Heisei Geidan: Touching the Essence of Kabuki

2019/04/19

I watched the end of the Showa era from across the Imperial Palace moat as a television reporter assigned to the Imperial Household Agency at the time. Perhaps because of that, I have deep feelings about the era name "Heisei." About five years ago, Koichi Naganuma, editor-in-chief of Iwanami Shinsho, asked me to "write on the theme of Kabuki." As the schedule for the Emperor's abdication became concrete, the concept for this book finally began to take shape.

The first time I experienced Kabuki was in September 1971, when I was in the sixth grade. In the nearly half-century since then, my theater-going history during the Heisei era already accounts for about 60% of the total. Showa Kabuki has been discussed extensively, centered on the two great actors Onoe Kikugoro VI and Nakamura Kichiemon I. However, now that Heisei has lasted 30 years—twice as long as the Taisho era—a vertical thread called "Heisei Kabuki History" naturally exists and should be written. I decided to try weaving it using the "geidan" (talks on the art), the living voices of the Kabuki actors who lived through this era, as the horizontal thread.

The number of "geidan" published over these 30 years is enormous, even just looking at my own bookshelves. For this book, I limited myself to extracts from published volumes, but if I were to include newspapers, magazines, and even social media posts, the task would be overwhelming. As I read through them, I noticed a transition in the nature of these "geidan." For actors up until at least the end of the Showa era—those born in the Taisho era like Shoroku II, Baiko VII, and Utaemon VI—their talks were specific, sometimes loquacious and sometimes halting, about their efforts to master the "kata" (form) of a role like Hayano Kanpei in the sixth act of "Chushingura," reaching the "shone" (the character's essence), and embodying it on stage.

However, since then, they have become more like a kind of "mindset" or "life lesson" rather than "geidan." One reason is that in today's age of video and visual media, performers no longer require "geidan" as a guide. Additionally, audiences have less interest in "gei" (the art) and do not seek the detailed analysis centered on "kata" (form).

Of course, this is not how it should be. Next year, we will see the "era change of Kabuki" with the succession of Danjuro XIII. I would be happy as an author if the words of Kanzaburo XVIII and Mitsugoro X, who passed away to much regret, and Kichiemon, who graces the end of this book, could serve as a torch to illuminate the relentless struggle for art.

Heisei Geidan: Touching the Essence of Kabuki

Osamu Inumaru

Iwanami Shinsho

208 pages, 760 yen (excluding tax)

*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.