Pen names:

Kyôgendô Sakô II [1]
Sakurada Jisuke III
Matsushima Hanji III	|
Katsushika Otosuke

Others name:

Kyôgendô

Guild: Yamashiroya

Line number: NIDAIME (II)

Poetry name: Sakô

Existence: 1802 ~ 7 August 1877

Connection:

Master: Matsushima Chôfu I (Sakurada Jisuke II)

Disciples: Sakurada Jisuke IV, Matsushima Hanji V, Matsushima Hanji VI, Kasanui Sensuke II, Shimizu Shôshichi, Noshi Shinzô

Career:

11th lunar month of 1824: he started his career as a sakusha at the Kawarasakiza, working on the drama "Otokoyama Toritate Genji"; his first pen name was Katsushika Otosuke.

1825: he became disciple of Sakurada Jisuke II and received the name of Matsushima Hanji III.

End of 1826 or beginning of 1827: his master took the name of Matsushima Chôfu I.

11th lunar month of 1827: Hanji worked at the Ichimuraza with his master on the kaomise drama "Kawaranu Hana Genji no Kaomise".

11th lunar month of 1828: Hanji worked at the Nakamuraza on Tsuruya Nanboku IV's drama "Motomishi Hana Otogi Heike"; his yearly salary was 18 ryô.

14th day of the 4th lunar month of 1829: his master Matsushima Chôfu I died.

1833: receiving the patronage of Sakurada Jisuke I's widow, he was allowed to take the name of Sakurada Jisuke III.

1835: he became tatesakusha.

11th lunar month of 1835: Jisuke worked at the Nakamuraza on the production of the classic "Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami", which starred Onoe Kikugorô III (Kan Shôjô, Sakuramaru, Takebe Genzô ^[2], Shundo Genba), Ichikawa Ebizô V (Umeômaru, Kakuju, Takebe Genzô ^[3]), Bandô Hikosaburô IV (Shihei, Terukuni), Matsumoto Kôshirô V (Matsuômaru), Osagawa Tsuneyo IV (Tatsuta-no-Mae, Haru), Onoe Kikujirô II ^[4] (Yae), Onoe Eizaburô III (Tonami) and Arashi Kanjûrô I (Hyôe, Shiratayû).

11th lunar month of 1836: Jisuke worked at the Nakamuraza, along with Matsushima Chôfu II and Dontsû Yosabê II, on the kaomise drama "Shindô Saemon Tsukushi no Kumiobi".

11th lunar month of 1840: Jisuke worked at the Ichimuraza on the drama "Chinzei Hachirô Gôma no Kaburaya". He most likely also worked on the Nagauta-based dance-drama "Meoto Dôjôji".

1st lunar month of 1843: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Jisuke's dance "Kashiragaki Ise Monogatari" (commonly called "Noriaibune"), which was staged within the new year drama "Kioi Uta Soga no Hanadashi" [more details].

1st lunar month of 1845: premiere at the Nakamuraza of Sakurada Jisuke's dance "Awa Mochi" [more details].

2nd lunar month of 1847: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Sakurada Jisuke's 11-role hengemono "Kanadehon Chûshingura" ^[5] (same title as the classic drama "Kanadehon Chûshingura"); each role, which was performed by Ichimura Uzaemon XII, was based on 1 act of "Chûshingura" [more details].

1st lunar month: premiere at the Nakamuraza of Sakurada Jisuke's Tokiwazu-based dance-drama "Kagura Uta Kumoi no Kyokumari", which was commonly called "Dontsuku" [more details].

4th lunar month of 1847: premiere at the Kawarasakiza of Sakurada Jisuke's dance-drama "Shiki no Hina Asakusa Hakkei" (commonly called "Kyô Ningyô") [casting].

2nd lunar month of 1851: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Sakurada Jisuke's Kiyomoto-based dance "Akegarasu Hana no Nureginu", commonly called "Urazato Tokijirô" or "Akegarasu" [casting].

1st lunar month of 1852: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Sakurada Jisuke's drama "Satomi Hakkenden" [casting].

5th lunar month of 1856: premiere at the Moritaza of the first version of "Matsuura no Taiko", as 3 extended acts of the classic "Kanadehon Chûshingura". This program, which celebrated the reopening of the Moritaza was entitled "Shin Butai Iroha no Kakizome". Sakô was a member of the sakusha team.

1856: he started to call himself Kyôgendô Sakô II ^[1], Kyôgendô or still Sakurada Jisuke.

1st lunar month of 1860: the 1762 puppet drama "Kishi no Himematsu Kutsuwa Kagami" (commonly called "Kishi Hime") was adapted for the first time to Kabuki, in Edo at the Moritaza; it was integrated within the new year sogamono drama "Momo Chidori Nigiwai Soga" [casting]. Sakô was a member of the sakusha team.

1st lunar month of 1862: his disciple Kimura Enji II took the name of Sakurada Jisuke IV at the Moritaza.

4th lunar month of 1865: Sakô worked at the Nakamuraza on the drama "Yoshitaka Shima Chibiki no Aminote".

7th lunar month of 1869: premiere at the Nakamuraza of Kawatake Shinshichi II's drama "Kichisama Mairu Yukari no Otozure". Sakô was a member of the sakusha team.

July 1875: Sakô wrote the lyrics of the dance-drama "Dôjôji Manete Mitsumen", which was staged at the Shintomiza. This was his final creation.

7 August 1877: Sakô died ^[6].

Comments:

Kyôgendô Sakô II was an important sakusha who was active from the end of the Bunka/Bunsei era, symbolized by Tsuruya Nanboku IV, to the end of the Edo period, the beginning of the Meiji era, which was symbolized by Kawatake Mokuami. Kyôgendô Sakô II was not as talented as these two geniuses but he made a long career and was a prolific playwright who worked on more than 200 dramas, including more than 50 dance-dramas for which he wrote the lyrics.

"The last sakusha to shine before the dawn of the Meiji era was Sakurada Jisuke, who was born in 1802 and died in the tenth year of Meiji, 1877. He was associated with actors and literary men for forty years, and during most of his career he was head of the Edo playwrights. He wrote many plays, and among them are a number frequently given by the actors of modern Tôkyô and Ôsaka. The little eccentricities of the sakusha were long remembered after they had passed away. Sakurada Jisuke had a habit of frequently moving his residence. He would make a hole in his cupboard through which his rice was poured by the delivery boy from the rice shop, as he did not like people to see how much he had ordered at a time. But while he was parsimonious in some matters, in others he was prodigal. He lived in Mukôjima, across the Sumida River from Tôkyô, and at times bought a whole bag of charcoal, for use in the hibachi, to warm himself in the boat that took him across the river-just to make a show. The trip across the river was brief, and he was well aware he required but a small portion. When an old farmer came selling squash, Jisuke purchased his entire stock-in-trade and then presented him with one of the vegetables as a reward, after which the countryman spread the tale of the sakusha's generosity. It was a time when the fortunes of the sakusha were at the lowest ebb, when writers for the theatre were entirely subordinate to the actors, and yet the dignity of his profession must have been felt by Jisuke, for it is reported that he resented being placed under young actors." (Zoë Kincaid in "Kabuki, the Popular Stage of Japan")

[1] Sakurada Jisuke I never officially held the name of Kyôgendô Sakô I but he was considered as the first in this line of playwrights.

[2] Only in "Hippô Denju".

[3] Only in "Terakoya".

[4] Onoe Kikujirô II celebrated his shûmei in this production.

[5] The 6th role, "Kagoya", is now an independent dance belonging to the current Kabuki repertoire.

[6] When dying, Sakurada Jisuke expressed a last wish: "Do not have Buddhist ceremonies or anniversaries for me, but be careful not to neglect Edo plays" (Zoë Kincaid in "Kabuki, the Popular Stage of Japan")

The name of Kyôgendô Sakô II in a 1864 Moritaza ehon banzuke (the name within the red box)

The Matsushima Hanji line of playwrights

The Sakurada Jisuke line of playwrights

The Kyôgendô Sakô line of playwrights