan. 2008 at Shinbashi Enbujo theater) of Ebizo Ichikawa (11) in the Kabuki Journal Engekikai (March 2008 issue, pp.102-104). He liked the performance and rightly pointed out to the remarkable similarity in both attitude and method between Ebizo and Ennosuke Ichikawa (3). Recalling that Ennosuke's performance was called heretic in those days, Mr. Uemura wonders if the heresy in those days have become orthodox today under the head house of Ichikawa family, whose prince is no one but Ebizo Ichikawa. Even though the similarity between the two is notable and interesting, the contrast between the two cannot be more different. Ebizo clearly and literally talks about his ambition about Aragoto (Wild and Courageous Performance), the poster activity of the Ichikawa head house, while Ennnosuke has rarely talked about Aragoto.
This short essay tries to capture what Ebizo Ichikawa (11) meant by Aragoto and his work of Kabuki. I would argue that he is aiming for "Aragoto Realism" to pursue his own journey to Kabuki, which is stimulating but conflictive, even slightly contradictory. He would certainly absorb and digest all the crucial elements of Ennosuke Ichikawa (3), but eventually will depart to pursue more. It remains to be seen when. But, the timing and the magnitude is crucial not only for Ebizo but also for Kabuki itself. In the meantime, we will see Ebizo acting as "uniting force" in the Kabuki world. When the other side of his coin by the name of "dissenter" appears on the surface, the new orthodoxy might emerge. The rest of the essay consists of five segments. I would use four segments to clarify what I mean by "Aragoto Realism". The second segment touches on the usual dichotomy between Aragoto and Wagoto. The third segment takes Ebizo's own view on Narukami Fudo Kitayama Zakura. The fourth segment puts Ebizo in a wider time perspective. The fifth segment takes the view of his father, Danjuro Ichikawa (12). The final segment concludes.
2. Aragoto and Wagoto
Aragoto (wild and courageous performance) and Wagoto (soft and mellow performance) are usually regarded contrastive and certainly it is. The Edo Kabuki has Aragoto, while Kamigata Kabuki has Wagoto. Aragoto represents the new, the wild of the East. Wagoto represents the old, the cultural of the West. Osamu Hashimoto, the critic, argued that Aragoto is super-human actions stripping all the human feelings (O-edo-kabuki-wa-konna-mono, pp.70-72). Wagoto is good at expressing all the human sensibilities, which creates realism. According to Hashimoto, "Fudo", an Aragoto performance is not realism at all, but a religious play.
The irony of modern Kabuki and consequently the one of Aragoto is that Tokyo, the renowned Edo, has become the center of Japan and consequently has become more cultural to some extent and more historical. So has become Aragoto. What do we do with the details of histories? How do we take care of them? Do we "childishly" rely on the same and old Aragoto play? That is the task faced subsequent Danjuros and Ebizos. First of all, Danjuro (7) planed to revive Aragoto in defining 18 best performances of Kabuki. In this way, Aragoto was defined as such in an official way. Second, Danjuro (9) put realities into the plays. The realities, in his view, are the historical facts, whether the audience liked or not. So, he created the new 18 best performances of Kabuki. He didn't abolish Aragoto, but invented Kagami-jishi using his own daughters. So, Aragoto was put aside. It is symbolic that Danjuro (11) did not perform Shibaraku, the crucial performance of Aragoto, as Danjuro, even though he short-lived as Danjuro.
The task of redefining Aragoto was delegated to Danjuro (12), the son of Danjuro (11) and the father of the current Ebizo (11). Basically, the strategy of Danjuro (11) is the one of embracing. He has put all the previous performances in one box and tried to maintain them as such. Ms. Yoko Seki described Danjuro's view as "98% of maintaining traditions and 2% of innovation" (Ebizo-soshite-Danjuro, Bunshunbunko, pp.226-227). Danjuro noted that Ebizo was not convinced. The father's strategy is accepting and embracing what he has received. The son doesn't think so. So, what does he do?
3. Ebizo's Journey into Kabuki
In the pamphlet for Narukami Fudo Kitayama Zakura, he declared very bluntly that this is his start for the Kabuki (Interview with Shoko Kodama, p.33).
Q (Kodama): What would do you like to say as total performance?
A (Ebizo): This play is my start of "Kabuki searching journey." Underling is the spirit of "the just rewarded and the unjust punished (Kanzen-choaku)." There is no way to live for the evil. This play is not the kind of touching human sentiments. Audience might feel betrayed if they should have expected they could cry or laugh. This is the Aragoto of the head house of Ichikawa family. There are plays in which you can cry or laugh, but this is Aragoto.
Q: What do you mean by your start of searching Kabuki?
A: Kabuki is great in the sense that the technique of Las Vegas can be adapted into Kabuki seamlessly as Kabuki. If you trace the Kabuki's history from Edo period, living Kabuki has become classic. And, modern Kabuki is not only living as classic but also living in modern times. I know I have to study classic Kabuki more. But, this play is the start to search for a new Kabuki, because I am now 30 years old.
This is the manifest of Ebizo Ichikawa (11). Please note that this is the Ebizo who was devastated by Danjuro (12) in Paris. Ebizo failed his health management at Palais Garnier, Paris, and helped but feel his father's big figure and prestige. The ambition for Aragoto marks Ebizo. Without Aragoto, we would lose the sight of him.
In spite of all the similarities in attitude and method, Aragoto divides Ebizo against Ennosuke. In turn, very clever Ennosuke, still in recovering phase, should be aware of that. I would argue that Ennosuke would think that Ennnosuke's way of Kabuki would digest Aragoto in the head house of Ichikawa family by Ebizo. This is the challenge only for Ebizo. The apparent heir of Ennosuke (3) is Kamejiro Ichikawa (2), but the relationship between the two would be problematic because the two of them don't perform Aragoto. The turning point is when and how Kamejiro would perform Kurotsuka, the emblem of Ennosuke Ichikawa. I would argue that "The attitude and method of Ennosuke Ichikawa is realism. In his book (Enja-no-me), he does not hide his zeal for Wagoto.
4. Ebizo afterwards
It is known that unlike his father and like his grandfather Ebizo is very sensitive to every details of his play, even perfectionist. This perfectionism is the mark of Ennosuke Ichikawa. This way of realism combined with his ambition for wild Aragoto would mark Ebizo in coming years. I would call his style as "Aragoto realism". The question is whether perfectionist stance towards every single detail can coexist with Aragoto spirit. I believe he was experimenting it in Kanamaru-za through Shibaraku performance.
No one has dared to do Shibaraku in a small theater like Kanamaru-za in modern times. The sense of every detail is required in a small theater because the lack of it means fatal failure. So, his Aragoto realism is tested in Kanamazu-za. I only know that the performance entertained the audience. We don't know whether the performance thundered the audience.
5. Father's View
The dad was skeptical of the son's use of Las Vegas "Illusion" in Narukami Fudo Kitayama Zakura. In his book on Kabuki (Danjuro-no-Kabuki-Annai, pp.96-97), he thinks that the son could use Jidaimono style instead. At the same time, the father accepts his son's rebel's style and challenge spirit as it is. It appears that Danjuro (12) is confident that his son will return someday. I hope he will, but he might not.
The main factors behind the scenes would be his contemporary rivals: Kikunosuke Onoe (5) and Kamejiro Ichikawa (2). The both of them, interestingly and deliberately, went abroad with Ebizo. Danjuro's view would be hard on Ebizo, when Kabuki's popularity declines. If so, Danjuro needs Ebizo with him, limiting Ebizo's search for his own Kabuki. Kabuki's popularity depends on Kikunosuke and Kamejiro's performances in the future. Especially, I would love to see Kamejiro challenge Ebizo with Aragoto in a different way. His father Danshiro (4) is said to have his own style of Aragoto (Tamotsu Watanabe). So, the father can train the son here, too. If that happens, Ebizo's Aragoto realism will be really tested.
6. Conclusion
In this short essay, I define Kabuki journey of Ebizo Ichikawa (11) as "Aragoto realism." Aragoto realism is a style in which he polishes Aragoto in his perfectionist realism. The danger is that it might turn out to be just another realism for Aragoto plays. It must be revival and redefinition of Aragoto in modern times. Next experiment of Ebizo Ichikawa (13) is "Yon-no-kiri" of Yoshitsune-Senbon-Zakura at Kabuki-za in July. We will see whether Aragoto realism succeeds in fox. If he just follows Ennnosuke, we have to criticize him saying you have to add Aragoto to it. Are we ready?
上村以和於氏、勘太郎を褒め、海老蔵と染五郎に苦言
演劇評論家上村以和於氏、今月の一押しにて勘太郎を褒め、海老蔵と染五郎に苦言。ひょっとすると十八代目は十九代目の父などと呼ばれるかもしれない、な～んちゃって、ハハハ。でも、山神はしまった踊りで良かったなぁ、思い出すと意味なくやる気は出るわ。
Grand Kabuki Matinee
KAMAKURA SANDAIKI
(Three Generations of the Kamakura Shogunate)
Miuranosuke (Hashinosuke) is a samurai serving the lord of a besieged castle. Tokihime (Fukusuke), the woman he is betrothed to marry, is the daughter of the lord leading the attack on the castle. While he is away at battle, she comes to a lonely farming village to care for his sick mother. Miuranosuke comes back from the battle to see his mother, but she refuses to let him in since he has come away from his duties. In turn, Miuranosuke refuses to see Tokihime because she is the daughter of the enemy. Finally, all is revealed to be a plot by the brilliant strategist Takatsuna (Mitsugoro), to force Tokihime to assassinate her father.
SHINANO MOMIJI NO ONIZOROI
(The Autumn Leaves and the Demon of Mt. Togakushi)
This dance is a modern adaptation of a colorful kabuki play based on an austere Noh classic. The aristocrat Koremochi (Ebizo) has travelled to view the autumn leaves and encounters a beautiful princess (Tamasaburo) and her entourage. The entire party of beautiful women turns out to be vicious demons and attack Koremochi after lulling him to sleep with a beautiful dream-like dance.
SUITENGU MEGUMI NO FUKAGAWA (Kobei, the Brush Maker)
First performed in 1885, this play by Kawatake Mokuami shows the disruptions in society caused by the Meiji Restoration. In the Edo Period, the samurai were on top of society, but in the new Meiji world, a samurai unable to find a new way of becoming a success got left behind. This play stars Kanzaburo as a former samurai named Kobei, who makes a meager living making writing brushes. Since his wife has died, he must raise his three children by himself, but his oldest daughter is blind and the youngest boy is a baby. Kobei is helped by a generous woman (Fukusuke), but a moneylender takes everything that he has and he decides that he and his family have no choice but to commit suicide. Suddenly, there is the sound of merry music from a party at the house of a rich man next door and something in Kobei snaps. He starts to dance madly around, doing the dance from the Noh theatre of the ghost of Tomomori with a ragged broom in place of a magnificent halberd. This scene is the highlight of the play and is a virtuoso test of the actor's skills.
Grand Kabuki Evening Show
MIYAJIMA NO DAMMARI (The Miyajima Dammari)
The beautiful courtesan Ukifune (Fukusuke) appears at Itsukushima Shrine, but she is actually the famous and daring thief Kesa Taro coming to steal the treasures of the shrine. Other famous characters from the Heike clan, closely associated with the shrine, appear, and there is a dreamy fight in the dark. This play is especially famous for the odd way in which Ukifune mixes both masculine and feminine movements.
KANADEHON CHUSHINGURA Act IX - Yamashina Kankyo (The Treasury of Loyal Retainers - Act IX - Yuranosuke's House at Yamashina)
This is an act of the epic play based on a sensational incident in the early 17th century. Lord Enya Hangan's attack on the senior official Ko no Moronao affected people even outside his own household. When Honzo, the senior retainer of another lord, stopped Enya from killing Moronao, he thought that he was doing a good thing. But his actions earned him the scorn of Enya's retainers and brought personal tragedy to his daughter who was engaged to Rikiya, the son of Yuranosuke, Enya's head retainer. The scene shows the tragedy as it affects Honzo's wife and daughter and how ultimately Honzo sacrifices his life to atone for his misjudgement. Starring Koshiro as Honzo, Living National Treasure Shikan as his wife Tonase and Kikunosuke as his daughter Konami, with Kichiemon as Yuranosuke, Kaishun as his wife Oishi and Somegoro as his son Rikiya.
TSUCHIGUMO (The Earth Spider)
A dance play adapted from the classical Noh theatre. The samurai lord Minamoto Raiko is famous in legend for ridding Kyoto of demons. While Raiko is confined to bed with illness, a priest (Kikugoro) from a prominent temple comes to pray for his health. In fact, the priest is actually the spirit of the earth spider which has caused Raiko's illness in the first place and hopes to destroy him. The spider's plan to kill Raiko is defeated by his retainers in an exciting fight. Featuring Living National Treasure Tomijuro as Raiko.
SANNIN KICHISA TOMOE NO SHIRANAMI (Three Thieves Named Kichisa)
The late 19th century playwright Mokuami excelled at portrayals of thieves and this short scene, with its music and poetic lines, is one of his most famous. A beautiful young woman helps out a woman who is lost on the road. But she is actually Ojo Kichisa, a male thief who is disguised as a woman. He steals an immense sum of money that the woman is carrying and this leads to an encounter on this riverbank of three thieves, all with the name Kichisa. Though they start out as rivals, they decide to become blood brothers and form a gang. Featuring Takataro, Shoroku and Somegoro as the three thieves.
へぇ～忠臣蔵の通しかぁ。
来年の１０月１１月に浅草で行う歌舞伎公演の内容が少し変わったことが明らかになった。１０月は忠臣蔵の通しだが、１１月は先日ニューヨークで公演してきた法界坊をという事になったそうだ。
へぇ～、2008年10月は忠臣蔵の通しかぁ。四段目で大星をやるのは誰なのだろう？
赤川次郎の文楽入門―人形は口ほどにものを言い (小学館文庫
『赤川次郎の文楽入門―人形は口ほどにものを言い』小学館文庫。時代物の好きな三浦 しをん氏と比べて、世話物の好きな赤川次郎氏の文楽入門。その意味では、三浦氏の秀逸な入門書と補完的。
November Grand Kabuki Matinee
TANEMAKI SAMBASO
Based on the ritual Okina in the Noh theatre, the Sambaso is both an important prayer for prosperity and a vigorous dance. The Sambaso stamps and shakes bells as a ritual for agricultural prosperity while the Senzai is an elegant attendant to the prayers. This particular version elaborates the original ritual into a dance evoking love, marriage and the prosperity symbolized by many children. Featuring Baigyoku as the Sambaso and Takataro as Senzai.
KEISEI HANGONKO - Matahei's Triumph
This play was written by the great Japanese playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon for the Bunraku puppet theatre and retains the spirit of the puppets with its mix of extraordinary events and realistic acting styles. The artist Matahei (Kichiemon) has been refused a professional name because of his stuttering. He makes a poor life by drawing folk paintings and decides to make one last effort to gain respectability. His wife Otoku (Shibajaku), who is given as much to chatter as Matahei is silent, pleads his case. Turned down again by his master, Matahei decides to take his life. He draws a farewell portrait of himself, a painting so skillful that the lines seep through solid rock. Witnessing this, his master decides to confer a professional name.
孝太郎、娘道成寺やって欲しい。吃又ちょい泣き。
Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
KAIDAN BOTAN DORO (The Ghost Story of the Peony Lantern)
One of the most famous ghost stories in Japan shows the ghost of a beautiful young girl who visits the man she loves nightly, her way lit by a lantern decorated with peonies. The clatter of her wooden clogs announces her appearance, "...karannn...koronnnn..." Originally a Chinese story, it became a Japanese classic when it was transformed into a long Rakugo story by Sanyutei Encho (1839 - 1900). Otsuyu the daughter of a samurai family falls in love with a young samurai named Shinzaburo, but she falls sick and dies when he stops visiting her. Her ghost begins to visit him nightly preceded by the ghost of her nursemaid carrying a lantern decorated with peonies and he welcomes these meetings, not realizing that she is dead. But a priest sees the signs of death and protects Shinzaburo with holy amulets and a powerful Buddhist statue. The ghosts then bribe Shinzaburo's greedy servant Tomozo (Nizaemon) and his wife Omine (Tamasaburo) to take the amulets away. The result is that Shinzaburo is killed by the ghosts and Tomozo and Omine run away with the money. But the money doesn't bring them happiness. This version of the story is not just a tale of ghosts, but shows human treachery and the revolving ironies of fate.
YAKKO DOJOJI (Male Dojoji)
Musume Dojoji is based on a legend about a woman transformed into a serpent out of jealousy and who destroys a temple bell keeping her from the object of her love. The original dance shows the spirit of the woman who appears at Dojoji temple as a dancer who wants to celebrate the dedication of a new bell and does a series of dances showing the many faces of femininity. In this version the dancer is revealed to be a man in disguise and, in the highlight of the dance, transforms the romantic highpoint of the original piece into a comic scene by using masks. Starring Mitsugoro in a dance important to his family tradition.
Grand Kabuki: Evening Show
DAN-NO-URA KABUTO GUNKI - AKOYA
The courtesan Akoya is the wife of the fugitive general Kagekiyo and has been captured and will be tortured until she reveals his whereabouts. But she claims not to know. The wise Shigetada (Kichiemon) puts Akoya to a test, all the time hindered by his companion, the humorous villain Iwanaga (Danshiro). Shigetada forces Akoya to play several instruments since the slightest disturbance in the sound would indicate that she is lying. A showpiece for an onnagata who must actually play the koto, the bowed kokyu and the shamisen flawlessly as part of the drama. Starring Tamasaburo as Akoya.
MIGAWARI ZAZEN (The Zen Substitute)
A dance play adopted from a classical kyogen farce. A man (Danjuro) wants nothing more than to visit his lover Hanako, but he has one important problem, his homely and overbearing wife (Sadanji). He creates a scheme saying that he will be practicing zen meditation all night and has his servant Tarokaja (Somegoro) take his place while he visits Hanako. He returns, giddy from a night of pleasure and tells his story to his servant in dance, unaware that his wife has discovered his deception and has taken his servant's place.
NIJOJO NO KIYOMASA
In the early Edo Period, the first shoguns had a great problem in dealing with Toyotomi Hideyori, the young son of Hideyoshi. Even though Tokugawa Ieyasu took control of Japan away from Hideyori's clan, it remained very influential and powerful. Although the Tokugawa shoguns were respectful and cordial on the surface, they constantly searched for an opportunity to destroy Hideyori and his clan. This play is one of many that focuses on Hideyori's loyal retainer, the elderly but still powerful Kato Kiyomasa. Tokugawa Ieyasu (Sadanji) invites Hideyori (Fukusuke) to a banquet at Nijo Castle in Kyoto. Hideyori is at constant risk and is only protected by the constant vigilance of Kiyomasa (Kichiemon). Plays about Kiyomasa were a particular favorite of Nakamura Kichiemon I and this month features a rare performance of a play from the tradition of the present Kichiemon's grandfather.
Movement (R)evolution Africa
Movement (R)evolution Africa。良いドキュメンタリー映画であった。おそらくドキュメンタリー映画の作法は学校で習うことができるのだろうと感じられた。映画に出てきたKota Yamazakiとは山崎広太という方だった。
saudade = なつかしゃ
テレビを見ていたら、中孝介という奄美出身の歌手が『なつかしゃ』をキーコンセプトに歌っていくと言っていた。ご本人の説明を聞いていたら、なるほどsaudade（ポルトガル語）の意味ではないか。現在・未来を懐かしむ気持ち。なるほど、人文系の優れた方がブラジルと奄美を結びつけるのも当然である。こういう人を真似しては危険、危険と改めて自らをいましめる。
August Grand Kabuki
YUREI KASHIYA (Rent a Ghost)
Yamamoto Shugoro (1903 - 1967) is known for his touching stories of nameless commoners in the Edo Period striving to live meaningful lives against impossible odds. But this particular story is an outrageous comedy about Yaroku (Mitsugoro), a barrel maker who is so lazy that his loving wife Okane (Takataro) leaves him until he decides to work. But one day, a sexy, vengeful ghost named Someji (Fukusuke) falls in love with him. They spend night after night drinking together, but finally, to make ends meet, they decide to start a business renting out vengeful ghosts, which is when Yaroku's troubles really begin. Also featuring Kanzaburo and Shichinosuke.
SHINPAN SHITAKIRI SUZUME (New Version: The Tongue-Cut Sparrow)
An old man and woman had no children, so he cherished a pet sparrow. One day, when the old man was out, the sparrow ate all the starch the old woman had prepared for starching clothes, so she cut his tongue out and chased him away. The old man was very upset and set out the next day to find the sparrow, undergoing all kinds of unpleasant trials. He found the sparrow who treated him extremely kindly and gave him a choice of a small or large box. The old man modestly picked a small box and when he returned, he found it full of gold coins. The greedy old woman decided to go to see the sparrow as well, but picked the large box, only to find it full of snakes, spiders and other horrible creatures.
This classic story finds a new setting in a musical presentation by innovative theater director Watanabe Eriko featuring all the members of this month’s company.
URA OMOTE SENDAI HAGI (Sendai Hagi Front and Back)
Meiboku Sendai Hagi (The Troubles in the Date Clan) is one of the most famous plays in kabuki. It shows the attempt to take over one of the most famous samurai households in the Edo period, the Date clan ruling Sendai, a scandal that caused a sensation in its day. This particular version of the play takes the most famous scenes of the original play and combines them with a story of greed and lust among commoners involved in the plots against the Date clan with the murderous servant Kosuke a parallel to the larger-than-life villain Nikki Danjo. It is also a virtuoso turn for Kanzaburo and part of his family tradition as he plays the heroic nursemaid Masaoka, and the two villains, Nikki Danjo and Kosuke.
Act I: The Hanamizu Bridge
The samurai lord Yorikane (Shichinosuke) has fallen in love with a courtesan and has neglected responsibilities, causing high-ranking retainers to plot the takeover of his domain. Returning from the pleasure quarters, he is attacked at Hanamizu Bridge, but is able to escape thanks to the help of a sumo wrestler retainer.
Act II: The House of the Doctor Doeki
Doeki is a doctor to commoners who lusts after Otake (Fukusuke), the servant of a neighboring maker of geta clogs. On the orders of Nikki Danjo and his accomplices, Doeki has secretly prepared poison to get rid of the lord of the Date clan and hopes to use the two hundred gold coins he received to make Otake his mistress, but instead, he is killed by his servant Kosuke (Kanzaburo) who steals the gold coins. But no sooner does Kosuke get the gold than it is snatched away by a stray dog.
Act III: Masaoka's Chambers and Below the Floor
Yorikane has been removed from office, but now the titular head of the clan is his young son, a very vulnerable target to the forces trying to take over the clan. Masaoka (Kanzaburo), the boy's nurse is desperately afraid that he will be poisoned. She refuses to let anyone see him who might try to assassinate him and attempts to keep him safe in the women's quarters where men are forbidden. She even fixes his meal in her quarters using her delicate tea ceremony implements to cook rice. The plotting faction does not give up, though, and sends poison in the form of candy as a present from the shogun's chief retainer. Masaoka's son sacrifices his life for the young lord by eating the poisoned candy, and when he is killed, Masaoka thinks only of protecting her lord. Her fierce devotion to duty convinces the plotters that she is on their side. Masaoka's actions help save the young lord, and only when she is alone can she grieve for her son. As the villainous women, featuring Senjaku as Yashio and Hidetaro as Sakae Gozen.
Another faithful retainer Otokonosuke (Kantaro), stands guard underneath the room, but the evil Nikki Danjo (Kanzaburo) appears as a giant rat, but then slips away, walking calmly through the clouds.
Act IV: The Trial of Kosuke and Nikki Danjo's Violence
In the original Meiboku Sendai Hagi, there is the trial of Nikki Danjo, who has been denounced by the elderly Geki, a faithful retainer of the Date clan. In this version, Nikki's trial scene is replaced by Kosuke's trial scene which is a kind of copy involving commoners instead of samurai. Kosuke and Otake are both accused of killing Doeki, but the judge is in league with Kosuke and soon places the blame on Otake. However, there are two judges and the wise Kurahashi Yajuro (Mitsugoro) comes and shows who the real killer is.
Nikki Danjo's trial has taken place at the same time and his lies have been seen through by the wise judge Katsumoto (Mitsugoro). Condemned to death, Nikki takes his revenge by stabbing Geki (Yajuro), the man that accused him.
劇団ダンダンブエノ『砂利』
劇団ダンダンブエノ『砂利』。脚本家の本谷有希子氏が「東京コンシェルジェ」ブログに7月22日に寄せた一文によれば、
昨日からスパイラルホールで始まった劇団ダンダンブエノ『砂利』は、近藤芳正さん直々の依頼で書き下ろした新作です。倉持裕さんという好きな演出家の方に演出していただけるのも魅力でしたし、なにより坂東三津五郎さん、田中美里さん、片桐はいりさん、酒井敏也さんといった豪華キャストに当て書きできるという幸せにテンションは上がりっぱなしでした。
今回はあえて「一番やりにくそうな役」を皆さんに演じていただいています。坂東三津五郎さんほどの方なら、どんな役でもこなしてしまいます。だからこそ「これはできない！」という役を演じて欲しかったんです。得意な手をわざと塞いで、そこから何を出すか、というつもりで書きました。三津五郎さんが奮闘する様子をぜひ劇場でご覧下さい。（赤は私がつけました）
脚本家の「オママゴト」につきあっている暇は二回目はないというのが感想。三津五郎は凄いが、田中さんが片桐さんを切らなければならなかったような気がする。
Shinpan Utazaimon, Nozakimura
Shinpan Utazaimon, Nozakimura at National Theater with Nobu-chan & Kao.
July Grand Kabuki
JUNIYA (Twelfth Night)
If music be the food of love, play on!" The trouble caused by love is the theme of Shakespeare's play, a comedy with great depth. July at Kabuki-za features an encore performance of a bold experiment. Ninagawa Yukio, known throughout the world for productions of Shakespeare and his blending of traditional and modern theatrical techniques will direct kabuki actors in an adaptation of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night."
After being shipwrecked and being separated (presumably forever) from her twin brother Sebastian, Viola dresses as a young man, calls herself Cesario and takes service with Orsino, who is in love with the fabulously wealthy Olivia. In the guise of Cesario, Viola becomes Orsino's messenger to Olivia, but she does not love him. Instead, she falls in love with Cesario and in turn, Viola falls in love with Orsino. But while these characters suffer for love, others lust after Olivia's wealth. Her uncle Toby cannot stand to see the money leave the family and tries to get her married to the obnoxious Andrew. Meanwhile, Olivia's steward Malvolio is also in love with her, but he is so stuck-up and out of date that the people around him plot to make him think that Olivia returns his love, only making him seem more ridiculous than ever.
In July's production, all of Shakespeare's characters will take on a new, kabuki incarnation. Viola will become Princess Biwa (a biwa is a Japanese lute), and disguised as a man, she will take the name Shishimaru, sounding like a proper samurai, and all the other characters get new Japanese names as well.
Ninagawa Yukio is famous throughout the world for his direction of new plays and the classics, using modern theatrical techniques and traditional aesthetics with a bold visual touch. For example, his production of Macbeth brought the play into the world of Japan and transformed the stage into a giant Buddhist altar, with mysterious old women praying throughout the play, as though the story of Macbeth took place within the altar as a message from the land of the dead. His production of King Lear brought together a famous English actor as Lear and a popular Japanese actor as the fool and was performed in England, while his production of Oedipus Rex combined an actress from the Japanese modern theater with an actor from kyogen, the traditional comic style and the production even went to Greece.
The production will star Onoe Kikunosuke as Biwa and her twin brother Shuzennosuke, while Onoe Kikugoro will play Maruo Bodayu and the jester Sutesuke. Also featuring Sadanji, Danshiro and Tokizo. Don't miss this exciting new kabuki experiment!
Sannin Kichisa (The Three Kichisa's)
The 8th Shibuya-Cocoon Kabuki Show
Sannin Kichisa (The Three Kichisa's)
Original: Mokuami Kawatake Director
Artdirector: Kazuyoshi Kushida
Cast: Kanzaburo Nakamura, Fukusuke Nakamura, Hashinosuke Nakamura,
Kantaro Nakamura, Shichinosuke Nakamura, Kamezo Kataoka, Takashi Sasano
[Comment] In general, in Kabuki, you are supposed to know the synopsis, or you’re supposed to read synopsis in the pamphlet before the show. But, in the case of “Cocoon Kabuki,” you don’t have to read synopsis before the show. All you need is to absorb the show. The synopsis itself comes to you in the form of performances of the actors. This is definitely the director’s work. This is a modern Kabuki in contrast to Grand Kabuki in the Kabuki-za theatre. I call it a modern kabuki because ordinary novice persons unfamiliar to kabuki can understand the performance. Grand Kabuki is great but requires certain amount of knowledge before the show.
June Grand Kabuki, Matinee
IMOSEYAMA ONNA TEIKIN
- Husband and Wife Mountain and the Model of Feminine Virtue -
IMOSEYAMA ONNA TEIKIN, is a masterpiece by Chikamatsu Hanji (1725 - 1783) first presented in 1771 in the puppet theater. It is an epic taken from early Japanese history, weaving together history, legend and myth. The country chafes under the domination of the dictator Iruka. This short section of the full-length play shows the story of two rival families who are only alike in being dominated by the dictator until a tragedy reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet brings them together.
The Komatsubara Plain
On a beautiful spring day, handsome young Koganosuke (Baigyoku), son of Daihanji and Hinadori (Kaishun), the beautiful daughter of Sadaka, widow of Dazai happen to meet and fall in love, not realizing that their families are bitter enemies, with estates on either side of the Yoshino river. But Koganosuke also has heavy duties and helps Uneme, the daughter of the loyal minister Fujiwara Kamatari to escape from the clutches of the evil minister Emishi.
The Passing Over of the Flowers and the Yoshino River
Iruka (Hikosaburo) blames Koganosuke for the loss of Uneme and has heard of his love for Hinadori. He fears that these two rival clans may be plotting against him so summons Daihanji (Koshiro) to Sadaka's (Tojuro) mansion, confronts the two rival parents and orders Koganosuke to become his retainer and Hinadori to serve in his bedchamber. He gives them branches of cherry blossoms to be thrown into the Yoshino river as a signal of the answers of the young people.
In the most famous scene of the play, there is a spectacular set with the house of Daihanji on one side of the stage and the house of Sadaka on the other side with the river running through the center of the stage.
Both parents know that their children would rather accept death than bow down to the dictator Iruka, but hide this and speak proudly and aggressively to the other, hoping desperately that at least the other child might be spared. However, all their efforts are in vain and finally, in death, the young couple is united in marriage, ending the feud between the two families.
EMMA TO SEIRAI
This is a new dance play written by Kichiemon himself under the name Matsu Kanshi that is an adaptation of a kyogen farce. Emma, the king of hell (Tomijuro) is upset that religion has meant that fewer people are falling into hell. He summons a falconer named Seirai (Kichiemon) and wants to condemn him for taking life, but the falconer says that it is the falcon that does it and he is blameless. In dance, he describes hunting with a falcon and this is so interesting that Emma himself wants to try it.
KYOKAKU HARUSAME GASA
This is a rare performance of a play by Fukuchi Ochi (1841 - 1906) one of the fathers of modern kabuki. It shows a confrontation between a gentle patron of the pleasure quarters who has become a gang boss (Somegoro) and the former samurai who is responsible for his current state (Hikosaburo) and their rivalry over a courtesan (Shibajaku). The play is also an opportunity to present Somegoro's young son on stage for the first time with greetings from the senior members of his family.
Grand Kabuki, Evening Show
ONNA SHIBARAKU (Female"Wait a Minute")
Ichimura Uzaemon XVII was one of the mainstays of kabuki. Rich in knowledge of kabuki's acting tradition, he was also a skilled player of mature male roles. To commemorate the seventh anniversary of his death, the first play in the evening program features his three sons Hikosaburo, Manjiro and Gonjuro in a spectacular play that shows old-fashioned kabuki at its best.
More ceremony than play, Shibaraku is one of the oldest pieces in kabuki. Just as an evil villain is about to execute a group of loyal retainers, a voice calls out for him to wait and a hero appears to save the day. This version is a parody, though, as the hero is played by an onnagata female role specialist, who mixes the super-human strength of an aragoto hero with the soft gentleness of a kabuki heroine. Featuring Manjiro as the heroine and Hikosaburo as the larger-than-life villain, with Mitsugoro as a friendly stage attendant who makes sure that everything goes right.
Two Dances:
-AME NO GORO-
Soga no Goro is one of the most famous heroes in the kabuki world, super-strong and quick to fight. However, this dance shows the soft side of this hero as well as he travels nightly to the pleasure quarter to visit his lover. Starring Shoroku.
-MITSUMEN KOMORI (The Babysitter with Three Masks)-
This short charming dance shows a young girl who is a babysitter and she entertains her charge with a series of games and dances. The highlight is when she does a short sketch with three comic masks which shows a romantic quarrel between the plump, homely woman Okame and the drunken god of prosperity Ebisu. Finally Hyottoko with his funny, twisted up mouth steps in to mediate the fight. Starring Mitsugoro, one of the finest dancers of the younger generation of actors.
KAMI NO MEGUMI WAGO NO TORIKUMI (Megumi no Kenka)
They used to say that fights and fires were the flowers of the city of Edo and many plays feature the gallent members of firefighting troupes, who were popular heroes. This particular play depicts a rivalry between the members of the Megumi firefighting band and a group of sumo wrestlers, which ultimately is a confrontation between the firefighters, who represent the commoner class and the samurai patrons of the sumo wrestlers. The fight begins with a minor incident, but grows into a situation of such tension, that when Tatsugoro, the leader of the firefighting gang, goes to his final fight, he goes with the full intention that this may be a fight to the death. Before he leaves, he has an emotional parting from his family. Featuring Living National Treasure Kikugoro as Tatsugoro and Danjuro as the leader of the group of sumo wrestlers.
Matinee at Shimbashi
Narukami, Okawa-no-Inkyo, and Tsuri Onna (Fishing for a Wife). Somegoro as Narukami was not bad. Karoku as old thief was good. The seat arrangement prevented us from appreciating properly the Fishing for a Wife. Harimaya cheered Kinnosuke in the play, crying "Kin-chan! Suteki!" 3F Left Seat was pretty bad.
SAKANAYA SOGORO (Sogoro, the Fish Seller)
A superb Kanzaburo's performance.
SAKANAYA SOGORO (Sogoro, the Fish Seller)
Sogoro (Kanzaburo), a fish seller, has taken a vow not to drink, but when he learns about his sister's unjust murder at the hands of a daimyo lord, a death that they were told was execution for her wrongdoing, he starts to drink again. Drunk, he storms into the lord's mansion to seek an apology. This play by Meiji playwright Kawatake Mokuami is known for its realistic portrayal of members of the common class during the Edo period and highlights their fierce pride and frustration at the privileges of the dominant samurai class. Also featuring the new Kinnosuke.
April Grand Kabuki, Matinee
ATARU TOSHI IWAU HARUKOMA (Spring Hobbyhorses and the Soga Brothers)
The story of the revenge of the Soga brothers is one of the favorite themes of kabuki. Here it is transformed into a fanciful dance using hobbyhorses, children's toys that were one of the sights of the New Year. Starring Karoku, Shido, Kantaro and Shichinosuke.
YORITOMO NO SHI (The Death of Yoritomo)
A play by Mayama Seika first presented in 1932. Minamoto no Yoritomo created a strong warrior government, but died very soon, leaving things to his son Yoriie (Baigyoku). But Yoriie feels that there is something suspicious about his father’s death and is in torment because even though he is supposed to be the most powerful man in the land, no one will tell him anything. It ends with a confrontation with his mother Hojo Masako, who is ready to kill her own son rather than let the truth out that could destroy their rule. She declares that a man has only one short life, but the clan must survive to the end of time. Featuring Living National Treasure Shikan as Masako.
MEOTO DOJOJI (Male and Female Dojoji)
Musume Dojoji is based on a legend about a woman transformed into a serpent out of jealousy and who destroys a temple bell keeping her from the object of her love. The original dance shows the spirit of the woman who appears at Dojoji temple as a dancer who wants to celebrate the dedication of a new bell and does a series of dances showing the many faces of femininity. In this version there are two dancers and one is revealed to be a man in disguise and, in the highlight of the dance, transforms the romantic highpoint of the original piece into a comic scene by using masks. Starring Kanzaburo as the female dancer and Nizaemon as the male dancer.
KIICHI HOGEN SANRYAKU NO MAKI
- KIKUBATAKE (The Chrysanthemum Garden) -
A great classic of period play kabuki originally adapted from the Bunraku puppet theatre, full of larger-than-life characters and a stage full of dazzling color, celebrating the new Kinnosuke.
In a garden of brilliant yellow and white chrysanthemums, there is Kiichi, an elderly strategist working for the dictator Kiyomori, his beautiful daughter Minazuru (Tokizo) and two footmen, the elegant young Torazo (Kinnosuke) and the powerful Chienai (Kichiemon). But in fact, Torazo is a young general from the enemy side here to steal Kiichi’s secrets of strategy. Chienai is his retainer. But Kiichi has realized why they are there and also knows that Chienai is actually his younger brother. At the same time, Minazuru has fallen deeply in love with Torazo. Featuring Living National Treasure Tomijuro as Kiichi.
Grand Kabuki, evening show
SANEMORI MONOGATARI (The Tale of Sanemori)
A play about the early days of the rivalry between the Genji and Heike warrior clans. The warrior Sanemori (Nizaemon) has been charged by the leaders of the dominant Heike clan with finding Aoi Gozen (Kaishun), the pregnant wife of the leader of the enemy Genji clan. He is to kill her child if it is a son who can become head of the Genji clan, but secretly, old loyalties to the Genji make him save the baby’s life. Sanemori tells the story of how Koman (Hidetaro), the daughter of the old couple who is protecting Aoi Gozen, bravely fought to protect the sacred standard of the Genji from the Heike. Koman mysteriously comes back to life when her severed arm is rejoined to it.
KOJO (Stage Announcement)
There is a close relationship between the stage and the audience in kabuki and this is shown by these ceremonial stage announcements where the top stars of the company address the audience directly. This month, Living National Treasure Jakuemon, the senior actor of the kabuki world will act as master of ceremonies as the actors congratulate the new Kinnosuke.
FUTATSU CHOCHO KURUWA NIKKI - The Sumo Match
"Futatsu Chocho" means "two butterflies" and also comes from the fact that two sumo wrestlers who play important roles in the full length play have names beginning with "cho": Chokichi and Chogoro. Nuregami Chogoro throws a match and begs instead the younger wrestler Hanaregoma Chokichi to persuade his patron Gozaemon to give up Azuma. But Chokichi loses his temper and the two end up competing in a test of pride. Starring Living National Treasure Tomijuro as Chogoro and the new Kinnosuke as Chokichi.
SAKANAYA SOGORO (Sogoro, the Fish Seller)
Sogoro (Kanzaburo), a fish seller, has taken a vow not to drink, but when he learns about his sister's unjust murder at the hands of a daimyo lord, a death that they were told was execution for her wrongdoing, he starts to drink again. Drunk, he storms into the lord's mansion to seek an apology. This play by Meiji playwright Kawatake Mokuami is known for its realistic portrayal of members of the common class during the Edo period and highlights their fierce pride and frustration at the privileges of the dominant samurai class. Also featuring the new Kinnosuke.
YOSHITSUNE SENBON ZAKURA (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees): Evening Show
At evening show, all the actors were superb. I like Takataro, not to mention of Nizaemon and Kikugoro. I wonder how many times more I could see Otowaya perform his stylish 4-no-kiri.
Konomi, Kokingo Uchijini (The Chestnut Tree and the Death of Kokingo)
Wakaba-no-Naishi (Tozo), the wife of the Heike commander Koremori, travels with her young son and their retainer Kokingo (Senjaku), searching for her husband. While resting in a small mountain village, they are met by Gonta (Nizaemon), a local bully who skillfully cons them out of their money. Later they are set upon by Genji forces, and in a spectacular fight scene, Kokingo sacrifices himself to save his mistress and her son.
Sushiya (The Sushi Shop)
Gonta's father Yazaemon (Sadanji) runs a sushi shop, but was formerly a retainer of Taira no Koremori. With his clan defeated, Koremori (Tokizo) now lives with Yazaemon's family disguised as a humble apprentice. Innocently, Yazaemon's daughter, Osato (Takataro) is in love with him. But knowing of the bounty on Koremori's head, her brother Gonta kills him and turns his wife and child over to the Genji commander. Furious at his son, Yazaemon stabs him, but before his death, Gonta reveals that he only pretended to kill Koremori and sacrificed his own wife and son to save the real Koremori and his family.
Kawatsura Hogen Yakata (The Mansion of the Priest Kawatsura)
Yoshitsune (Baigyoku) has taken refuge in the mountains of Yoshino at the mansion of an old ally. Tadanobu (Kikugoro) arrives but has no recollection of Shizuka being placed under his care. Shizuka (Fukusuke) herself soon arrives with the other Tadanobu and after an investigation they discover that he is actually a fox (Kikugoro). In a touching story, the fox tells how he took on human form to be close to the hand drum which is made from the skins of his fox parents.
Yoshinoyama (Mt. Yoshino)
Otowa-ya danced very gently. Matsushima-ya acted really well. Very comical.
Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees
Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees. The performance detail is 「Kabuki_Yoshitsune1000.txt」. In "Torii Mae," Takasago-ya represented a great Yoshitsune. Narikoma-ya (Fukusuke) was a beautiful Akahime. Otowa-ya started a great Kitsune-Tadanobu. In "Tokaiya, Daimotsu no Ura," I'm sorry to say that I was sleepy after eating curry-and-rice. "Yoshinoyama" was a great performance with cute Narikoma-ya (Shikan), versatile Otowa-ya (Kikugoro), and comical Matsushima-ya (Nizaemon). It was a great piece of performance.
KANADEHON CHUSHINGURA (The Treasure of 47 Loyal Retainers), Evening Show
The trio of Harima-ya, Matsushima-ya, and Yamato-ya was superb.
KANADEHON CHUSHINGURA (The Treasure of 47 Loyal Retainers), Matinee
Acts 1 and 3: The Helmet Appraisal and the Sword Incident
Act 4: Enya Hangan's Suicide
Travel Dance: The Fugitives
Tomijuro, Kichiemon, and Kaishun were superb. Kikugoro was great. Baishi was very good. I wept once in the Suicide Act.
The play KANADEHON CHUSHINGURA (The Treasure of
47 Loyal Retainers) is the most popular in the kabuki repertory and is
known throughout the world. In February, Kabuki-za features a
full-length performance of the most famous acts of this play. The
program features some of kabuki's most popular actors, including Living
National Treasures Tomijuro and Kikugoro and world-famous onnagata
female role specialist Tamasaburo. Also featuring Baigyoku, Kaishun,
Koshiro, Kichiemon, Nizaemon, Sadanji and Tokizo.
Acts 1 and 3: The Helmet Appraisal and the Sword Incident
Daimyo lords from around the country gather for an important ceremony in the presence of Tadayoshi, the younger brother of the shogun. Under the watchful eye of the official Moronao (Tomijuro), lords Enya Hangan (Kikugoro) and Wakasanosuke (Kichiemon) have been charged with making sure everything goes according to protocol. Enya Hangan's wife Kaoyo (Kaishun) is asked to identify a helmet to be used in the ceremony. Moronao is in love with Kaoyo and tries to woo her, but Wakasanosuke stops him. In return, Moronao uses his position of authority to berate the young lord and Wakasanosuke decides to kill Moronao.
But the next morning at the shogun's mansion, Wakasanosuke's head retainer bribes Moronao to keep his master from causing an incident and although Wakasanosuke is about to attack Moronao, the aged official groveling stops him. As a result, though, Moronao is frustrated and angry and vents his feelings on Enya Hangan, especially after Hangan innocently brings him a letter in which Kaoyo refuses Moronao's love. Moronao steadily insults Hangan, who tries to ignore the pressure, but finally draws his sword and attacks. Drawing a sword in the shogun's palace is a crime punishable by death, but Moronao himself escapes with only a slight wound as others within the mansion hurry in to stop Hangan.
Act 4: Enya Hangan's Suicide
Emissaries from the shogun arrive at Enya Hangan's mansion to announce that he has received the strictest penalty for his actions. He is ordered to commit ritual suicide and his household is to be disbanded. Hangan's hate for Moronao grows when he hears that Moronao has received no punishment. Hangan waits and waits for his head retainer, but he does not arrive. Finally, Hangan plunges in the blade. At that moment, his head retainer Yuranosuke (Koshiro) arrives from their home province. With his last breaths, Hangan gives Yuranosuke the knife he used to commit suicide and tells him to take revenge. Now that the clan has been disbanded, Hangan's men become masterless samurai. Though some urge an immediate attack on Moronao, Yuranosuke bids them not to do anything rash. When alone in front of the closed mansion gates, though, he secretly reveals his determination that his lord will not have died in vain.
Travel Dance: The Fugitives
After the death of his lord, the retainer Kampei (Baigyoku) and his lover, the lady-in-waiting Okaru (Tokizo) flee to Okaru's home, a farmer's house in the country. Kampei feels responsible for the events since he was having a romantic tryst and was not at his master's side at the crucial moment. He tries to commit suicide, but Okaru stops him and convinces him that they should go to her home as husband and wife and wait for the right moment for him to be reinstated.
UME NO HARU GOJYUSANTSUGI
Four cat children dance was very cute. The dance of Yamatoya was also superb. We've got a Tenugui for two years in a row.
メル・ブルックス/珍説世界史PART1
メル・ブルックス/珍説世界史PART1。
楽しい映画です。英語での世界史がわかっていれば、とっても楽しめます。2001年宇宙の旅とか、十戒、ローマ、ルイ１４世など。メル･ブルックスのスタンドアップ・コメディも楽しめますし、なんとグレゴリー・ハインズのタップ・ダンスも楽しめます。
車引、引窓、寺子屋
車引、亀治郎の精密な動きに感心。松緑、もっとはちゃめちゃでもいいのでは。染五郎、声が出てました。引窓、もう涙、涙。吉右衛門が嬉しそうに出てくるだけで、もう涙。ぽたぽた泣きました。恐れながら、踊りでは寝かせて頂いて、初めての寺子屋。いやぁ、凄惨なお話。もう何回かバージョンを変えて見ると、より感じいることでしょう。芝翫が出てきたところでちょっとだけ涙がにじみました。
伊勢音頭恋寝刃など
歌舞伎座四月夜の部。伊勢音頭恋寝刃（いせおんどこいのねたば）、見たかったので見れて良かった。
| 福岡貢 | 仁左衛門 |
| お紺 | 時 蔵 |
| 仲居万野 | 福 助 |
| お岸 | 勘太郎 |
| 今田万次郎 | 玉太郎改め 松 江 |
| 藍玉屋北六 実は岩次 |
團 蔵 |
| 徳島岩次 実は北六 |
芦 燕 |
| お鹿 | 東 蔵 |
| 料理人喜助 | 梅 玉 |
今日の一枚
Tom JobimのIneditoです。声もちょっと違うし、アレンジも昔とは違う。でも、Tom Jobimです。1987年の録音という。
写真はTom Jobimの日常が映し出されており、なかなかの味がある。
このほかに、Elis & Tom (1974)も聴いています。これも良い。
北斎展
東京国立博物館『北斎展』、かなり混んでいた。それでも、金曜日は午後八時まで開いているのでねらい目。
富嶽三十六景も良いが、北斎の全貌がわかるというところがこの展覧会のミソ。個人的に良かったのは作品番号で言うと、109, 136, 156, 157, 159, 177, 193, 198, 201, 214, 217, 248, 263, 280, 281, 299, 308-313, 408-426, 477。
Piazzollaの10-CD-SET
昨日は秋葉原を通り、30分ほど時間があったので、秋葉原に新規開店したヨドバシカメラの７階に入ったタワーレコードによった。Djavanのライブを探していたのだが、ブラジルものについては洋盤が少なく失望。今後に期待か。
クラシック棚は割安品がいろいろと並んでいて、ベートーベンの廉価版とか、モーツァルトの廉価版などを買った。なかでも極めつけの衝動買いはAstor Piazzollaの10枚組みである。10枚組みでなんと1460円、一枚146円つまりペットボトルのお茶より安いというすざまじい価格（モーツァルトの交響曲Boxも13枚組み2990円、一枚230円）。
LibertangoなどのPiazzollaのレコード10枚をCD化したという企画で、マスタリングもさほど良いわけではないが、この価格なので仕方がないでしょう。とにかく、名曲Adiós Noniñoがバージョンの違う4種類も収めらている楽しいCD Boxだ。
Piazzollaそのものの演奏はウィーンでのライブしか持っていなかったので、これは結構当たりだった。名曲Libertangoはこういうドラムが入るいわゆるロック調がオリジナルなのかと初めて知った。
9枚目Decarissimoの8曲目に入っているBiyuyaはなかなかのライブ演奏、曲もよい。10曲目のInvierno Porteñoもバージョンがよい。
シェイクスピアの言葉
シェイクスピアによる一文：
ダンカン王『顔を見て人の心のありようを知るすべはない。』（マクベス 一幕四場12行）
There's no art to find the mind's construction in the face.
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
Gloria EstefanのMi Tierraです。Miami Sound MachineのボーカルとしてCongaや1,2,3、ソロになっても数々のヒット曲を出しているキューバ系アメリカ人のグロリア･エステファンが、1993年に本格的にキューバ音楽に挑戦したというアルバムです。あまりアクが強くないので、非常にお気楽に聴けるところが自分に合うところもありますし、何しろ演奏がきれいで上手い。ここで演奏されているようなキューバ音楽を総称してソン(son)というのだと思いますが、MamboやSalsaと共通するラテン音楽の独特のグルーブがあり、陶酔感があります。ラテン音楽には色々な入り口があるかと思いますが、確実にこれもその一つです。たしか調査旅行でワシントンＤＣに行ったときに現地のTower Recordsで買ったんだと記憶してます。
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
Patsy ClineのShowcaseです。私の最も好きなカントリー･ミュージック曲は、このCDにも収められているCrazyです。実は、今日までこの曲の作者がWillie Nelsonであることを知りませんでした。失敬。ということで、これを近々には購入しようと思ってます。じつは午前中は竹内まりやをちょこっと聴いていて、このひとはカントリー歌手だと認識しました。そこで、カントリー･ミュージック・ナイトになっているわけです。
大学2年に大韓航空の成田―ＬＡ往復チケットを買って、メキシコ・シティまでバス一人旅をしました。途中グアナフアトという都市に立ち寄って、ぶらぶら歩いていると町の公会堂で映画をやっているとのこと。観に行くと、なんとアメリカ映画、それも全く知らないPatsy Clineというカントリー歌手の伝記映画でした。喉自慢で優勝して、カントリー歌手になったけど、ちょっと人生にunhappyなところもあり、そのうちに飛行機事故で死んでしまうという悲しい映画でした。映画でかかる彼女のヒット曲のなかで、特に心に残ったのがCrazyというわけです。旅行では最終目的地のメキシコ・シティで泊まったYMCAで宿泊者たちと週末にバスでピラミッド見物に行ったことも楽しい思い出の一つでした。Have a nice weekend!
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
パット・メセニーの『The Road to You: Recorded Live in Europe』です。Amazon.co.jpの説明によれば、1991年のヨーロッパ・ツアーの模様を収めたものとなっていますが、手持ちのCDには1991年のクレジットはありませんでした。CDのリリースは1993年。パット・メセニーのジャンルは、ジャズとかフュージョンとかになるでしょうが、とにかくギター好きが気持ちいい音楽をやっていることに尽きるでしょう。このライブ盤からはコンサート会場の開放感、観客のわくわくした気持ちも伝わってきます。そして、Pat Methenyのギター、バックの力強いサポート、特に、ブラジル人プレーヤーたちの躍動感が素晴らしい。これから梅雨までの晴れた日（の夕方）にお勧めの一枚です。私は1996-97年の米国滞在時に巡り合いました。
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
マービン・ゲイのLive at the London Palladiumである。司会の『It's showtime, ladies and gentlemen. Ladies and Gentlemen, London Palladium proudly presents star of the show, get it on the soul, Mr. Marvin Gaye!』の紹介と共に始まる、1976年10月3日ロンドンでの圧倒のライブである。1960年代の数々のデュエットでのヒット曲も聴けるし、1970年代のWhat's going onやLet's get it onというシンガー・ソング・ライターとしての名曲も聴ける。おまけとしては、早口言葉やsing-alongというsoul singer特有のステージ・パフォーマンスも楽しめる。最後に入っているスタジオ録音のGot to give it upもカッコいい。
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
マイケル・ジャクソンと言えば、現在は奇人変人の類としか思えませんが、素晴らしいアーティストでした。そして、お薦めはなんといっても"Off the Wall"です。クインシー・ジョーンズのプロデュース、名曲Rock with YouなどのRod Tempertonの楽曲、そして、弾けるようなマイケルのボーカル。1979年のリリースであり、私は12歳、ちょうどFENで土曜日の午後に放送していたAmerican Top 40を聞き始めていた頃で、当時はドナ・サマー(Donna Summer)の全盛期でもありました。たしか土曜も授業はあり、帰宅後、昼飯を食べて、2階のベランダに干されていたふとんの上に寝そべり（それはたしかいけないよ言われていたことだったのですが）、安ラジオでTop 40をかけて雲の動く青空を見ていたものです。あのときの青空もちょっとは想い出しますが、やはり名盤でもあり、一年に一回は聴きます。
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
二日続けて本コーナーをやってみまっせ。ハハハ。
山下達郎の『ムーングロウ』です。ＣＤはだいたい持ってますが、これは中でもお薦めできます。1979年に発売され、発売当時（当時12歳）に聞いたわけではありませんが、中学の頃に初めて聴いたと思います。いろいろと試してみると、『ムーングロウ』は飽きのこないアルバムだと思います。2曲目の『永遠のフルムーン』は高校の時に最も好きだった曲の一つでした。今から考えると1970年代ＮＹタイプの都会風アレンジが気に入っていたのかも。中学･高校と通っていた英語塾の先生が、『sophisticatedというのはsimple and urbanという意味だ』と言っていたのを、スローガンよろしく今でも時々思い出しますが、この意味でsophisticatedなアルバムだと思います。
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
さて、これも良く知られたキース･ジャレットの『ケルン・コンサート』です。ジャズ･ピアニストですかね。たぶん、最初に聴いたのは大学2年生の頃、大学の裏にあった絵画ギャラリー付喫茶店（今は、渋谷・青山に移ってますが、ウィリアム・モリスという名前の珈琲＆ギャラリー（お休みは日・祝・第三土）で、今も行ってます、よろしく御贔屓に！）に入り浸り始めていたのですが、この喫茶店だったでしょう。たしか、BOSEのスピーカーでかけてたと思います。それはそうと、モリスでは音楽と絵画についてたくさん分かることができました。1980年代末の大学生というのは、最近の大学生と違ってかなり暇で（いや、今も暇な奴はいるかもしれないけど）、たったコーヒー一杯で 3時間ぐらい窓際の席で本を読んでました。そして気分転換には100冊ぐらい戸棚においてあった展覧会のカタログをお願いして見せてもらってペラペラとめくると、これが格好の芸術の自習になってました。こういうことを書くと、非常に高尚な喫茶店のように思えますが、コーヒーの美味しい、良い音楽のかかる、普通の喫茶店であり続けています。当時（移転前）は、夜になると、窓の下に見える山手通りに走る自動車のライトがきれいに見えたものです。『ケルン･コンサート』は、たぶん、その頃にかかっていたと思います。いまも、一年に一回は自宅のBOSEのスピーカーで聴いてます。
＜不定期刊行＞私も太鼓判のコーナー
なんとなく、昨晩聞いていたハービー・ハンコックの『処女航海』がそのままＣＤプレーヤーに入っていたので、今朝も聞いています。気がついてみると、半年に一回は聞く『私のお好み』なので、お薦めしてみます。私は自分からジャズ音源を積極的にに探すということもなく、だいたい友人のお薦め、ラジオでのお薦め、ＣＤショップでの試聴という受身で購入する感じです。ですので、薀蓄については、上記のAmazon.co.jpでの解説を参照のこと。この名作は、ラジオで坂本龍一が薦めてかけていたので買いました、それも『ドライブに合う曲』というベタなテーマで。私は自動車は運転しませんが、夜のドライブにこの曲はいいだろうと本当に思います。
三月大歌舞伎
十八代目勘三郎襲名公演となる三月大歌舞伎を歌舞伎座に見に行った。夜の部。演目は、盛綱陣屋（もりつなじんや）、保名（やすな）、そして鰯売恋曳網（いわしうりこいのひきあみ）。盛綱陣屋と鰯売に十八代目勘三郎は出演。観客は八割から九割は女性。盛綱陣屋にはこちらの目がジーンとする。そして、鰯売は三島由紀夫のおおらかな作品で、勘三郎の柔らかに鍛えられた資質が観客の心を解きほぐす。千秋楽で最後はスタンディング・オベーション。歌舞伎は楽しいね。
マーク・ロスコ
マーク・ロスコ（Mark Rothko）は好きな画家の一人だ。米国ワシントンDCのナショナル・ギャラリー・オブ・アーツにはかなりのロスコのコレクションがあり、そのホームページでもレビューすることができる。今回の渡米でも日曜日にちらっと見ることができた。
その他のカテゴリー
Economics | International Political Economy | LAC | Local Development | Memo to myself | 【日本経済論】 | 【経済学基礎】 | 【開発経済論】 | おすすめサイト | ウェブログ・ココログ関連 | グルメ・クッキング | ゲーム | スポーツ | ニュース | パソコン・インターネット | ファッション・アクセサリ | 大学生の就職活動 | 学問・資格 | 文化・芸術 | 斎藤兆史本を読む | 旅行・地域 | 日記・コラム・つぶやき | 映画・テレビ | 書籍・雑誌 | 東京で心の休まる所百選 | 経済・政治・国際 | 翻訳 | 芸能・アイドル | 趣味 | 音楽
Recent Comments