NAKAMURA KANZABURÔ XIII

6th day of the 10th lunar month of 1841^[1]: a fire broke out from the backstages of the Nakamuraza in the district of Sakai-chô. It spread and destroyed the Ichimuraza and the Nakamuraza.

20th day of the 10th lunar month of 1841^[2]: the Edo authorities forbade the reconstruction of the destroyed theaters in Sakai-chô.

19th day of the 12th lunar month of 1841^[3]: the Nakamuraza, Ichimuraza and Kawarasakiza were ordered to move to the remote district of Asakusa Saruwaka-chô.

10th lunar month of 1842: the newly-built Nakamuraza opened with an auspicious sanbasô performed by his father Nakamura Kanzaburô XII in the role of the okina. He made his first stage appearance, receiving the name of Nakamura Denzô III and playing the role of the sanbasô.

4th lunar month of 1850: Nakamura Kanzaburô XII gave his name to his son Nakamura Denzô III, who became Nakamura Kanzaburô XIII, and retired; the new Kanzaburô celebrated his shûmei at the Nakamuraza, performing in the dances "Kadomatsu", "Shinbochi Taiko" and "Saruwaka".

11th day of the 10th lunar month of 1851^[4]: his father Nakamura Kankurô III died.

5th day of the 11th lunar month of 1854^[5]: a big fire broke out in the district of Seiten-chô and reduced to ashes the Nakamuraza.

2nd day of the 10th lunar month of 1855^[6]: the Ansei Edo Earthquake (Ansei Edo Jishin) destroys Edo, killing many people and tearing down all the theaters.

9th lunar month of 1865: Kanzaburô performed at the Nakamuraza in the dances "Kadomatsu" [print], "Tsuri Gitsune", "Saruwaka" and "Shinbochi Taiko".

February 1875: Kanzaburô could not manage anymore the heavy burden of the Nakamuraza debt and he entrusted the management of the theater to his son-in-law Nakamura Nakazô III, who refused to take the name of Kanzaburô.

31 December 1876: a fire broke out in Edo in Asakusa and destroyed the Nakamuraza.

1877: the new zamoto was Hirano Gihei, who rebuilt the theater and renamed it Miyakoza, the name of one of the hikae yagura of the Nakamuraza during the Edo period.

July 1878 ~ December 1878: the Miyakoza opened, run for a few months and quickly went bankrupt.

July 1879: the theater reopened under the name of Saruwakaza; his new zamoto was Iwai Kumesaburô IV, the adopted son of Kanzaburô's brother-in-law Iwai Hanshirô VIII.

1883 ~ October 1884: the Saruwakaza was closed.

November 1884: the theater was rebuilt in the district of Asakusa Torigoe-chô and took the name of Saruwakaza.

23 January 1885: a fire broke out in the Saruwakaza and reduced it to ashes.

June 1886: the theater was rebuilt, renamed Nakamuraza and reopened.

Summer 1891: the Nakamuraza went bankrupt.

January 1892: the theater reopened and was renamed Torigoeza.

22 January 1893: a fire broke out in the district of Torigoe-chô and reduced to ashes the Torigoeza. Kanzaburô could not find the money to rebuild it, putting an end to a 269 years long history.

19 October 1895: Kanzaburô died.

Comments:

Nakamura Kanzaburô XIII was the official zamoto of the Nakamuraza from 1850 to 1875, the last one to hold this prestigious nameand always struggling to keep the business afloat. As an actor, he sometimes appeared on stage to perform in auspicious dances like "Saruwaka", a dance created by his great-great-great-great-grandfather Nakamura Kanzaburô I. He officially retired in February 1875 but kept on supervising from behind the scenes his theater and helping the successive zamoto like Nakamura Nakazô III, Iwai Kumesaburô IV (1879~1882), Nakamura Akashi V or Nakamura Shigejirô. His theater moved or changed its name several times (Miyakoza, Saruwakaza, Torigoeza) up to its final destruction by fire in January 1893. Out of business, Kanzaburô settled in the district of Asakusa Matsuba-chô and opened a Go club.

[1] The 6th day of the 10th lunar month of the 12th year of the Tenpô era was the 18th of November 1841 in the western calendar.

[2] The 20th day of the 10th lunar month of the 12th year of the Tenpô era was the 2nd of December 1841 in the western calendar.

[3] The 19th day of the 12th lunar month of the 12th year of the Tenpô era was the 30th of January 1842 in the western calendar.

[4] The 11th day of the 10th of the 4th year of the Kaei era was the 4th of November 1851 in the western calendar.

[5] The 5th day of the 11th lunar month of the 7th year of the Kaei era was the 24th of December 1854 in the western calendar.

[6] The 2nd day of the 10th lunar month of the 2nd year of the Ansei era was the 11th of November 1855 in the western calendar.

Nakamura Kanzaburô XIII playing the role of Tarôkaja in the dance "Kadomatsu", which was staged in the 9th lunar month of 1865 at the Nakamuraza (print made by Utagawa Kunisada II)

Prints & Illustrations

The Nakamura Denzô line of actors

The Nakamura Kanzaburô line of actors and theater managers