MORITA KAN'YA XIII

Stage names:

Morita Kan'ya XIII
Bandô Mitahachi III

Guild: Kinojiya

Line number: JÛSANDAIME (XIII)

Existence: 18 October 1885 ~ 16 June 1932

Connections:

Father: Morita Kan'ya XII

Brother: Bandô Mitsugorô VII

Sister: Bandô Tamasaburô III

Son: Bandô Kôtarô

Adopted son: Morita Kan'ya XIV

Grandsons: Bandô Kichiya II, Bandô Yajûrô

Disciples: Bandô Shinasaku, Bandô Yagorô I^[1], Bandô Takizô, Bandô San'emon, Bandô Tsumanosuke

Career:

18 October 1885: born in Tôkyô.

December 1890: he made his first appearance on stage, at the Shintomiza, where he received the name of Bandô Mitahachi III and performed in the drama "Higuchi no Kanemitsu Sakaro no Aranami".

21 August 1897: his father Morita Kan'ya XII died.

November 1906: Bandô Mitahachi III became nadai and took the name of Morita Kan'ya XIII at the Shintomiza, performing in the dance "Renjishi".

1909: the management of the Shintomiza was taken over by the Shôchiku Company.

September 1914: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Furukawa Shinsui's drama "Ansei Kibun Tsukuda no Yoarashi"; Kan'ya played the role of Jôshûya Hanjirô [more details].

October 1914: premiere at the Meijiza of Okamoto Kidô's drama "Soga Monogatari"; Kan'ya played the role of Soga Jûrô [casting].

1915: Kan'ya created and led the Bungeiza, a theater study group, which focused on new productions (Shinkabuki, modern theater) and also the adaptations of Western plays. The two others main actors were Ichikawa Ennosuke II and Nakamura Tôzô V.

28 ~ 30 June 1915: first program of the Bungeiza at the Imperial Theater. Then, the group stayed inactive up to 1918.

September 1918: premiere at the Ichimuraza of Okamura Shikô's dance-drama "Imohori Chôja"; Kan'ya played the role of Sakigake Heima [casting].

July 1922: premiere at the Imperial Theater of Tanizaki Jun'ichirô's drama "Okuni to Gohei"; Kan'ya played the role of Tomonojô [casting].

March 1923: premiere at the Imperial Theater of Osanai Kaoru's drama "Musuko"; Kan'ya played the role of the hori [more details].

1 September 1923 (11:58 AM): Tôkyô was destroyed by a powerful earthquake called Kantô Daijishin, which killed more than 200,000 people and destroyed the Shintomiza.

February 1925: tenth and final program of the Bungeiza.

June 1925: premiere at the Shinbashi Enbujô of Suzuki Senzaburô's drama "Ikite-iru Koheiji"; Kan'ya played the role of Kohata Koheiji [more details].

March 1928: premiere at the Hongôza of Oka Onitarô's drama "Nemuru-ga-Rakuda Monogatari"; Kan'ya played the role of the yûjin Chôname no Hanji [casting].

June 1929: premiere at the Imperial Theater of Tsubouchi Shôyô's dance-drama "Ryôkan to Komori" [more details]; Kan'ya played the role of Ryôkan.

July 1931: premiere in Tôkyô at the Tôkyô Gekijô of the play "Ippon Gatana Dohyô Iri", written by Hasegawa Shin; Kan'ya played the role of Tatsusaburô [casting].

January 1932: Kan'ya appeared on stage for the last time, in Tôkyô at the Kabukiza, performing in the dramas "Na-mo Tachibana Homare no Ishikiri" and "Kozaru Shichinosuke".

16 June 1932: Kan'ya died.

Comments:

Morita Kan'ya XIII was the first in this line to be an actor and not a zamoto. He was a talented tachiyaku excelling as a wagotoshi. He was endowed with a great voice and an amazing memory. He was open to new forms of theaters and spent a lot of time and energy in the creations of new dramas.

[1] Bandô Yagorô I was most likely a disciple of Morita Kan'ya XIII but, as Bandô Yagorô I was not not recorded in the latest edition (2012) of "Kabuki Haiyû Meiseki Benran" or in Nojima Jusaburô's book "Kabuki Jinmei Jiten", we could not validate the assumption. So it is 95% sure, not 100%!

The Bandô Mitahachi line of actors

The Morita Kan'ya line of actors and theater managers