The dance "Yashiki Musume" was staged for the first time in the 3rd lunar month of 1839 at the Kawarasakiza as part of a 4-dance program, which was entitled "Shiki no Nagame Maru-ni-I no Toshi" and which starred the actor Sawamura Tosshô I, supported by Ichikawa Ebizô V and Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII [more details]. This program was about the four seasons and "Yashiki Musume", which was originally entitled "Rangiku no Kochô", the butterfly (kochô) on the spreading chrysanthemums (rangiku), was dedicated to the autumn season.

The "Mansion Maiden" is a piece in which one of the changes of the four seasons is performed on its own. This song is performed in both Tokiwazu and Nagauta forms, but most current versions are in Tokiwazu form. In this dance, a young maiden is sent to the mansion of a samurai family to study proper etiquette. The training is hard and strict. The maiden is given some free time when she is allowed to return to her home. This dance captures the joy that she feels to be returning home.

Source: Nihon Buyô

The actors Onoe Kotojirô and Onoe Shigeru playing the roles of the maidens Yayoi and Kikyô in the dance "Yashiki Musume", which was staged in September 1929 in Tôkyô at the Kotobukiza