Stage names:
| Arashi Rikan IV |  |
| Arashi Tokusaburô IV | |
| Arashi Wasaburô II | |
Real name: Asakawa Rikan
Guild: Hamuraya
Poetry name: Baien
Line number: YODAIME (IV)
Existence: 1837 ~ 31 May 1894
Connections:
Father: Arashi Rikan III
Adopted son: Arashi Rikan V
Grandson: Arashi Tokusaburô VI
Disciples: Arashi Ganshô, Arashi Rishô II, Arashi Kitsusaburô IV, Arashi Mikan, Arashi Ritoku
Career:
1837: born in Ôsaka.
7th lunar month of 1846: first stage appearance; he receives the name of Arashi Wasaburô II.
11th lunar month of 1851: Arashi Rikan III and his son Wasaburô go together to Edo and play at the Kawarazakiza in the drama "Nobori Goi Taki no Shirahata".
12th lunar month of 1855: they go back to Kamigata.
2nd lunar month of 1861: Arashi Wasaburô II takes the name of Arashi Tokusaburô IV in Ôsaka at the Chikugo no Shibai.
4th lunar month of 1863: his father Arashi Rikan III dies.
8th lunar month of 1867: Arashi Tokusaburô IV takes the name of Arashi Rikan IV in Ôsaka at the Chikugo no Shibai, playing seven roles in the drama "Osome Hisamatsu Ukina no Yomiuri".
1st lunar month of 1872: Rikan plays at the Chikugo no Shibai the role of Iwanaga Saemon in the drama "Dan no Ura Kabuto Gunki"; his stage partners are Ôtani Tomoemon V (Akoya), Arashi Hinasuke VII (Shigetada) and Jitsukawa Enjaku I (Hanzawa Rokurô).
November 1877: Rikan plays for the first time the role of Tamate Gozen in the drama "Sesshû Gappô-ga-Tsuji", which is staged at the Kitagawa no Shibai; his stage partners are Nakamura Kashichi (Gappô) and Jitsukawa Ganjirô (Shuntokumaru).
March 1880: Rikan plays at the Ebisuza (Ôsaka) the role of the Princess Toki in the classic "Kamakura Sandaiki"; his stage partners are Jitsukawa Enjaku I (Miuranosuke) and Onoe Tamizô II (Sasaki Takatsuna).
September 1881: Rikan goes to Tôkyô; Rikan achieves a great success by playing the role of Kuzu-no-Ha in the drama "Tsukimizuki Kitsune Kuzu-no-Ha", which is staged at the Ichimuraza; the role of Abe no Yasuna is played by Suketakaya Takasuke IV. Rikan also plays in the drama "Sekigahara Tôzai Gunki".
May 1883: première at the Ichimuraza of the drama "Shin Sarayashiki Tsuki no Amagasa"; Rikan plays the role of Urato Jûzaemon [casting].
October 1883: Rikan goes back to Ôsaka and plays at the Ebisuza in the drama "Ôeyama Minamoto no Tsuwamono".
1884: tour in Nagoya.
October 1884: Rikan plays at the Ebisuza (Ôsaka) the role of Motoemon in the drama "Tengajaya-Mura"; his stage partners are Arashi Kitsusaburô IV (Iori), Nakamura Ganjirô I (Genjirô), Jitsukawa Enjaku I (Yasuke, Kôemon) and Ichikawa Aragorô III (Tôma Saburôemon).
April 1887: premiere at the Nakaza of Katsu Genzô III's drama "Nikaigasa Yagyû Jikki"; Rikan plays the role of Ôkubo Hikozaemon [casting].
June 1892: Rikan plays for the last time the role of Tamate Gozen in the drama "Sesshû Gappô-ga-Tsuji", which is staged at the Naka no Shibai; his stage partners are Arashi Kichisaburô V (Gappô) and Nakamura Fukumatsurô (Shuntokumaru).
Comments:
Arashi Rikan IV was a great kaneru yakusha, who was endowed with a beautiful voice (his line-delivery was perfect) and achieved fame for himself not only in his native Kamigata but also in Tôkyô. His forte were jidaimono dramas and he took part in the creations of several new dramas.
Arashi Rikan IV playing the role of Kuzu-no-Ha in the drama "Tsukimizuki Kitsune Kuzu-no-Ha", which was staged in September 1881 at the Ichimuraza (print made by Yôshû Chikanobu)
Print made by Utagawa Toyokuni in 1853
Print made by Nakai Yoshitaki in 1866
Print made by Utagawa Kunikazu in 1867
Print made by Yôshû Chikanobu in 1881
Print made by Toyohara Kunichika in 1882
Print made by Toyohara Kunichika in 1883
The Arashi Wasaburô line of actors
The Arashi Tokusaburô line of actors
The Arashi Rikan line of actors