An oil shop during the Edo period.

In Japanese: 油屋

A real event, which happened in Ise in the kuruwa of Furuichi the 9th of the 6th lunar month of 1796. A doctor named Magofuku Itsuki killed 2 people and maimed seven in the Aburaya pleasure house. Magofuku Itsuki killed himself the 19th of the 6th lunar month of 1796. This killing spree inspired the playwright Chikamatsu Tokuzô for his masterpiece "Ise Ondo Koi no Netaba".

In Japanese: 油屋騒動

Revenge; vengeance. The main thema of many Kabuki plays. The most famous one is "Kanadehon Chûshingura", based on the true story of the revenge of 47 masterless samurais against the villain responsible for the death of their master.

In Japanese: 仇討

Permanent curtain located at the entrance of the hanamichi. There is also sometimes, depending on the production, a temporary agemaku to allow entrance from the kamite.

In Japanese: 揚幕

House of assignation in the pleasure quarters.

In Japanese: 揚屋

When two heroes commit seppuku at the same time, without preliminary consultation.

In Japanese: 合腹

A red-faced villain in jidaimono. Stupid but strong, he is usually the follower of a smarter and more powerful evil lord.

In Japanese: 赤っ面

Akô was little castle town in the Banshû province. Its modern name is Banshû-Akô.

In Japanese: 赤穂

Literally "the Royal Retainers from Akô" (==> akô rôshi).

In Japanese: 赤穂義士

Literally "the Masterless Samurai from Akô". This expression is used for the series of events related to the vendetta of the 47 masterless samurai from Akô. On March 14, 1701, Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori, the young daimyô of the castle town of Akô, attacked Kira Kôzukenosuke, a high Shôgunal official who bullied him during a ceremony at the Shôgun's palace. The Shôgun was furious and Asano was forced to commit seppuku that very day and his domain confiscated. On December 15, 1702, forty-seven of Asano's retainers avenged his death by attacking and killing Kira and immediately became heroes showing that even after a century of peace, the samurai value of loyalty was not yet dead. In 1748, the puppet play "Kanadehon Chûshingura" appeared and since that time has been the single most popular play in all Japanese theatre. The names of the original characters were changed due to censorship and all kinds of incidents created, but still, as the history of the original event and the portrait of the suffering of the people around the event, it provides vivid human drama that is alive and vibrant even today.
{adapted from a text published in the Earphone Guide website}

In Japanese: 赤穂浪士

An evil middle-aged woman in sewamono drama, who indulges in extortion, blackmail or murder. She is usually a clever person, who can bluff, fight and swindle.

In Japanese: 悪婆

Literally a bad boy. This is also the title of a famous matsubamemono ("Akutarô").

In Japanese: 悪太郎

The traditional Japanese starch-jelly candy.

In Japanese: 飴

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 16th 11th lunar month of 1772 and ended the 2nd 4th lunar month of 1781. The 2 eras before and after An'ei were Meiwa and Tenmei.

In Japanese: 安永

A masseur.

In Japanese: 按摩

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 27th 11th lunar month of 1854 and ended the 18th 3rd lunar month of 1860. The 2 eras before and after Ansei were Kaei and Man'en.

In Japanese: 安政

An hermit's retreat.

In Japanese: 庵室

The expression aragoto is an abbreviation of aramushagoto, which means literally "the reckless warrior matter". This is in fact a Kabuki bombastic style exagerrating all the aspects of the role (acting, wig, make-up (kumadori), costumes, dialogues, oversized swords) to portray valiant warriors, fierce gods or demons. This style was created in Edo by Ichikawa Danjûrô I and is considered a "familly art" for this line of actors. It is the opposite style of the soft wagoto created by Sakata Tôjûrô I in Kamigata.

In Japanese: 荒事

Tachiyaku actor performing in the aragoto style.

In Japanese: 荒事師

The morning-glory.

In Japanese: 朝顔

Asakusa is a famous and popular district of Edo/Tôkyô.

In Japanese: 浅草

A boat used by "floating" prostitutes to do their business.

In Japanese: 浅妻船

A technique used by a Kabuki dancer to beat time by stamping the stage with his foot.

In Japanese: 足拍子

The ashigaru, a foot soldier, is the lowest-ranking samurai.

In Japanese: 足軽

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to prefecture of Tokushima. It was also called Awa.

In Japanese: 阿州

A series of prints made by Utagawa Toyokuni III in 1852 and associated to the 12 year-marking Chinese zodiacal signs.

In Japanese: 擬絵当合

A successful role for a Kabuki actor.

In Japanese: 当たり役

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to prefecture of Tokushima. It was also called Ashû.

In Japanese: 阿波

A traditional Japanese millet cake.

In Japanese: 粟餅

The Azuchi-Momoyama period, which started in 1573 with the first major victories of Oda Nobunaga and ended in 1603 with the fall of the Toyotomi clan, defeated by the powerful Tokugawa Ieyasu. Azuchi and Momoyama were the names of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi castles.

In Japanese: 安土桃山時代

Old synonym for the city of Edo.

In Japanese: 吾妻

The Azuma school of Buyô, which was created by the actor Azuma Tôzô II during the Meiwa/An'ei eras. The current head of the Azuma-ryû is the female master of dance Azuma Tokuya [more details].

In Japanese: 吾妻流

Kabuki or puppet dramas whose main characters are the courtesan Azuma and her lover Yamazaki Yojibei, who tries to ransom Azuma. In some dramas, Azuma's lover is named Yamazaki Yogorô. The two most famous plays are "Nebiki no Kadomatsu" and "Futatsu Chôchô Kuruwa Nikki".

In Japanese: 吾妻与次兵衛物

A lacquer tub used to wash horses' legs.

In Japanese: 馬盥

Shogunate. Term used to designate the Shôgunal administration during the Kamakura, Muromachi and Edo periods. This word came from Chinese, his original meaning was "office under tent" and it was used for the headquarters of a general in expedition. The warrior Minamoto Yoritomo created the first bakufu in Kamakura in 1192, called Kamakura Bakufu, which collapsed in 1333. The second one, which was created by Ashikaga Takauji in Kyôto in 1336, was called Muromachi Bakufu or Ashikaga Bakufu and collapsed in 1573. The third one, which was created by Tokugawa Ieyasu in Edo in 1603, was called Edo Bakufu or Tokugawa Bakufu and collapsed in 1868.

In Japanese: 幕府

A scene in a play.

In Japanese: 場面

A watchman hut.

In Japanese: 番小屋

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to the southern and western parts of the prefecture of Hyôgô. It was also called Harima.

In Japanese: 播州

A head clerk at a mercantile establishment.

In Japanese: 番頭

Kabuki dramas whose main character is the Edo otokodate Banzui Chôbei (1622?~1657?). He is often associated with another famous character named Shirai Gompachi. Both characters really existed but they never really met.

In Japanese: 幡随長兵衛物

A playbill.

In Japanese: 番付

An alias for an actor. A stage name which is not an official one but is quite often used inside the Kabuki world.

In Japanese: 別名

The priest holding the supreme power over administration of large temples was called bettô.

In Japanese: 別当

Traditional Japanese Lute.

In Japanese: 琵琶

Lake Biwa. Japan largest lake (235 kilometers in circumference), located in Shiga prefecture and close to the city of Kyôto. Its name comes from its biwa shape.

In Japanese: 琵琶湖

Summer play. A summer Kabuki production, which was staged in July or August without the major actors of the troupe. In Edo, it was also a custom to stage kaidanmono as bon kyôgen.

In Japanese: 盆狂言

The Boshin War. This war, the "War of the Year of the Dragon", was a civil war in Japan, fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa shogunate and those seeking to return political power to the imperial court [more details].

In Japanese: 戊辰戦争

Roles or things related to the warrior class.

In Japanese: 武道事

A quick costum-change technique used to reveal the true identity of a character. The upper half inside part of the costum is pulled down by a stage assistant to cover the lower half outside part. Its pattern matches the one of the new upper half costum revealed by the change, creating the illusion of a real costum change.

In Japanese: 打っ返り

In Japanese history, the Bunka period is an imperial era which started the 11th 2nd lunar month of 1804 and ended the 22nd 4th lunar month of 1818. The 2 eras before and after Bunka were Kyôwa and Bunsei.

In Japanese: 文化

A person who has made outstanding culture contributions in Japan. This title is awarded by the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

In Japanese: 文化功労者

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 19th 2nd lunar month of 1861 and ended the 20th 2nd lunar month of 1864. The 2 eras before and after Bunkyû were Man'en and Genji.

In Japanese: 文久

Popular expression used to designate the traditional puppet theater (ningyô jôruri). This word came from an Ôsaka theater called Bunrakuza.

In Japanese: 文楽

In Japanese history, the Bunsei period is an imperial era which started the 22nd 4th lunar month of 1818 and ended the 10th 12th lunar month of 1830. The 2 eras before and after Bunka were Bunka and Tenpô.

In Japanese: 文政

A samurai; a warrior.

In Japanese: 武士

A theater stage.

In Japanese: 舞台

Japanese traditional dance [more details].

In Japanese: 舞踊

Old province in northern Kyûshû, which grosso modo corresponds to both Fukuoka and Ôita prefectures [more details]. It was also called Hôshû.

In Japanese: 豊前

A simple Japanese dish made by pouring green tea or hot water over cooked rice [more details].

In Japanese: 茶漬け

Tea house.

In Japanese: 茶屋

Kabuki drama or dance whose main thema is a husband, who has lost his wife and has to find some milk for his child. The first chichimoraimono was "Hana Fubuki Koi no Tekagami".

In Japanese: 乳貰物

A cotton crepe fabric used for summer kimono.

In Japanese: 縮

A Kamigata Kabuki troupe founded in 1982 by Nakamura Senjaku II to study and revive Chikamatsu Monzaemon I's dramas.

In Japanese: 近松座

Chikubu Island. An island in the northern side of Lake Biwa, which is known as the "Island of the Gods". It is the 30th stop on the 33 Temple Pilgrimage route of the Western Country, and is home to Hôgonji Temple and Tsukubusuma Shrine [more details].

In Japanese: 竹生島

It literally means "to scatter". The chirashi is a section with a faster tempo, which is the start of the final of a traditional dance.

In Japanese: 散らし

Cotton dyed in red and used to simulate blood on a wounded body.

In Japanese: 血綿

A chobokure is a light form of narrative chanting performed by street musicians, who chant popular ditties while striking a small gong or bell.

In Japanese: ちょぼくれ

a chokibune was, during the Edo period, a long flat river boat used to transport people along Edo's waterways. The people, who went to visit the pleasure quarter of Yoshiwara, were also frequently using the chokibune to go there.

In Japanese: 猪牙舟

Traditional hairstyle for men during the Edo period: the hair on the top of the head was usually shaved, and the rest of the hair gathered together and tied in a topknot. This hairstyle is still used nowadays by sumô wrestler.

In Japanese: 丁髷

Flying on wires from the stage over the heads of the audience to the third floor of the theater. The star Ichikawa Ennosuke is the king of chûnori.

In Japanese: 宙乗り