Shôriya Aragorô deep in thought
Short movie directed by Simon de Meguro (Kinkazan Island, some years ago)

My name is Shôriya Aragorô (Aragorô of the Laughing Badger House). I was born in France in a city that could be compared to Kyôto for many obvious or non-obvious reasons. I spent 10 years in Japan, from 1994 to 2003. From the first day of my long stay in Japan, I had in mind to go enjoying some Kabuki at least once ... you know ... the classic list of things to do before leaving Japan. Time went by, year after year, and I kept on postponing my first trip to the Kabukiza ... until December 1998. I went there and I had the shock of my life. It was a strong revelation. A kind of smaller version of what has happened to St Paul on the road to Damascus. I fell in love with the art of Kabuki.

Thinking about it, I had the chance, thanks to this amazing December 1998, program to enjoy "Ageya", "Tengajaya" and "Kumo no Hyôshimai", with Bandô Tamasaburô, Sawamura Sôjûrô and Ichikawa Ennosuke's troupe in full regalia. I sometimes wonder how things would have turned if my introduction to Kabuki were say "Genroku Chûshingura" or any other extremely serious (too serious, too rational and without any of the Kabuki magic in it) Shinkabuki dramas (don’t get me wrong, I respect Shinkabuki … but it does not give me any pleasure). If it were "Genroku Chûshingura", most likely there would have been no kabuki21.com at all! I would have gone to Kabukiza once, just like so many foreigners staying in Japan ... I would have checked the Kabuki box, the one located above "Climbing Mt. Fuji" and below "Going to Sumô" and that would have been the end of the story.

Bandô Tamasaburô, Sawamura Sôjûrô and Ichikawa Ennosuke for the first day at the Grand Kabuki! I felt I was the luckiest and happiest person on planet Earth when the Kabukiza stage curtain was pulled to end the show. Tears were filling my eyes and I swore to myself this would not be my last time at the Kabukiza! Next month, I was there for "Sanmon", "Seki no To" and "Kôchiyama" with a new year gorgeous casting. Getting severely addicted to Kabuki, I went to the Kabukiza, the National Theatre or others venues to enjoy Kabuki several times a month. I started to read a little bit and learn more about this art and so many questions popped up. Being very interested in History, I wanted to learn more about the origin of Kabuki, the different periods in Kabuki history, the lineages and ... I was quite frustrated for I could not find what I was looking for on the internet (it was before Wikipedia!). I've created a little website, gathering data about Kabuki dramas, actors, history, glossary, programs ... it was in French at the beginning. Then, I've decided to use the 21st century Lingua Franca and started in 2002 kabuki21.com. It took me quite a long time to get everything in English. Not a very good English unfortunately but all the contents is now available and readable by more people around the world.

I am not an expert, I am not a Kabuki scholar and I am not a fine connoisseur with several decades of Kabuki on my art clock. The consequence is that there are (unfortunately) many mistakes to be corrected here and there. This amateur project is nevertheless still going on, with a regular monthly update, and it goes without saying that it is open to all. If you feel in the mood to write a summary of a Kabuki drama, I would be extremely delighted to integrate your work within kabuki21.com!

Bandô Mitsugorô X^*
Bandô Tamasaburô V
Ichikawa Danjûrô XII^*
Ichikawa Danzô IX
Ichikawa Ennosuke IV
Ichikawa En'ô II^*
Kataoka Ainosuke VI
Kataoka Gatô V
Kataoka Hidetarô II^*
Kataoka Nizaemon XV
Kataoka Takatarô
Nakamura Ganjirô IV
Nakamura Jakuemon IV^*
Nakamura Jakuemon V
Nakamura Kanzaburô XVIII^*
Nakamura Kichiemon II^*
Nakamura Senjaku III
Nakamura Shichinosuke II
Nakamura Shikan VIII
Nakamura Tokizô V
Nakamura Tomijûrô V^*
Onoe Kikugorô VII
Onoe Kikunosuke V
Sakata Tôjûrô IV^*
Sawamura Sôjûrô IX^*

(*) Requiescat in Pace !

Abura no Jigoku
Botan Dôrô
Daimotsu no Ura
Ehon Gappô-ga-Tsuji
Gion Ichiriki Jaya
Jusshukô
Kamiyui Shinza
Kinkakuji
Kurumabiki
Masakado
Naozamurai
Narukami
Natsu Matsuri
Numazu
Renjishi
Sagi Musume
Sakura Hime
Sanmon
Sannin Kichisa
Seki no To
Shunkan
Sodehagi Saimon
Terakoya
Ya-no-Ne
Yotsuya Kaidan

Shôriya Aragorô carrying out a morphing experiment
(Champs-Elysées, November 2006)

Beside Kabuki, Shôriya Aragorô is fond of Literature (Mario Vargas Llosa, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Jorge Luis Borges, José Saramago, Abe Kôbô, Mishima Yukio, Marcel Aymé, Honoré de Balzac, Anatole France, Ed McBain), Jazz Fusion (Jaco Pastorius, Marcus Miller, Pat Metheny, Stanley Clarke, Erik Truffaz), SF masters (PK Dick, Iain M. Banks, Vernor Vinge, Ursula Le Guin), Brazilian Music (Caetano Veloso, Milton Nascimento, Seu Jorge, Zeca Pagodinho), travelling (all over the world!), good old Hard Rock/Southern Rock/Prog (Allman Brothers Band, Black Sabbath, Blue Öyster Cult, Cinderella, Deep Purple, Guns N'Roses, Judas Priest, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Magnum, Molly Hatchet, Motörhead, Ozric Tentacles, Saxon, UFO, Whitesnake, Y&T), Japanese movies (1950s/1960s masterpieces), anything Pythonesque (big fan of the Monty Python), France/Belgium comics (the Marcinelle School), Belgium Biers (Westmalle, Rochefort, Chimay, Orval), History (Roman Empire, the Golden Age of Venezia, the rise and fall of the Incas, the Eastern Front 1941~1945), Italian classics (Fellini, Scola, Risi) and ... (nobody's perfect) futebol (Olympique Lyonnais, a.k.a. les Gones, Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas, a.k.a. Fogão, and Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio, a.k.a. la Dea).