The dance "Ayatsuri Sambasô" was staged for the first time in August 1852 in Ôsaka at the Chikugo no Shibai. The role of Sambasô was performed by Arashi Rikaku II. The actor went to Edo the following year and achieved a great success by performing this dance, which was staged under the title "Yanagi no Ito Hikuya Gohiiki" in February 1853 at the Kawarazakiza.

Many works are derived from Nô theatre, and this particular Kabuki dance is one of them. The origin of this dance is "Okina" a petition for fortune and favor which is regarded as the most sacred production among Nô pieces. In the Nô dance are three characters; Okina, Senzai, and Sambasô. Okina is translated as "old man." Although Senzai, meaning 1,000 year-old man, is portrayed on stage as a man possessed of eternal youth. This character is often played by a handsome, young actor, despite the name's meaning. Sambasô is the third and final character. "Samba-" is an abbreviation for sanban or "number three" and "-sô" can be translated as "person" or "man." So, Sambasô's name can be said to mean "the third man." Okina and Senzai's dances are prayers for happiness and good fortune; while Sambasô's dance is a prayer for a plentiful harvest for farmers or catch for fishermen. This was the original purpose of "Okina."

The Kabuki version, "Ayatsuri Sambasô", is also regarded as an auspicious dance. Of course, just like the Nô version, Okina dances first followed by Senzai, and Sambasô is the last to take the stage. In the Kabuki performance, however, Sambasô's dance is the highlight. Interestingly, while dancing to the samisen accompaniment Sambasô moves as if manipulated by strings, much like a puppet. In mid dance, it appears that a string breaks and he begins to dance clumsily. A stage assistant rushes out in a panic to mend it, and the dance continues.

Some long-forgotten words adopted from the original Nô dance are chanted during the samisen accompaniment. As you may know, Nô actors do not speak or talk on stage. All dialog is chanted by the chorus. Such enigmatic phrases as "tototarari totarari" and "osae, osae," can be heard at Okina's entrance. Even Nô specialists have only a vague idea of what these words might mean, therefore, to an ordinary person, such words are completely meaningless, adding only to the ambience of the performance. As previously stated, there is no dialogue for actors in Nô theater. One could argue that if actors spoke during the performance, reality would cast its long shadow onto the performance, destroying the subtle and profound characteristic of Nô. This Kabuki production of "Okina" closely follows the structure of the original Nô performance. Pedantic observations aside, you can smiply enjoy the rhythmical, airy dances such as "Harvest" and "Bell", which provide the highlights for "Sambasô." Savor the enchanting dances of this fantasy world, as the performance will be finished before you know it.

This summary has been written by Watanabe Hisao and edited by Jeff Blair [website]

Arashi Rikaku II performing the role of Sambasô in the dance "Ayatsuri Sambasô", which was staged in February 1853 at the Kawarazakiza (print made by Utagawa Toyokuni III)