Kasane

（ ）

Kasane

Kabuki: June 1823, Edo

A dance drama drawn from the well-known Kasane ghost story focusing on the love-hate relationship between a man and woman. This was originally one act of a longer drama written by the famed Tsuruya Nanboku IV that combined the ghost tale with another story of two monks, but is now performed independently. In its debut production, Onoe Kikugoro III and Ichikawa Danjuro VII played Kasane and Yoemon, respectively. After a revival in 1849, the show fell out of the repertory. It was brought back in 1906, when choreographer Fujima Masaya reworked it to the music of Kiyomoto Enjudayu V. In 1920, Onoe Baiko VI and Ichimura Uzaemon XV took the ghost and villain roles, establishing the play as a popular piece. In 1925, Kikugoro VI initiated another production that followed the original text. There are now two acting styles derived from these Baiko and Kikugoro productions, as well as hybrid styles with their own variations.

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［from left］Kinegawa Yoemon, actually Kubota Kingoro（Nakamura Hashinosuke）、Kasane（Nakamura Fukusuke）　August 2013　Kabukiza Theatre

●publication date　 January 2016