Kabuki: Bunraku performance.....(*Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura...)

Kabuki by imma-san

Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura resolves around the various dramas depicting these people, and this particular stage presents two scenes Tokaiya no Ba / Daimotsu no ura no Ba which center around the famous warrior of the Heike family Taira no Tomomori.

After the Heike family is defeated, Yoshitsune is suspected of treason by his brother Yoritomo, and together with his followers, plan to escape from Settsu no Kuni (Settsu province) Daimitsu no ura (present day Amagasaki-shi, Hyogo prefecture) to Kyushu, and stay at a Kaisen Donya (business providing services related to shipping and transportation by ship) called Tokaiya and wait for their ship to take them.

They are rushed onto the ship by Ginpei and his wife who run Tokaiya and say that soldiers of Yoritomo are approaching. The couple are actually members of the Heike family who have been protecting Emperor Antoku (Antoku Tenno), by saying he had drowned, the general Taira no Tomomori and Suke no Tsubone who is the emperor's nursing mother. Tomomori thinks this is the perfect chance to avenge the Heike family and attacks Yoshitsune and his followers with his subordinates on the ship.

Kabuki-2 by imma-san

He is however defeated after a fierce battle, and as Suke no Tsubone attempts to throw herself into the sea with the young emperor, she is caught by the followers of Yoshitsune.

Yoshitsune, with the caught Suke no Tsubone and young emperor, then appears in front of Tomomori who is still fighting alone on the beach. Yoshitsune promises them that he will protect Antoku Tenno with all his power, and hearing this, Suke no Tsubone is filled with relief and kills herself.

Tomomori also hands the young emperor to Yoshitsune, ties himself to a thick rope joined to a large anchor and throws himself into the sea from a huge rock.

This scene develops dramatically with the couple transforming from commoners to the gallant Tomomori and regal Suke no Tsubone on stage. 

So, the audience can look forward to Shoroku, who has established a reputation for his dynamic and invigorating performance, challenging the role of Tomomori for the first time, with Kaishun who never fails to entertain with his elegant performance. This dynamic stage should be highly enjoyable to those who like Kabuki as well as those watching Kabuki for the first time.

Kabuki-3 by imma-san

What is Kabuki...?

Kabuki came into existence around 1603 with the arrival in Kyoto of a troupe of dancing girls led by a certain Izumo-no-Okuni, formerly a shrine maiden. Their dances created a sensation and were labelled 'kabuki' which, at that time, meant 'unorthodox' or 'eccentric'. Such troupes of women were subsequently banned as were those of the dancing boys that took their place.

They were succeeded by groups of adult men whose performances developed into Kabuki as it now exists. In the process, the original meaning of the word kabuki changed to become Ka (Song), Bu (Dance), Ki (Technique or skill).

Kabuki originally consisted of short dances but the repertoire now is huge and is made up of both plays and dances, most of which date from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Originally the principal entertainment of the urban merchant classes.

Actor of kabuki by imma-san

Kabuki is also attracting increasing attention abroad and is now regarded as one of the world's greatest theatrical arts, remackable for its vigour.

Do you want to see kabuki ?... Please come to the National Theater of Japan on July 3rd until 24th, 2011.... The ticket is very cheap, for student only 1300 yen.

Please come to 4-1, Hayabusa-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo. 

Forgive me if I can not share the video about kabuki because we can not record anything in the theater...>_<.... So, I just can share about the story of kabuki in the theme: Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura.

by: imma.w.a.

sakura-ku, saitama-shi

JAPAN