Kabuki Plus
Popular song “Otomi-san”
The singer Kasuga Hachiro had a major hit in 1954 with the song “Otomi-san”, with lyrics drawn directly from the play: “Tomo-san, even Buddha would not have thought…” It was sung even by children who knew nothing of Kabuki or the song’s meaning. It became a standard party song, and was popular as a chorus for university Kabuki fan clubs. The lyrics are redolent of the essence of the play. The delightful tune was created by an Okinawan composer.
Subsequent fate of the couple
There are several variations on this script. In one, the couple lives as a happy couple after their Kamakura reunion. However, Yosaburo is exiled to an island after a murder case. He then escapes in longing for Edo. He tries in vain to take revenge on Genzaemon and is able to see his stepparents again only once. When he meets Otomi again in Shinagawa, he learns she is married to his friend. That friend cuts open his stomach, and his blood along with medicine heals Yosaburo’s scars. Yosaburo then returns to his stepparents to solve the succession problem.
Yosaburo actors
Danjuro VIII, the first to play Yosaburo, was a much-loved actor who perfectly fit the role, which became a big success for him. However, he committed suicide in Osaka the following year. Many actors have played Yosaburo since, but the handsome Uzaemon XV was particularly known for his portrayal, playing the role 30 times. In an interview, he said, “In the gesture of revealing the scars, Danjuro VIII showed his whole body, but I only reveal the left arm.”
Throbbing of breast
notable!Baiko VI’s book about playing onnagata says that Otomi, in hearing Yosaburo’s famous lines, must remember not to open her fingers in surprise when she suppresses the throbbing in her breast. Also, in returning from the bath, he says that just by putting a red bag of rice bran (used as a facial cream) between her lips, it adds a gentle eroticism to the face of a mature woman. This shows the casual technique of a noted onnagata in creating a realistic portrayal of Otomi.
Perfectionist writer
Segawa Joko III also wrote Higashiyama Sakura Soshi and the lion dance piece Kioi Jishi. He worked as a traveling kimono salesman and only later become a playwright, succeeding to the name Joko III in 1850 at age 44. He wrote free-flowing domestic dramas steeped in Edo style, but he himself was a perfectionist, hot-tempered and extremely detail-oriented in his dramas. His prime years were between the famed playwrights Tsuruya Nanboku IV and Mokuami.
