3 shows in Tôkyô (Shinbashi Enbujô, National Theatre), 2 in Ôsaka (Shôchikuza), 1 show in Kyôto (Minamiza) and 1 tour (Western Provinces)!

Nakamura Kichiemon, Nakamura Baigyoku, Nakamura Shibajaku, Nakamura Fukusuke, Nakamura Kaishun, Kataoka Takatarô and Nakamura Kinnosuke perform at the Shinbashi Enbujô!

Nakamura Kankurô, Bandô Tamasaburô, Nakamura Kanjaku, Nakamura Senjaku, Nakamura Hashinosuke, Kataoka Gatô, Kataoka Hidetarô, Bandô Yajûrô and Nakamura Shichinosuke perform at the Shôchikuza!

The young stars of the Omodakaya guild are on tour in the Western Provinces !

Nakamura Kichiemon, Nakamura Baigyoku, Nakamura Shibajaku, Nakamura Fukusuke, Nakamura Kaishun, Kataoka Takatarô, Nakamura Kinnosuke, Nakamura Karoku, Nakamura Matagorô, Onoe Shôroku, Ichikawa Komazô, Nakamura Kashô, Nakamura Matsue, Sawamura Yoshijirô, Ôtani Keizô, Sawamura Sônosuke, Bandô Kametoshi, Matsumoto Kingo, Ôtani Hirotarô, Ôtani Hiromatsu, Nakamura Tanenosuke, Nakamura Hayato, Nakamura Yonekichi, Nakamura Kichinosuke

This is the 6th edition in Tôkyô of a special program called "Shûzan Matsuri" (the festival of Shûzan), which is produced at the Shinbashi Enbujô to commemorate the great actor Nakamura Kichiemon I, whose's haimyô was Shûzan. The star of this program is his adopted son Nakamura Kichiemon II.

Terakoya: Genzô and his wife Tonami run a small school and are protecting Kan Shôjô's son and heir, saying that he is their son. However, word has gotten out Kan Shôjô's son is there and Genzô has been ordered to behead him. Moreover, Matsuômaru is to come to inspect the head. Their only alternative is to kill one of the other students as a substitute, but all of the students are farmer's children who could never pass for the son of a court aristocrat. However, a new boy arrives that day and Genzô makes the terrible decision to kill him in the place of his lord. As it turns out, Matsuômaru has sent his own son to be sacrificed, because of his family's long loyalty to Kan Shôjô. But he must face the most terrible situation for a father, inspecting the head of his own son and lying when he says that it is the genuine head of the son of Kan Shôjô. Finally Matsuômaru reveals his true feelings to Genzô and he and his wife Chiyo mourn their dead son. Starring Nakamura Kichiemon as Matsuômaru, Nakamura Baigyoku as Genzô, Nakamura Fukusuke as Chiyo and Nakamura Shibajaku as Tonami.

Kôchiyama: the tea priest Kôchiyama (Nakamura Kichiemon) is a skilled thief and extortionist, but cannot turn down a request to help those in need. He disguises himself as a high-ranking priest to try to gain the freedom of a girl held by a powerful samurai lord (Nakamura Baigyoku) because she will not become his mistress. Using the famous poetic cadences of the late 19th century playwright Mokuami, Kôchiyama not only succeeds in his mission to rescue the girl, but he manages to extort a fair amount for himself. Featuring also Nakamura Kaishun, Nakamura Kinnosuke, Nakamura Karoku and Nakamura Matagorô.

Badarai: based on the true historical story of Akechi Mitsuhide who betrayed his lord Oda Nobunaga and ruled Japan for a few short days before being defeated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, this play focuses on Mitsuhide and his tortured relationship with the arrogant and unreasonable lord Nobunaga. It is one of the few period plays by Tsuruya Nanboku IV still performed today and brings the same sharp psychological insight and eye for the attractiveness of evil characters that make his ghost plays and plays about commoners so powerful. Featuring Nakamura Kichiemon, Nakamura Baigyoku, Nakamura Kaishun and Nakamura Karoku in the roles of Takechi Mitsuhide (because of strict censorship, the real names were not used), Shihôten Tajima-no-Kami, Mitsuhide's wife Satsuki and Oda Harunaga. Featuring also Nakamura Shibajaku, Nakamura Kinnosuke, Ichikawa Komazô and Nakamura Matagorô.

Musume Dôjôji: a beautiful young woman dances under cherry blossoms at a dedication ceremony for a temple bell. She dances the many aspects of a woman in love, but is actually the spirit of a serpent, driven to destroy the bell out of jealousy. In addition to being the most famous of all Kabuki dances, "Musume Dôjôji" is considered to be the pinnacle of the art of the onnagata. This month’s production stars Nakamura Fukusuke as the maiden and also features a rare performance of the second part of the dance where the maiden appears as a serpent and is pushed back by Ôdate Samagorô Teruhide (Onoe Shôroku), a powerful hero played in the bombastic aragoto style.

Sources: Earphone Guide Website or Shôchiku Kabuki Official Website

Nakamura Kankurô, Bandô Tamasaburô, Nakamura Kanjaku, Nakamura Senjaku, Nakamura Hashinosuke, Kataoka Gatô, Kataoka Hidetarô, Bandô Yajûrô, Nakamura Shichinosuke, Bandô Takesaburô, Kataoka Ichizô, Kataoka Kamezô, Nakamura Kikaku, Kamimura Kichiya, Bandô Shinsha, Nakamura Kazutarô, Bandô Shingo

Nakamura Kankurô VI celebrates his shûmei in Ôsaka at the Shôchikuza!

Mikasayama Goten: a fantastic Kabuki period play showing intrigues in the imperial court in the earliest days of Japan. The dictator Soga no Iruka has set up his own court and now seeks to destroy his opponent Kamatari. A mysterious fisherman named Fukashichi (Nakamura Hashinosuke) comes as a messenger from Kamatari, claiming to bring a message of surrender. Meanwhile, Iruka's younger sister, Princess Tachibana (Nakamura Kazutarô) has fallen in love with a handsome young man named Motome (Bandô Shingo). But Motome is actually the son of Kamatari and says that he will only grant her love if she will cut off Iruka's head. Moreover, a country girl named Omiwa (Nakamura Shichinosuke) has also followed Motome. Omiwa's blood and the work of all these people combined are what is necessary to finally defeat the magical powers of the evil Iruka. Featuring also Nakamura Kanjaku.

Niwaka Jishi: this lively dance evokes the atmosphere of an Edo period festival. The highlight of the piece is the lion dance performed by two of the handsome young men of the neighborhood. Featuring Nakamura Senjaku (the geisha) and Nakamura Hashinosuke (the firefighter).

Dango Uri:
(The Dumpling Peddlers)
the mortar and pestle used for pounding rice cakes and dumplings are a symbol of a happily married couple. This short, lively dance shows a couple peddling dumplings with a series of songs and dances. Starring Nakamura Shichinosuke and the new Nakamura Kankurô in the roles of the husband and the wife.

Mabuta no Haha:
(The Remembered Mother)
first performed in 1931, "Mabuta no Haha" is a play by Hasegawa Shin (1884~1963), who specialized in gritty realistic representations of the lower classes in the Edo period. Banba no Chûtarô (the new Nakamura Kankurô) is a rough gangster, but has always regretted not knowing his mother (Bandô Tamasaburô). After helping a friend and his mother, he decides to search for his own. He believes to have found her in Ohama, the mistress of a restaurant, but she refuses to acknowledge him to protect the reputation of her daughter, who is about to be married. Unable to meet his mother, he closes his eyes and tries to imagine her as the beautiful woman he remembers, not the horror of reality. Featuring also Bandô Yajûrô, Nakamura Shichinosuke, Kataoka Ichizô, Kataoka Kamezô and Bandô Takesaburô.

Onna Shibaraku: more ceremony than play, "Shibaraku" is one of the oldest pieces in Kabuki. Just as an evil villain is about to execute a group of loyal retainers, a voice calls out for him to wait and a hero appears to save the day. This version is a parody, though, as the hero is played by an onnagata female role specialist, who mixes the super-human strength of an aragoto hero with the soft gentleness of a Kabuki heroine. Featuring Bandô Tamasaburô as the heroine and Nakamura Hashinosuke as the larger-than-life villain, with the new Nakamura Kankurô as a friendly stage attendant who makes sure that everything goes right. Featuring also Nakamura Kanjaku, Bandô Yajûrô, Nakamura Shichinosuke, Kataoka Ichizô, Kataoka Kamezô, Kamimura Kichiya and Kataoka Hidetarô.

Kôjô: the close relationship between the actors and the audience is shown by these stage announcements, lavish ceremonies to commemorate various important events. In this case, all the stars of the cast (including Kataoka Gatô) assemble to celebrate the shûmei of Nakamura Kankurô VI at the Shôchikuza.

Amagoi Gitsune:
(The Fox Praying for Rain)
They say that when it rains while the sun is shining, this means that the bridal procession of a fox is passing. That is what is shown in this relatively modern dance starring a talented dancer as a magical fox that does a series of dances in six highly contrasting roles: a fox, a shrine maiden praying for rain, a blind masseur, Ono no Tôfû (one of the greatest calligraphers in the history of Japan), the fox bride in a bridal procession and a paper lantern. The six roles are danced by the new Nakamura Kankurô.

Kari no Tayori: an unusual play in the Ôsaka acting style originally written in the 19th century by Nakamura Utaemon III. A barber (Nakamura Kanjaku) finds his feelings twisted one way and another by the events in the neighboring samurai mansion where the lord is trying to force Tsukasa (Nakamura Kazutarô), a beautiful woman, to become his mistress. The play shows the barber's changing reactions to two letters from the beautiful woman declaring her love for him. One letter is sincere, the other is a forgery but both turn out to be dangerous traps. Featuring also Nakamura Senjaku and Bandô Yajûrô.

Sources: Earphone Guide Website or Shôchiku Kabuki Official Website

Ichikawa Ukon, Ichikawa Monnosuke, Ichikawa Emisaburô, Ichikawa Emiya, Ichikawa En'ya, Ichikawa Juen, Ichikawa Kôtarô

Kabuki no Mikata: a lively presentation of Kabuki done by Ichikawa En'ya.

Kumagai Jin'ya: this play is a dramatization of the clash between the Genji general Kumagai Jirô Naozane and the Heike warrior Taira no Atsumori at the battle of Ichi-no-Tani, one of the most famous passages of the epic "Tales of the Heike". In the Kabuki version, on the cryptic orders of the Genji leader Yoshitsune, Kumagai hides the enemy warrior Atsumori and has his own son take the warrior's place. On the battlefield, Kumagai has to kill his own son in Atsumori's place. Things become worse when his wife Sagami and Atsumori's mother Fuji-no-Kata arrive at his camp. In the highlight of the play, he tells them the story of his mortal battle with Atsumori, keeping Atsumori's well-being and his own sacrifice a secret. He then shows the head of Atsumori for inspection by his leader to see if he has interpreted his orders correctly. This performance stars Ichikawa Ukon as Kumagai, with Ichikawa Emisaburô as Kumagai's wife Sagami, Ichikawa Emiya as Fuji-no-Kata, Ichikawa Monnosuke as Yoshitsune and Ichikawa En'ya as Midaroku.

Onna Date: Ichikawa Emiya stars as a woman in the pleasure quarters who swaggers and fights in the finest gallant style but who has a delicate sense of femininity as well.

Source: Earphone Guide website

The Matsuo-juku Kodomo Kabuki [website in Japanese] is a kodomo shibai troupe, founded in Ôsaka in 1988 by Matsuo Hazue, the wife of Matsuo Kunizô (1899~1984), whose name is closely associated to the Matsuo Artistic Awards (Matsuo Geinô Shô). The troupe is now led by Matsuo Hazue's daughter Matsuo Hideko. The troupe celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2012!

Ichikawa Ebizô, Nakamura Kazutarô

An original program, which mixes Nô (second item in the program) and Kabuki Buyô (third item in the program). The opening talk is done by the young Kabuki star Ichikawa Ebizô.

Renjishi: 2 entertainers dance a tale of the legendary shishi or lion-like spirits that live at the foot of a holy Buddhist mountain. There is a comic interlude with 2 Buddhist pilgrims. Then, the shishi themselves appear and perform their dance with wild shaking of their long manes. The dance shows a parent shishi forcing his cub to undergo harsh training in order to grow up strong. This theme is often associated with the training a parent actor gives his son. This performance features Ichikawa Ebizô in the role of the parent shishi and his son Nakamura Kazutarô in the role of the cub.

Source: Earphone Guide website