"Silk or cotton skull cap worn by actors under their wigs. Also used to describe the silk fitted over the metal foundation of a wig." (A. C. Scott)

In Japanese: 羽二重

One of the three most important festivals (matsuri) in Edo/Tôkyô. The heart of this great August festival is the Tomioka Hachiman shrine in the district of Fukagawa.

In Japanese: 八幡祭

A Haiku is a traditional Japanese poetry form composed of 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively.

In Japanese: 俳句

Literary name of a Kabuki actor. A haimyô is a haiku pen-name used by Japanese poets to sign their creations. Some among the first Kabuki actors were reputed haiku writers, famous enough to make haimyô fashionable in the actors world, even among actors that were at all interested in haiku-writing. This tradition lasted for 2 centuries, some haimyô like Baikô, Jukai ou Baigyoku to name a few, became important stage names, but it started to decline when Japan entered the modern age. There are still actors nowadays using a literary name.

In Japanese: 俳名

The formal culotte look-alike traditional trousers.

In Japanese: 袴

A graveyard.

In Japanese: 墓所

Theater located in the heart of the city of Fukuoka. It was inaugurated in June 1999. For more details, check the Hakataza website.

In Japanese: 博多座

An important and prestigious rank in a hyôbanki. hakudai-jô-jô-kichi is in fact dai-jô-jô-kichi with the ideogram for dai written in white instead of the usual black. The white dai is one rank below the black dai. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "almost grand - superior - superior - excellent".

In Japanese: 白大上上吉

A prestigious rank in a hyôbanki. hakugoku-jô-jô-kichi is in fact goku-jô-jô-kichi with the ideogram for goku written in white instead of the usual black. The white goku is one rank below the black goku. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "almost extreme - superior - superior - excellent".

In Japanese: 白極上上吉

A very unusual rank in a hyôbanki. hakujô-hakujô-hakukichi is in fact jô-jô-kichi with all the ideograms written in white instead of the usual black. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "almost superior - almost superior - almost excellent".

In Japanese: 白上白上白吉

An important and prestigious rank in a hyôbanki. hakushi-jô-jô-kichi is in fact shi-jô-jô-kichi with the ideogram for shi written in white instead of the usual black. The white shi is one rank below the black shi. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "almost unique - superior - superior - excellent".

In Japanese: 白至上上吉

Guild name (yagô) for the actor Segawa Kikunojô.

In Japanese: 浜村屋

Minor theaters in Ôsaka. The most famous ones were the Wakadayû no Shibai, the Kadomaru no Shibai and the Takeda no Shibai. Hama shibai means literally shore theater. The theaters in Ôsaka were almost all located on the famous Dôtombori street, which ran along a canal. The minor theaters were originally built on the water side (the shore) and the major ones on the opposite side of the Dôtombori. Later on, the ones on the shore moved to the opposite side of the Dôtombori but the expression hama shibai remained.

In Japanese: 浜芝居

Guild name (yagô) for late Arashi Tokusaburô VII.

In Japanese: 葉村屋

A cherry-blossom viewing party, an old and lively custom in Japan.

In Japanese: 花見

It means literally the "flower path" and it is one of the key features of Kabuki: the walkway, perpendicular to the stage, on the left side of the theater, linking the back of the theater to the stage through the audience, used by actors for entrance or exit.

In Japanese: 花道

Hanayagura is a popular spot, where a panoramic view on Yoshinoyama can be enjoyed.

In Japanese: 花矢倉

A comical and ludicrous villain. The litteral meaning is "half-dôkegata" villain.

In Japanese: 半道敵

A comical and ludicrous role performed by a yatsushigata in the yatsushigoto style.

In Japanese: 半道俏し

A traditional New Year pastime badminton-like game, played by girls with wooden paddles and a shuttlecock. In olden times, the person who missed had a mark drawn on her face with black ink, and they played until one player's face was completely smeared in ink.

In Japanese: 羽根突き

The Hannya mask, with its horns and sharp fangs, is probably the best known of all Nô masks. This character was once a beautiful woman who fell in love with a priest. Her unrequited love causes her to turn into a monster who expresses the fury of a woman overwhelmed by jealousy and anger (from the Masks of the World website).

In Japanese: 般若の面

A prestigious rank in a hyôbanki. Hanpakugoku-jô-jô-kichi is in fact goku-jô-jô-kichi with the ideogram for goku written half in white and half in black. It is a rank between hakugoku-jô-jô-kichi and goku-jô-jô-kichi. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "almost extreme - superior - superior - excellent".

In Japanese: 半白極上上吉

Bombastic belly-showing dance, performed in the aragoto style by four red-faced warriors in the drama "Shibaraku".

In Japanese: 腹出し

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

In Japanese: 播磨

Guild name for the actors (yagô) Nakamura Kichiemon, Nakamura Matagorô, Nakamura Kichinojô and Nakamura Matazô.

In Japanese: 播磨屋

The Crucifixion (a traditional way to execute commoners during feudal times).

In Japanese: 磔

Literally spring colt. Also the name of a dance, whose movements mimic those of a samurai riding a spirited and energetic young horse. The harukoma was also a performer who made the rounds on New Year's Day, singing songs at people's gates.

In Japanese: 春駒

A direct retainer of the Shôgun.

In Japanese: 旗本

Debut on stage. First official stage appearance for an actor.

In Japanese: 初舞台

The first bonito (katsuo in Japanese) of the season, the fish that signals the beginning of Summer. The first bonito of the year was a treat to the people of Edo, who took pride in eating things newly in season.

In Japanese: 初鰹

Fast costums/roles changes in a drama or a hengemono.

In Japanese: 早替り

The Heian period. The last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185 [more details].

In Japanese: 平安時代

Literally House of Taira. Hei is the Sino-Japanese reading of Taira. The Taira clan was one of the major Japanese clans in feodal Japan. They ruled over Japan but were finally defeated by their arch-enemy, the Genji clan [more details].

In Japanese: 平家

A species of Japanese crab (kani in Japanese), with a shell that bears a pattern looking like a human face. The legends say that these crabs are in fact the reincarnations of the Heike warriors, who were completely defeated by the Genji at the Battle of Dan-no-Ura [more details].

In Japanese: 平家蟹

The current imperial era, which started the 8th January 1989. The era before Heisei was Shôwa.

In Japanese: 平成

Multi-roles dance performed by the same actor.

In Japanese: 変化物

A boy or a young man taken on as an apprentice by a Kabuki actor.

In Japanese: 部屋子

Hidari Jingorô was a famous and legendary (?) left-handed Edo period sculptor and carpenter. his existence is still an open question. Jingorô is believed to have created many famous deity sculptures located throughout Japan, but it is very difficult to sort the truth out from the legends. He carved the famous "sleeping cat" in Nikkô [more details].

In Japanese: 左甚五郎

Literally the "substitute drum tower". A substitute theater in Edo. A licensed theater in financial troubles or going bankrupt had the right to transfer the right of Kabuki performances to another theater. Each major theater has its own hikae yagura: Moritaza/Kawarazakiza, Ichimuraza/Kiriza and Nakamuraza/Miyakoza (the Tamagawaza was also another possible hikae yagura). The three major licensed theaters (Edo Sanza) were also called hon yagura ("main drum tower") to distinguish them from the hikae yagura. This system was authorized by the Shogunate in 1734 and lasted up to the beginning of Meiji.

In Japanese: 控櫓

The Kabuki stage curtain, which is manually pulled across the stage from right to left by a stage assistant at the opening of a play. The curtain pattern is a set of three vertical stripes, whose color were fixed during the Edo period for each theater. These colors are still used nowadays [more details].
Synonymous: jôshikimaku.

In Japanese: 引幕

One technique used for quick costum change: the actor wears 2 costums, the outer one being kept in place with some threads and hiding the inner one. At the right time, the stage assistants come to pull the threads and remove completely the outer costum to reveal the inner one.

In Japanese: 引抜

A princess.

In Japanese: 姫

The Castle of Himeji.

In Japanese: 姫路城

Literally the "pulling apart" mie. A collective mie done at the end of a scene in a jidaimono: "while the principal actors are posing, all other movement on the stage is stopped and the lesser actors even seek yo efface themselves by turning their backs. This "freezing" of all movement nevertheless has a curious quality of tension" (Aubrey and Giovanna Halford in "The Kabuki Handbook").

In Japanese: 引張の見得

One of the twelve signs of the zodiac (jûnishi). Hitsuji is the sign of the goat.

In Japanese: 未

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 13th March 1704 and ended the 25th April 1711. The 2 eras before and after Hôei were Genroku and Shôtoku.

In Japanese: 宝永

Spectacular water effects used on a Kabuki stage (keren).

In Japanese: 本水

The real name of a Kabuki actor.

In Japanese: 本名

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 27th October 1751 and ended the 2nd June 1764. The 2 eras before and after Hôreki were Kan'en and Meiwa.

In Japanese: 宝暦

A farmers riot in feudal japan.

In Japanese: 百姓一揆

A hyôbanki was a book published at the beginning of the new year, in Edo or in Kamigata, evaluating the actors and commenting their performances. For some historians, the first hyôbanki was "Yarô Hyôbanki", published in 1656 but others historians prefer to consider "Yakusha Hyôbanki", published in 1687, as the very first hyôbanki in Kabuki history. The evaluation systems were quite simple, dividing the actors in several categories and ranks:

During the golden years of Kabuki, the rank jô-jô-kichi was not good enough to classify the best stars and several new higher levels were used. Here is an indicative list:

It is worth noting the existence, depending on the period, for different systems to express several intermediate levels used between jô-jô and jô-jô-kichi. One of these systems was based on the progressive writing of the kichi ideogram, from the first stroke to the completion of the ideogram. Another famous system used black and white for the strokes of the kichi ideogram, the full white ideogram being the lowest intermediate level and the ideogram in full black except one stroke in white being the highest intermediate level.
The last hyôbanki was published in 1890.

In Japanese: 評判記

A pair of laths, or clappers, made in beech, 30 centimeters long, with a rectangular section. It is used to announce the important moments in a Kabuki show (opening, closing). It was developped long time ago, as a technique helpful in the recitation of sutras and it was used afterward in many different arts or sports like Sumô.

In Japanese: 拍子木

Generic term for the dances in which the dancer beats time with a stamp of his feet.

In Japanese: 拍子事

Old form of Kabuki Buyô in which the actor simultaneously sings and dances.

In Japanese: 拍子舞

One of the twelve signs of the zodiac (jûnishi). I is the sign of the boar.

In Japanese: 亥

The first section of a Kabuki program during the Edo period. Kabuki was forbidden by the Shogunate in 1629 (women Kabuki) and 1652 (young boy Kabuki). Kabuki was finally re-authorized on several conditions. One condition was the obligation to perform drama instead of lascivious dances. The first dramas were simple one-act item but they got more and more complex and multi-acts dramas became the norm before the Genroku era, usually 4/5 acts in Edo and 3 in Kamigata. These acts were called ichiban (first act), niban (second act), sanban (third act), ... and these dramas were called yonban tsuzuki (4-act drama) or goban tsuzuki (5-act drama) in Edo and sanban tsuzuki (3-act drama) in Kamigata. The dramas structure kept on develop itself and during the Genroku era, the programs were divided into 4 sections: ichibanme (first section), nibanme (second section), sanbanme (third section) and yotateme (fourth and final section). Each section was an independent play, either in one act or several acts. During the Kyôhô era, the custom was to divide a Kabuki program in 2 sections: ichibanme, the first section made up of a 3/4-act jidaimono and nibanme, the second section made up of a 1/2-act sewamono. Occasionally a third section was staged: it was often a shosagoto to conclude the program. The plot of the different sections were related somehow or other in Edo. In Kamigata they were one another independent.

Ichibanme has also the meaning of jidaimono.

Synonyms: ichibanmemono, ichibanme kyôgen.

In Japanese: 一番目

One of the 3 most famous Edo theaters (Edo Sanza) [more details].

In Japanese: 市村座

A troupe of actors.

In Japanese: 一座

The word iemoto, which means literally "family foundation", is used for the current head of a school of Japanese traditional art. It is also used to refer to the system of transmission of house leadership from father to son [more details].

In Japanese: 家元

Dramas or dances based on the famous Igagoe revenge. The 7th of November 1634, the villain Kawai Matagorô was killed at a crossroad in Iga Ueno by the swordman Araki Mataemon, who did it on behalf of his brother-in-law Watanabe Kazuma. Kawai Matagorô assassinated Kazuma's brother Watanabe Gendayû in 1630 in Okayama.

In Japanese: 伊賀越物

An important section of Kyôto. It is also the name of an avenue, Imadegawa Dôri, one of the main East-West corridors in Kyôto. It runs from the Ginkakuji (the famous Silver Pavilion), hard by Mt. Hiei in the East, West past Kyôto University, then across the Kamogawa River.

In Japanese: 今出川

A village theater performance.

In Japanese: 田舎芝居

One of the twelve signs of the zodiac (jûnishi). Inu is the sign of the dog.

In Japanese: 戌

The "one-tooth" geta [more details].

In Japanese: 一本歯下駄

Handsome young villain.

In Japanese: 色悪

A subdivision of katakiyaku: a villain who is the rival in love of the hero of a play.

In Japanese: 色敵

2 meaning depending on the periodes:

(1) Androgynous male prostitutes of the kabuki theater (first half of the 17th century).

(2) Androgynous young novice actors who appeared on stage as groups of maidservants or pages (18th century).

In Japanese: 色子

A lover; a lady-killer.

In Japanese: 色男

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to the northern part of the current Mie prefecture. It was also called Seishû.

In Japanese: 伊勢

A traditional summer dance of the Ise province.

In Japanese: 伊勢音頭

A once-in-a-lifetime performance. This expression is used for either the final official stage appearance of an elder actor or his final performance in a specific role.

In Japanese: 一世一代

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to the current Ehime prefecture on Shikoku island. It was also called Yoshû.

In Japanese: 伊予

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to the southern part of the current Ôsaka prefecture. It was also called Senshû.

In Japanese: 和泉

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to the southern part of the current prefecture of Fukui. It was also called Wakasa.

In Japanese: 若州

A revolving stage (mawaributai) which is constructed to allow an inner circle to revolve in an opposite direction from an outer circle.

In Japanese: 蛇の目舞台

A genre of film, television, and theatre in Japan. The name means "period drama", and the period is usually the Edo period. The jidaigeki dramas show show the lives of the samurai, rônin, farmers, craftsmen or merchants [more details].

In Japanese: 時代劇

Historical drama.

In Japanese: 時代物

A play which can be divided into two sections of equal length, one being a jidaimono and the other a sewamono drama. The two parts are loosely related one to the other.

In Japanese: 時代世話物

A Chinese legend. Jidô was an attendant and favorite of the Emperor Bokuô. Once, in passing near the monarch's couch, he touched a cushion with his foot. A rival reported that fact to the emperor and obtained the exile of the unfortunate attendant. But the emperor gave him a sentence of Buddha, ensuring safety and longevity. Jidô went away to a valley where chrysanthemum grew in profusion and from morning until night, he painted the sacred characters on their petals for fear of forgetting them. The dew, washing them away, became the elixir of everlasting youth. This legend is depicted in the dance "Kikujidô".

In Japanese: 慈童

Local kabuki. Kabuki which took place in farming villages from the Genroku era. This tradition has been handed down and is kept alive by many troupes all over Japan.

In Japanese: 地歌舞伎

Plays whose main character is Jiraiya, the hero of the popular "Jiraiya Gôketsu Monogatari" series of illustrated books (kusazôshi). The most famous jiraiyamono is Kawatake Shinshichi II's drama "Jiraiya Gôketsu Monogatari", which is still in the Kabuki repertoire.

In Japanese: 児雷也物

Subdivision of katakiyaku: a jitsuaku is an evil conspirator or a big-time cruel villain. The best example is Nikki Danjô in the jidaimono "Meiboku Sendai Hagi".

In Japanese: 実悪

The acting and the style of a jitsugotoshi actor.

In Japanese: 実事

Subdivision of tachiyaku: a jitsugotoshi is a wise, righteous and clever man, who appears on stage at the right time to set the record straight, to solve an enigma or foil an evil plot.

In Japanese: 実事師

A study group created by both Ichikawa Sadanji II and Osanai Kaoru. Their main goal was to introduce some European modern plays in Japan and to produce them with the troupe of Kabuki actors led by Ichikawa Sadanji II. They worked on plays written by Henrick Ibsen, Maxime Gorki, Frank Wedekind, Anton Tchekhov, Gerhart Hautpmann or Maurice de Mæterlinck. The first program, the premiere in Japan of Henrick Ibsen's "John Gabriel Borkman", was staged at the Yûrakuza in November 1909. The ninth and final program, the premiere in Japan of Eugène Brieux's "La Foi", was staged at the Imperial Theater in September 1919. This original experience was not really conclusive but helped in the introduction of major European modern playwrights in Japan.

In Japanese: 自由劇場

A stone statue of Jizô, the deity guardian of common people and travellers. Jizô were often built along the roads.

In Japanese: 地蔵

A rank in a hyôbanki. Possible translation: superior.

In Japanese: 上

A good rank in a hyôbanki. Possible translation: superior - superior.

In Japanese: 上上

[Visual]. An good rank in a hyôbanki. Hankichi is in fact the upper part of the character kichi used in the jô-jô-kichi rank. This character is normally read shi and means man (a virtuous and noble man). We decided to translate it as half excellent (as kichi was translated as excellent). Possible translation: superior - superior - half excellent.

In Japanese: 上上士

[Visual]. A very good rank in a hyôbanki. Jô-jô-(hanshiro)kichi is in fact jô-jô-kichi with the ideogram for kichi written half in white and half in black (usually the upper part in black and the lower in white). It is a rank between jô-jô-(shiro)kichi and jô-jô-kichi. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "superior - superior - almost excellent".

In Japanese: 上上半白吉

An important and prestigious rank in a hyôbanki. Possible translation: superior - superior - excellent.

In Japanese: 上上吉

[Visual]. An good rank in a hyôbanki. jô-jô-(shiro)hankichi is in fact jô-jô-hankichi (check above) with the ideogram for hankichi written in white instead of the usual black. The white hankichi is three ranks below the black hankichi (three black strokes are needed to fill the white hankichi). Possible translation: superior - superior - (white) half excellent.

In Japanese: 上上白士

[Visual]. An important rank in a hyôbanki. jô-jô-(shiro)kichi is in fact jô-jô-kichi (check above) with the ideogram for kichi written in white instead of the usual black. The white kichi is seven ranks below the black kichi (seven black strokes are needed to fill the white kichi). This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "superior - superior - (white) excellent".

In Japanese: 上上白吉

An important (and very unusual) rank in a hyôbanki. jô-jô-shôkichi is in fact jô-jô-kichi with the ideogram for kichi smaller than the two first ideograms. This is very difficult to translate correctly this visual concept so we decided to use as a possible translation "superior - superior - little excellent".

In Japanese: 上上小吉

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 21st February 1684 and ended the 30th September 1688. The 2 eras before and after Jôkyô were Tenna and Genroku.

In Japanese: 貞享

A holy priest; a saint.

In Japanese: 上人

An imperial era in Japanese history which started the 18th September 1652 and ended the 13th April 1655. The 2 eras before and after Jôô were Keian and Meireki.

In Japanese: 承応

Ballad drama. Jôruri is chanted narration with shamisen accompaniment. It originated in the biwa-based narratives of the Muromachi Period (1392-1573), taking as its material the tales of Princess Jôruri (Jôrurihime), and, after its popularity became widespread, new narratives came to be called jôruri. In the Edo Period (1603-l867), jôruri split into several schools. At present, the word jôruri is closely associated to ningyô jôruri and the Gidayû school.

In Japanese: 浄瑠璃

Princess Jôruri. According to the legend, the master of the station of Yahagi offered prayers for the birth of a child at the Hôraiji temple in the Mikawa province. The Gods answered his prayers and his wife finally gave birth to a daughter, who received the name of Jôruri, in honour of the Buddhist Deity Yakushinyôrai, who is said to reign in the Eastern realm of the Jôruri World (the World of Purity). Jôruri literally means "pure lapis-lazuli".

In Japanese: 浄瑠璃姫

The standard official stage curtain [=> hikimaku].

In Japanese: 定式幕

[Visual]. A good rank in a hyôbanki. Jô-(shiro)jô is in fact jô-jô with the first jô ideogram written in black and the second one in white. The white jô is three ranks below the black jô (three black strokes are needed to fill the white jô). Possible translation: superior - (white) superior.

In Japanese: 上白上

Old province, which grosso modo corresponds to the current prefecture of Gumma. It was also called Kôzuke.

In Japanese: 上州

The twelve signs of the Sino-Japanese Zodiac. Here is the list in the correct order of the zodiac: ne (rat), ushi (ox), tora (tiger), u (hare), tatsu (dragon), mi (snake), uma (horse), hitsuji (goat), saru (monkey), tori (cock), inu (dog) and i (boar).

In Japanese: 十二支

The promotion to the rank of semi-executive (junkanbu). The second league of Kabuki actors.

In Japanese: 準幹部昇進

A pilgrimage; a pilgrim.

In Japanese: 巡礼

A pilgrim song.

In Japanese: 巡礼歌

The god of longevity (one of the shichi fukujin). He is an old man with a long white beard and a holy staff, with a scroll tied to it on which is written the life span of every human or animal. His messenger is a deer.

In Japanese: 寿老人