Guest Author - Melanie Shintaku

Sacred dances, religious ceremonies and folk dances of ancient Japan provide the foundation of kabuki dance that, by Japanese standards, is relatively new. Kabuki dance dates back to approximately 1603 when Okuni, a shrine maiden from the Izumo Shrine, first performed on the dry river bed of the Kamo River in Kyoto.

At first this form of dance was well received by common people. Okuni easily gathered students (women and men) thus forming the first kabuki dance company. Because of it’s popularity, Okuni’s dance company was quickly imitated. Soon more stages were built, schools were formed and the art spread. Eventually this new, popular dance form gained the attention and appreciation of nobility.

However, this original style of kabuki dance, largely made up of women was short lived. In 1629, the Shogunate prohibited women from the stage. It was thought that women (onna kabuki) performing on stage were compromising morals of the performers and the Japanese public. Young men (wakashu kabuki) were then performing the roles of women, until that too was outlawed for the same reason. Finally, kabuki theater was left to more mature men (yaro kabuki) to refine.

Enter the “onnagata.” Onnagata are male dancers who perform the roles of women in kabuki plays. In order to convince the audience they are women, onnagata must study dance as well as the movement and characteristics of women. It is through this diligent study the experienced onnagata can express the essence of a woman. Historical tales, dance and Japanese dramas are entwined to make up what is uniquely kabuki.