Pen name:

Nakamura Jûsuke IV

Dancer name:

Nakamura Denjirô V

Others names:

Nakamura Koichi IV
Nakamura Jûsuke IV

Poetry name: Koichi

Existence: 1807 ~ 29th day of the 7th lunar month of 1841 ^[1]

Connection:

Father: Nakamura Shichisaburô IV

Disciple: Nakamura Kiichi

Career:

1807: born in Edo. He was the son of the actor Nakamura Shichisaburô IV.

1807 ~ 1822: he was in his prime a Buyô dancer belonging to the Shigayama school of Buyô. He performed under the name of Nakamura Denjirô V.

11th lunar month of 1822: he became sakusha, took the name of Nakamura Jûsuke IV and worked at the Nakamuraza, along with Sakurada Jisuke II, on the kaomise drama "Gohiiki Azuma Hyakkan", which celebrated the shûmei of Mimasu Gennosuke I and Sakata Hangorô IV, and welcomed in Edo the Kamigata actor Nakamura Sankô I; the others main actors were Matsumoto Kôshirô V, Bandô Mitsugorô III, Iwai Kumesaburô II, Arashi Kanjûrô I and Yamashina Jinkichi III.

11th lunar month of 1825: premiere at the Nakamuraza of Tsuruya Nanboku IV's drama "Oniwaka Kongen Butai" ^[2]; the main roles were played by Ichikawa Danjûrô VII, Iwai Shijaku I (Osome) and Iwai Kumesaburô II (Hisamatsu). Jûsuke worked with Tsuruya Nanboku IV and Katsui Genpachi on this drama.

8th lunar month of 1826: premiere at the Nakamuraza of Tsuruya Nanboku IV's drama "Soga Nakamura Aki no Torikomi"; Jûsuke was a member of the sakusha team [casting].

11th lunar month of 1828: Jûsuke worked at the Ichimuraza, along with Matsushima Chôfu I, Matsukawa Hôsaku and Nagawa Motosuke, on the kaomise drama "Mitsugi no Yuki Genji Hiiki". Jûsuke's yearly salary was 24 ryô ^[3].

11th lunar month of 1829: Jûsuke worked at the Nakamuraza on Tsuruya Nanboku IV's final drama "Kin no Zai Sarushima Dairi" [more details].

11th lunar month of 1831: Jûsuke worked at the Nakamuraza, along with Tamaki Kyûji and Matsuchi Shôkichi, on the kaomise drama "Sôma Dairi Sechie no Ôyose".

2nd lunar month of 1835: premiere at the Ichimuraza of "Ume no Haru Gojûsan Tsugi" ^[4], a drama written by Mimasuya Nisôji, Jûsuke and Tsuruya Magotarô IV.

11th lunar month of 1836: Jûsuke worked at the Ichimuraza, along with Takarada Jusuke and Shinoda Sasuke, on the kaomise drama "Seiwa Nidai Oshi no Tsuwamono" ^[5].

11th lunar month of 1838: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Jûsuke's Tokiwazu-based dance "Hanabutai Kasumi no Saruhiki", commonly called "Utsubo Zaru" [casting].

11th lunar month of 1840: Jûsuke worked at the Kawarasakiza on the kaomise drama "Kaeribana Yuki no Takeda", whose plot and characters belonged to the "Honchô Nijûshikô" world.

29th day of the 7th lunar month of 1841 ^[1]: Jûsuke died in Edo.

Comments:

Nakamura Jûsuke IV was an important Edo sakusha, who was active for 19 years from 1822 to 1841. He will stay in Kabuki history as the playwright who wrote the lyrics of "Utsubo Zaru".

[1] The 29th day of the 7th lunar month of the 12th year of the Tenpô era was the 14th of September 1841 in the western calendar.

[2] The michiyuki, which is called "Ukine no Tomodori", is still part of the current Kabuki repertoire.

[3] Tsuruya Nanboku IV, the best Edo playwright, was paid 175 ryô. Bandô Mitsugorô III, the zagashira at the Ichimuraza, was paid 700 ryô.

[4] "Given the title, audiences might have expected a version of Jippensha Ikku's (1765–1831) best-selling comic novel Tôkaidôchû Hizakurige (popularly known as Shank's Mare), but what they got instead was a spectacle of frightening scenes, along with erotic interplay and comic spoofing of Nanboku's favorite themes. Ume no haru, like its predecessor, included a monstrous demon cat, but also added a renegade priest who masters rat magic and a thief named Nezumi Kozô ("Kid Rat"). With these elements, the play qualified as a type of drama called neko-sôdômono." (from osakaprints.com)

[5] Another possible reading was "Semewa Nidai Kishi no Tsuwamono".

The name of Nakamura Jûsuke IV in a 1826 Edo hyôbanki (the zone within the red box); all the names were the sakusha at the Nakamuraza

The Nakamura Koichi line of playwrights

The Nakamura Jûsuke line of playwrights