Stage names:

Tamon Shôzaemon II
Yoshikawa Tamon II [1]
Yoshikawa Kan'ya

Line number: NIDAIME (II)

Existence: ???

Connection:

Masters: Nakamura Shichisaburô I (?) ^[2], Yoshikawa Tamon I ^[3]

Career:

Winter 1683: first record; he performed as a wakaonnagata in Ôsaka in the theater managed by Yamatoya Jinbê II. His wakaonnagata stage partners were Uemura Kichiya II, Matsumoto Sanshirô, Fujita Tsurumatsu, Kiriyama Sannojô, Iwai Kogenji, Takahama Kanzaburô and Uemura Tatsuya. Was he a disciple of Yoshikawa Tamon I? ^[3]

1st lunar month of 1687: his rank in the Ôsaka hyôbanki, wakaonnagata section, was naka (middle).

1695 ^[4]: he went to Edo, where he became tachiyaku and took the name of Yoshikawa Tamon II ^[1].

11th lunar month of 1695: Tamon played at the Moritaza the role of Sasaki no Shirô in the drama "Miura Asahina Gansekiwari".

7th lunar month of 1696: Tamon played at the Moritaza the role of Tawara Tôta Hidesato in the drama "Hei Shinnô Masakado".

Fall 1699: he went back to Kamigata.

11th lunar month of 1699: he took the name of Tamon Shôzaemon II in Kyôto.

1st lunar month of 1700: Shôzaemon played in Kyôto the role of Hanaoka Datenojô in the new year drama "Keisei Okusama Sugata Meshitaki Sugata".

Spring 1702: Shôzaemon went to Edo.

11th lunar month of 1702: Shôzaemon played at the Moritaza the role of Sasaki no Shirô in the kaomise drama "Tenchijin Tsutsumamori"; the super-hero in the "Shibaraku" scene was Ichikawa Kuzô I.

3rd lunar month of 1703: Shôzaemon's rank in the Edo hyôbanki, tachiyaku section, is jô (superior) [visual].

4th lunar month of 1703: Shôzaemon played in the same theater the role of Fukakusa no Shôshô in Mimasuya Hyôgo's drama "Naritasan Bunshin Fudô".

7th lunar month of 1703: Shôzaemon played in the same theater the role of Oguri Hangan in Mimasuya Hyôgo's drama "Oguri Jûnidan".

1st lunar month of 1704: Shôzaemon played at the Moritaza the role of Hakata Rozaemon in the hatsu kyôgen drama "Arajishi Otokonosuke"; his stage partners were Ichikawa Danshirô I, Ogino Sawanojô ^[5], Matsumoto Kantarô and Bandô Matakurô II. Yoshikawa Tamon I ^[1] was also recorded in the troupe performing at the Moritaza.

11th lunar month of 1704: Shôzaemon played at the Ichimuraza the role of Sasaki no Shirô in the kaomise drama "Onna Araoka Nishiki no Tazuna"; his stage partners were Murayama Heiemon III, Katsuyama Matagorô, Ikushima Daikichi I, Tsugawa Handayû, Tomizawa Hanzaburô I and Onoe Genji.

1st lunar month of 1705: Shôzaemon played in the same theater the roles of Ôemaru and Yoshida no Shôshô in the new year dramas "Banzei Tamuramaru" ^[6] and "Hayazaki Sumidagawa".

11th lunar month of 1706: Shôzaemon played at the Moritaza the role of Nunoi Koyata in the kaomise drama "Keisei Azuma Kagami"; his stage partners were Ichikawa Danzô I, Miyazaki Denkichi, Miyazaki Jûshirô I, Katsuyama Matagorô, Takii Hannosuke, Matsumoto Kantarô, Tomizawa Chiyonosuke and Kumamoto Izaemon.

11th lunar month of 1707: Shôzaemon played at the Moritaza the role of Tatewaki in the kaomise drama "Kankatsu Kayoi Komachi".

1st lunar month of 1708: Shôzaemon played in the same theater the role of Ise no Saburô in the new year drama "Gaijin Jûnidan" ^[7]. No record afterwards.

Comments:

Tamon Shôzaemon II was a tachiyaku who was active from the beginning of the 1680s to the end of the 1700s. He was born and trained in Kamigata and he was active in Edo from 1695 to 1699 and from 1702 to 1708. His fields of excellence were nuregoto, yatsushigoto and dances in the tanzen style. He was also a talented musician.

[1] There were two actors named Yoshikawa Tamon between 1695 and 1699. Yoshikawa Tamon I was an onnagata actor in Kamigata, who was active from 1681 to 1704. He went to Edo in 1704 to perform at the Moritaza. No record afterwards.

[2] It was reported in Nojima Jusaburô's book "Kabuki Jinmei Jiten" that Yoshikawa Kan'ya started his career as a disciple of Nakamura Shichisaburô I. The Edo star went for the first time in Kamigata in Fall 1689, several years after the first record for Yoshikawa Kan'ya.

[3] Was Yoshikawa Kan'ya a disciple of Yoshikawa Tamon I? This was possible based on the timelines of the two actors in Kamigata.

[4] It was reported in Nojima Jusaburô's book "Kabuki Jinmei Jiten" that he went to Edo in 1698.

[5] This was the last stage appearance of Ogino Sawanojô. He suddenly fell ill and died the 1st day of the 8th lunar month of 1704.

[6] First stage apperance in this new year drama for the zamoto Ichimura Takenojô IV.

[7] This drama was written by the sakusha Fujimoto Heizaemon and Mitsushima Shichirôzaemon.

Tamon Shôzaemon II playing the role of Hanaoka Datenojô in the new year drama "Keisei Okusama Sugata Meshitaki Sugata", which was staged in the 1st lunar month of 1700 in Ôsaka

The Tamon Shôzaemon line of actors