Narukami

（ ）

Narukami

January 1742, Osaka

This is the fourth act of a five-act drama. This act and Act III (Kenuki) are often performed as independent works. It is one of the Eighteen Select Plays selected by Danjuro VII. However, his son, Danjuro IX, did not like the play for various reasons, and it was not performed for a long period from the mid 19th century. In 1910, it was revived by Sadanji II with new direction, which became the template for the current piece. There is an oft-performed variation called Onna Narukami (Female Narukami) that substitutes a nun for the monk. The show is based on a Noh work Ikakku Sennin (The One-Horned Immortal). The Kabuki is very popular in overseas tours because of its simple story: a monk who has angrily locked up a dragon is seduced by a woman and tricked out of his magic. It includes highlights such as the monk’s dignified entry, his seduction by the court’s most beautiful women, and the transformation into bravura aragoto style in which he exits by a flying roppo. ★main graphic★ Narukami（Bando Mitsugoro）　January 2005　Kabukiza Theatre