Glossary of Kabuki Terms

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An audience photograph of a modern kabuki performance

The following Glossary of Terms will help identify words and phrases closely associated with the world of Kabuki.

Contents

A

  • Adauchi (仇討) : Revenge; vengeance. The main theme of many Kabuki plays. The most famous one is "Kanadehon Chūshingura", based on the true story of the revenge of 47 masterless samurai against the villain responsible for the death of their master.
  • Agemaku (揚幕) : 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.
  • Ageya (揚屋) : House of assignation in the pleasure quarters.
  • Aibara (合腹) : When two heroes commit seppuku simultaneously, without preliminary consultation.
  • Akattsura (赤っ面) : A red-faced villain in jidaimono. Stupid but strong, he is usually the follower of a smarter and more powerful evil lord.
  • Akō Rōshi (赤穂浪士) : Literally "The masterless samurai from Akō". This expression is used for the series of events related to the vendetta of the 47 masterless samurai from Akō. On March 14, 1701, Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori, the young daimyō of the castle town of Akō, attacked Kira Kōzukenosuke, a high Shōgunal official who bullied him during a ceremony at the Shōgun's palace. The Shōgun 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.
  • Akuba (悪婆) : 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.
  • Aragoto (荒事) : The expression aragoto is an abbreviation of aramushagoto, which means litterally "the reckless warrior matter". This is in fact a Kabuki bombastic style exaggerating all the aspects of the role to portray valiant warriors, fierce gods or demons.
  • Aragotoshi (荒事師) : Tachiyaku actor performing in the aragoto style.
  • Ashibyōshi (足拍子) : A technique used by a Kabuki dancer to beat time by stamping the stage with his foot.
  • Ashigaru (足軽) : The lowest-ranking samurai.
  • Atariyaku (当たり役) : A successful role for a Kabuki actor.

B

  • Bakufu (幕府) : The Shōgunate. Term used to designate the Shōgunal administration during the Kamakura, Muromachi and Edo periods.
  • Bamen (場面) : A scene in a play.
  • Bantō (番頭) : A head clerk at a mercantile establishment.
  • Banzui-chōbeimono (幡随長兵衛物) : Kabuki dramas whose main character is the Edo otokodate Banzui Chōbei (1622 - 1657). He is often associated with another famous character named Shirai Gompachi. Both characters really existed but they never really met.
  • Banzuke (番付) : A playbill.
  • Biwa (琵琶) : Traditional Japanese Lute.
  • Bukkaeri (打っ返り) : A quick costume-change technique used to reveal the true identity of a character. The upper half inside part of the costume 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.
  • Bunraku (文楽) : Popular expression used to designate the traditional puppet theater (ningyō jōruri). This word came from an Ōsaka theater called Bunraku-za.
  • Bushi (武士) : A samurai; a warrior.
  • Butai (舞台) : A theater stage.
  • Buyō (舞踊) : Japanese traditional dance.

C

  • Chichimoraimono (乳貰物) : Kabuki drama or dance whose main theme 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
  • Chijimi (縮) : A cotton crepe fabric used for summer kimono.
  • Chirashi (散らし) : 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.
  • Chiwata (血綿) : Cotton dyed in red and used to simulate blood on a wounded body.
  • Chobokure (ちょぼくれ) : A chobokure is a light form of narrative chanting performed by street musicians, who chant popular ditties while striking a small gong or bell.
  • Chonmage (丁髷) : 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 sumō wrestler.
  • Chūnori (宙乗り) : Flying on wires from the stage over the heads of the audience to the third floor of the theater.

D

  • Dai-jō-jō-kichi (大上上吉) : An prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "grand - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Daikoku (大黒天) : The god of wealth.
  • Daikon yakusha (大根役者) : A ham actor. The literal meaning of the word daikon is Japanese white radish.
  • Daimyō (大名) : A Japanese feudal lord.
  • Danmari (暗闘) : Danmari means "silence" or "to be silent". In Kabuki, danmari also means "fight in the dark" and is a pantomime scene, with actors moving slowly in the dark. There are 2 kinds of Danmari:
    • Sewa danmari: a danmari scene included in a sewamono drama. It is a highly choreographed fight in the dark, with a precious object moving from hand to hand up to the final pose.
    • Jidai danmari: a ceremonial item performed as an independent play. In the past, a jidai danmari was one way to present the full troupe to the audience. It is a large-scaled pantomime made up of a succession of kata performed simultaneously by several actors, with musical accompaniment but no dialogue.
  • Decchi (丁稚) :A shop apprentice.
  • Dekata (出方) : An usher working for a shibai jaya in a Edo Period Kabuki theater. Dekata were also in charge of delivering some food or sake to their clients during the Kabuki performances.
  • Deshi (弟子) : An actor's disciple.
  • Dōkegata (道化方) : A comic actor (also called a dōkeyaku 道外方).
  • Dōgumaku (道具幕) : A curtain decorated with a landscape or backdrop used on stage for a short scene.
  • Dōjōjimono (道成寺物) : The Kabuki dance-dramas based on the legend of the Dōjōji temple. The most famous dōjōjimono is Kyōganoko Musume Dōjōji.
  • Doma (土間) : The pit of an Edo theater.
  • Dote (土手) : A bank or embankment along a river.

E

  • Ebizori (海老反り) : Literally "the prawn bend". A beautiful pose done by the leading onnagata actor in a few dances or in the koroshiba scene of some jidaimono dramas. He bends backwards like a prawn as a form of gracious resistance against a threat.
  • Eboshi (烏帽子) : A traditional hat worn by nobles in court dress.
  • Edo (江戸) : The old name of Tōkyō, the capital of the Tokugawa shōgunate during the Edo period.
  • Edokko (江戸っ子) : A child of Edo. The typical edokko is a hedonistic young man loaded with cheeky humour, a strong sense of honour and a rebellious spirit.
  • Edo Sanza (江戸三座) : The three licensed Edo theaters: Nakamuraza, Moritaza and Ichimuraza.
  • Ehon (絵本) : An illustrated book.
  • Ehon Banzuke (絵本番付) : An illustrated playbill.
  • Ehon Butai Ōgi (絵本舞台扇) : A series of actor's portraits enclosed in fan shapes, made in 1770 by both Ippitsusai Bunchō and Katsukawa Shunshō, which were published as an illustrated colour book.
  • Emen no Mie (絵面の見得) : Collective mie done at the end of a jidaimono by actors in beautiful costumes, forming a perfect line facing the audience.
  • Emma Daiō (閻魔大王) : The Great King of Buddhist Hell Emma.
  • Enkiriba (縁切場) : A break-up scene between two lovers in front of many passive witnesses and normally initiated by the woman, who is still in love with her partner but has to leave him in order to save his life. The word enkiri translates as "cutting the link". The rejected lover is often driven to madness and the plays ends with a bloodbath.
  • Enkirimono (縁切物) : A sewamono play containing an enkiriba scene.
  • Ennosuke Jûhachiban (猿之助十八番) : A collection of 18 large-scale dramas revived or created by Ichikawa Ennosuke III. These are Futago Sumidagawa, Gohiiki Tsunagi Uma, Haji Momiji Ase no Kaomise, Hitori Tabi Gojûsan Tsugi, Jūni Hitoe Komachi Zakura, Jūnitoki Chûshingura, Kagamiyama Gonichi no Iwafuji, Kiku-no-En Tsuki no Shiranami, Kimi-wa-Fune Nami no Uwajima, Kinmon Gosan no Kiri, Kin no Zai Sarushima Dairi, Nansō Satomi Hakkenden, Ogasawara Shorei no Okunote, Tōryū Oguri Hangan, Shusse Taikōki, Tenjiku Tokubei Imayō Banashi, Yamato Takeru and Yoshitsune Sembon Zakura.
  • En'ō Jûshu (猿翁十種) : A collection of ten dances created by Ichikawa En'ō: Akutarō, Kurozuka, Kōya Monogurui, Kokaji, Koma, Ninin Sambasō, Nomitori Otoko, Hanami Yakko, Yoi Yakko and Yoshinoyama.

F

  • Fudō Myōō (不動明王) : One of the "Wisdom Kings" and an esoteric Buddhist Deity, who fights Evil and protects ascetic priests.
  • Fuji (藤) : A wisteria, which is an important pattern used on kimono or to decorate the stage. One of the most famous Kabuki dances is the Wisteria Maiden (藤娘 Fuji Musume).
  • Fukagawa (深川) : Birthplace of the geisha, who came into existence in the mid 19th century, in the vicinity of the Tomioka Hachiman Shrine in Fukagawa.
  • Fukeoyama (老女方) : Actor specialized in "old woman" roles.
  • Fukeyaku (老役) : "Old people" roles. The actors playing female fukeyaku roles are called fukeoyama. The actors playing male fukeyaku roles are called oyajigata.
  • Furigoto (振事) : A short shosagoto.
  • Furisode (振袖) : A long-sleeved kimono.
  • Furu Jinja (布留神社) : Another name for the famous Isonokami Jingū shrine, which is located in the city of Tenri in the Nara prefecture.
  • Fūryū Musume (風流娘) : Elegant, attractive, stylish girl.
  • Fusuma (襖) : The traditional Japanese sliding paper door.
  • Fūzoku Buyō (風俗舞踊) : Dances which feature characters from the daily life of 19th century Edo

G

  • Gakuya (楽屋) : A dressing room, or the backstage.
  • Gempei-kassenmono (源平合戦物) : The wars for power between the Minamoto clan (also called Genji) and the Taira clan (also called Heike) at the start of the Kamakura era. The word Gempei is in fact the contraction made up of the Gen from Genji and the Hei from Heike. It constitutes makes one of the most important Kabuki worlds (世界 sekai). Its heroes are the leading warriors of the Minamoto and Taira clans, fighting each other to rule Japan.
  • Genji Monogatari (源氏物語) : The Genji Monogatari is a classic of Japanese literature, written by Murasaki Shikibu at the beginning of the 11th century, at the peak of the Heian Period.
  • Genroku (元禄) : In Japanese history, the Genroku period is not only an imperial era but it also stands as a symbol of the flourishing popular culture in Japan, which reaches its peak during the Genroku era (the 1690s).
  • Geta (下駄) : Japanese traditional wooden clogs.
  • Geza (下座) : A small, black room with a slatted window, located to the left side of the stage and used by the musicians in charge of background music and sound effects. The geza is also called the kuromisu (黒御簾 "black bamboo screen") and the geza musicians are known as kagebayashi (影ばやし "The hidden orchestra").
  • Gidayū (義太夫) : A style of musical narration in the puppet theater (ningyō jōruri) and in the gidayū kyōgen of Kabuki, created by Takemoto Gidayū in Ōsaka in 1684.
  • Gidayū Kyōgen (義太夫狂言) : A drama, originally written for the puppet theater (ningyō jōruri), and adapted to Kabuki.
  • Giri and Ninjō (義理 と 人情) : The conflict between obligation (giri) and human emotion (ninjō). Often, the hero is torn between his sense of duty and the dictates of his heart. Whichever wins, the result is usually death either way.
  • Go (碁) : A traditional Japanese board game, played on a goban (碁盤 "Go board").
  • Goku-jō-jō-kichi (極上上吉) : An very prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "extreme - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Goruden Kombi (ゴルデンコンビ) : An expression derived from the English "Golden Combination" and used to design a successful couple of actors, one being the onnagata and the other, the tachiyaku.

H

  • Habutae (羽二重) : A silk, or cotton, skull-cap worn by actors under their wigs.
  • Hachiman Matsuri (八幡祭) : One of the three most important festivals (祭り matsuri) in Edo / Tōkyō. The heart of this great August festival is the Tomioka Hachiman shrine in the district of Fukagawa.
  • Haiku (俳句) : A Haiku is a traditional Japanese poetry form composed of 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively.
  • Haimyō (俳名) : The literary name of a Kabuki actor. A haimyō is also a haiku pen-name used by Japanese poets to sign their creations.
  • Hakudai-jō-jō-kichi (白大上上吉) : An important and prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing dai-jō-jō-kichi with the ideogram for dai in white instead of the usual black. The white dai is one rank below the black dai and be roughly translated as ""almost grand - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Hakugoku-jō-jō-kichi (白極上上吉) : A prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing goku-jō-jō-kichi, with the ideogram for goku written in white instead of the usual black. The white goku is one rank below the black goku and can be roughly translated as "almost extreme - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Hakujō-hakujō-hakukichi (白上白上白吉) : A very unusual rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing jō-jō-kichi with all the ideograms written in white instead of the usual black. The best possible translation is "almost superior - almost superior - almost excellent".
  • Hakushi-jō-jō-kichi (白至上上吉) : An important and prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing shi-jō-jō-kichi, with the ideogram for shi written in white instead of the usual black. The white shi is one rank below the black shi and can be roughly translated as "almost unique - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Hanami (花見) : A cherry-blossom viewing party, an old, but still-lively custom in Japan.
  • Hanamichi (花道) : 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.
  • Handōgataki (半道敵) : A comical and ludicrous villain.
  • Hanetsuki (羽根突き) : A traditional New Years pastime, which resembles badminton, played by girls using wooden paddles and a shuttlecock.
  • Hannya no Men (般若の面) : The Hannya mask, with its horns and sharp fangs, is probably the best known of all Noh 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.
  • Hanpakugoku-jō-jō-kichi (半白極上上吉) : A prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing goku-jō-jō-kichi, with the ideogram for goku written in half in white and half in black, instead of the usual black. It is a rank between hakugoku-jō-jō-kichi and goku-jō-jō-kichi and can be roughly translated as "almost extreme - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Haradashi (腹出し) : A bombastic, belly-showing dance, performed in the aragoto style by four red-faced warriors in the drama "Shibaraku".
  • Haritsuke (磔) : The Crucifixion, which was a traditional way to execute commoners during feudal times.
  • Hatamoto (旗本) : A direct retainer of the Shōgun.
  • Hatsubutai (初舞台) : The first official stage appearance for an actor.
  • Hayagawari (早替り) : Fast costume and role changes in a drama or a hengemono.
  • Hengemono (変化物) : A dance performed by one actor that contains multiple roles, necessitating numerous costume changes.
  • Heyago (部屋子) : A boy or a young man taken on as an apprentice by a Kabuki actor.
  • Hikinuki (引抜) : A technique used for quick costume change. The actor wears 2 costumes, with the outer one being kept in place by a few threads and which covers the inner one. At the right moment, stagehands pull the threads and remove the outer costume to reveal the inner one.
  • Hime (姫) : A princess.
  • Hippari no Mie (引張の見得) : Literally the "pulling apart" mie. A collective mie performed at the end of a scene in a jidaimono. Wwhile the principal actors are posing, all other movement on the stage comes to a halt and the lesser actors turn their backs.
  • Honmizu (本水) : Water effects used on a Kabuki stage.
  • Honmyō (本名) : The real name of a Kabuki actor.
  • Hyōbanki (評判記) : A hyōbanki was a book published at the beginning of the new year, which evaluated the actors and commented on their performances. The first hyōbanki was "Yarō Tachiyaku Butai Ōkagami", published in 1687. The evaluation system was quite simple, dividing the actors in several categories and ranks. The last hyōbanki was published in 1890.
  • Hyōshigi (拍子木) : A pair of clappers, made of beechwood, each 30 centimeters long, with a rectangular section. They are used to announce the important moments in a Kabuki show
  • Hyōshigoto (拍子事) : Generic term for the dances in which the dancer beats time by stamping his feet.
  • Hyōshimai (拍子舞) : An old form of Kabuki Buyō, where the actor sings and dances simultaneously.

I

  • Ichibanme (一番目) : The first section of a Kabuki program, as it was during the Edo period. After Women Kabuki and young boy Kabuki were banned in 1629 and 1652 respectively, conditions were imposed before Kabuki could be reinstated. One condition was the obligation to perform drama instead of dances. The first dramas were simple one-act plays, but they gradually became more and more complex and multi-act dramas became the norm before the Genroku era. These acts were called ichiban (first act), niban (second act), sanban (third act), etc. and these dramas were called yonban tsuzuki (4-act dramas) or goban tsuzuki (5-act drama). The structure continued to evolve and during the Genroku era, the programs were divided into 4 sections, namely, ichibanme (first section), nibanme (second section), sanbanme (third section) and yotateme (fourth and final section). Each section was an independent play, either in one or several acts.
  • Ichimuraza (市村座) : One of the 3 most famous Edo theaters.
  • Ichiza (一座) : A troupe of actors.
  • Igagoemono (伊賀越物) : Dramas or dances based on the famous Igagoe revenge. On the 7th of November 1634, the villain Kawai Matagorō was killed at a crossroad in Iga Ueno by the swordsman Araki Mataemon, who carried out the act on behalf of his brother-in-law, Watanabe Kazuma. Kawai Matagorō had assassinated Kazuma's brother Watanabe Gendayū in 1630.
  • Inaka Shibai (田舎芝居) : A village theater performance.
  • Irogataki (色敵) : A villain who is the love rival of the hero of a play.
  • Isse Ichidai (一世一代) : 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.

J

  • Janome Butai (蛇の目舞台) : A revolving stage (mawaributai) which is constructed to allow an inner circle to revolve in an opposite direction from an outer circle.
  • Jidaimono (時代物) : A historical drama.
  • Jidai-sewamono (時代世話物) : 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.
  • Jidō (慈童) : A Chinese legend. Jidō was an attendant and favorite of the Emperor Bokuō. 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. Jidō went away to a valley where chrysanthemums grew in profusion and from morning until night, he painted the sacred characters on their petals, for fear of forgetting them. The dew, which washed the characters away, became the elixir of eternal youth. This legend is depicted in the dance Kikujidō.
  • Jikabuki (地歌舞伎) : Local kabuki, or kabuki which took place in farming villages from the Genroku era on. This tradition has been handed down and is kept alive by many troupes all over Japan.
  • Jitsuaku (実悪) : A jitsuaku is an evil conspirator or a cruel villain.
  • Jitsugoto (実事) : The acting and the style of a jitsugotoshi actor.
  • Jitsugotoshi (実事師) : 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 to foil an evil plot.
  • Jiyū Gekijō (自由劇場) : 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 and Maurice de Mæterlinck. The first program, the premiere in Japan of Henrick Ibsen's "John Gabriel Borkman", was staged at the Yūrakuza 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.
  • Jō (上) : A rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "Superior".
  • Jō-jō (上上) : A good rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "Superior-Superior".
  • Jō-jō-hankichi (上上士) : A good rank in a hyōbanki. Hankichi is, in fact, the upper part of the character kichi used in the jō-jō-kichi rank. It can be translated as "superior - superior - half excellent".
  • Jō-jō-(hanshiro)kichi (上上半白吉) : A very good rank in a hyōbanki. Jō-jō-(hanshiro)-kichi designated by writing jō-jō-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 jō-jō-(shiro)kichi and jō-jō-kichi. Translates to approximately "superior - superior - almost excellent".
  • Jō-jō-kichi (上上吉) : An important and prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. A close translation is "superior - superior - excellent".
  • Jō-jō-(shiro)hankichi (上上白士) : A good rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing jō-jō-hankichi with the ideogram for hankichi written in white instead of the usual black. It is three ranks below the black hankichi and translates as "Superior - superior - half excellent".
  • Jō-jō-(shiro)kichi (上上白吉) : An important rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing jō-jō-kichi with the ideogram for kichi written in white instead of the usual black. It is seven ranks below the black kichi and translates as "superior - superior - excellent".
  • Jō-jō-shōkichi (上上小吉) : An important, and unusual, rank in a hyōbanki. It is designated by writing jō-jō-kichi with the ideogram for kichi smaller than the first two and translates as "superior - superior - little excellent".
  • Jōnin (上人) : A holy priest, or a saint.
  • Jōruri (浄瑠璃) : A "ballad drama". Jōruri is chanted narration with shamisen accompaniment.
  • Jōrurihime (浄瑠璃姫) : Princess Jōruri. According to the legend, the master of the station of Yahagi offered prayers for the birth of a child at the Hōraiji temple in the Mikawa province. The gods answered his prayers and his wife finally gave birth to a daughter, who received the name of Jōruri, in honour of the Buddhist Deity Yakushinyōrai, who is said to reign in the Eastern realm of the Jōruri World (the World of Purity). Jōruri literally means "pure lapis-lazuli".
  • Jō-(shiro)jō (上白上) : A good rank in a hyōbanki. Jō-(shiro)jō is in fact jō-jō with the first jō ideogram written in black and the second one in white. The white jō is three ranks below the black jō and translates as "Superior - superior."
  • Junkanbu Shōshin (準幹部昇進) : The promotion to the rank of a semi-executive (junkanbu), essentially the second league of Kabuki actors.
  • Jurōjin (寿老人) : The god of longevity. 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.

K

  • Kabuki Jûhachiban (歌舞伎十八番) : A collection of 18 plays of the Ichikawa Danjūrō line of actors, selected by Ichikawa Ebizō V in 1840 as the most representative plays in the aragoto style. The plays were first performed between March 1680 and January 1769, although they are seldom performed today.
  • Kabuki Sandai Meisaku Kyōgen (歌舞伎三大名作狂言) : Literally the three most important Kabuki masterpieces, namely Kanadehon Chûshingura, Yoshitsune Sembon Zakura and Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami.
  • Kagamiyamamono (加賀見山物) : Dramas that deal with a famous suicide and revenge story involving three palace ladies-in-waiting: one lady, who was humiliated by the terrible zōriuchi by a senior lady-in-waiting, committed suicide. Her death was then avenged by her faithful servant, who killed the senior lady-in-waiting. The first kagamiyamamono in Kabuki history was the play "Kagamiyama Kokyō no Nishikie".
  • Kagebara (陰腹) : A hidden seppuku. The hero, having has already committed seppuku, then hides his belly cut with the outer garment of his costume.
  • Kagekiyomono (景清物) : A play whose main characters are the defeated warrior Taira no Kagekiyo, his lover Akoya, Hatakeyama Shigetada and Mionoya Shirō Kunitoshi. Two good examples of kagekiyomono are "Kagekiyo" and "Akoya".
  • Kago (駕籠) : A palanquin.
  • Kaibaryō (かいば料) : Literally means "hay money" and is the tip paid by an actor, who has to ride a Kabuki horse (uma 馬) on stage, to the two assistants who operate and look after the horse.
  • Kaidanmono (怪談物) : A ghost play.
  • Kakegoe (掛け声) : Words of praise shouted by connoisseurs in the audience at key moments in a dance or a drama, like a mie, a stage entrance or a pose on the shichisan. Usually the words called out are either the actor's yagō or his generation number. These days, only positive shouting is done but in the past, bad actors were also insulted, often using the infamous "Daikon yakusha!"
  • Kamiarai (髪洗い) : The wild tossing of the long hair of a shishi wig at the climax of a Lion Dance. The literal meaning of kamiarai is "hair-washing".
  • Kamigata Kabuki (上方歌舞伎) : The Kabuki of Kamigata (an archaic expression used to describe the Ōsaka-Kyōto-Kōbe-Nara region). The main feature of Kamigata Kabuki is the wagoto style.
  • Kamisuki (髪梳) : A gentle love scene in which the woman, played by an onnagata, combs the hair of her lover whilst expressing her love for him.
  • Kamite (上手) : Stage left, or the right of the stage as seen from the audience's viewpoint.
  • Kamite Agemaku (上手揚幕) : Agemaku which allows entrance from the kamite.
  • Kamiyui (髪結) : An archaic Edo period word for hairdresser, which literally means "hair-tying".
  • Kamuro (禿) : A young girl attendant for a high-ranking courtesan (keisei).
  • Kanda Matsuri (神田祭) : One of the most important festivals (matsuri) in Tōkyō. The present day festival was established during the Edo period and is still held annually in mid-May around the Kanda Myōjin Shrine in Soto-Kanda ,in the district of Chiyoda.
  • Kaneru Yakusha (兼ねる役者) - A talented and versatile actor, able to perform various roles, such as onnagata, tachiyaku, or katakiyaku.
  • Kanjiku (巻軸) : A honourary title awarded to the best actor in each section of a hyōbanki.
  • Kanjinchō (勧進帳) : A subscription list.
  • Kanjo (官女) : A Lady of the Court.
  • Kannon (観音) : The goddess of Mercy.
  • Kannushi (神主) : A Shintō priest.
  • Kanoko Mochi (鹿の子餅) : A rice cake with sweet boiled beans inside.
  • Kansai (関西) : A region in Japan, which incorporates the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Mie, Kyōto, Ōsaka, Hyōgo and Shiga.
  • Kantsūmono (姦通物) : Kabuki dramas whose main theme is adultery. Under the Tokugawa legal code, adultery was a serious crime, which was punishable by death.
  • Kaomise (顔見世) : During the Edo period, a kaomise was the "face-showing" ceremony of a theater, which celebrated the opening of the new theatrical year and its new troupe. It was generally held in November and was a very important event in Edo, Ōsaka or Kyōto. Today, there are 3 symbolic kaomise still held in Japan, namely at the Misonoza in October, at the Kabukiza in November and at the Minamiza in December.
  • Kappa (河童) : A legendary flesh-eating creature which inhabits ponds or rivers. It is a hybrid of a human and a tortoise.
  • Kari-hanamichi (仮花道) : A secondary hanamichi, which is occasionally built to the right of the audience, for specific dramas that require the use of 2 hanamichi.
  • Karō (家老) : The senior retainer of a daimyō.
  • Karō Nyōbō (家老女房) : The spouse of a senior retainer.
  • Kasanemono (累物) : A play whose main characters are the cursed and disfigured woman, Kasane and her husband Yoemon, both from the Hanyū village. Yoemon kills Kasane with a sickle on the Kinugawa river bank, which turns her into a vengeful ghost.
  • Kata (型) : A set of stylized forms designed for one specific role and transmitted from generation to generation.
  • Katakiyaku (敵役) : An actor who specialises in playing the role of the villain.
  • Katsura (鬘) : A wig.
  • Katsureki (活歴) : The "Plays of Living History", which are a new genre of jidaimono dramas, created by the star Ichikawa Danjûrō IX during the Meiji era. The word katsureki is a contraction of the words katsudō ("action") and rekishi ("history").
  • Kawaramono (河原者) : Derogatory term used for Kabuki actors and meaning beggars (literally "riverbed people").
  • Keisei (傾城) : A high-ranking courtesan. The word keisei means literally "castle-destroyer".
  • Keiseigoto (傾城事) : A play set against the background of the pleasure quarters and with a high-ranking courtesan (keisei) as main character.
  • Kendō (剣道) : "The way of the Sword", Kendō is the Japanese martial art of traditional fencing.
  • Kenkyaku (剣客) : A man who lived by the sword.
  • Keren (外連) : Generic term used for various stage tricks such as chūnori, hayagawari, yatai kuzushi, or honmizu. These are not favoured by Kabuki connoisseurs, and keren translates as "playing to the gallery".
  • Keyari (毛槍) : A feather-topped lance used by the footman (yakko) who leads the traveling procession of his master.
  • Kiju Kinen (喜寿記念) : The traditional commemoration of one's seventy-seventh birthday.
  • Kiku (菊) : The chrysanthemum.
  • Kinkakuji (金閣寺) : The famous Golden Pavilion in Kyōto.
  • Kiri Kyōgen (切狂言) : The kiri kyōgen was originally a single-act after piece, performed at the end of the multi-act historical play (jidaimono). The expression was later used for a short dance which ended a program. It is still used nowadays in the Kabuki world with the same meaning.
  • Kiseru (煙管) : A long-stemmed traditional Japanese pipe, which is one of the most important stage props in Kabuki.
  • Kitsune (狐) : A fox, often a representation of an impish spirit or god,much like Pan.
  • Kitsunebi (狐火) : Literally means "fox fire". The Japanese equivalent of a will-o'-the-wisp.
  • Kiyari Ondo (木遣り音頭) : A kiyari ondo was originally a chant used by lumber-carriers to bring good luck. It was also a custom for geisha dressed in tekomai to perform a kiyari ondo during the major Edo festivals. Today, it can still be heard at wedding ceremonies, celebrations for the completion of the framework of a building, or some religious festivals.
  • Kiyomoto (清元) : A style of narrative music, originating in the Tomimoto style, created by Kiyomoto Enjudayû I in 1814.
  • Kizewamono (生世話物) : A sewamono drama, which depicts the lower strata of Edo society. The hero is usually a thief, a gambler or a prostitute.
  • Kōdan (講談) : A traditional form of Japanese story-telling, which began in the 17th century. The professional storyteller relates tales of war, martial valor and the occasional ghost story while tapping a small table, called a shakudai with a paper-covered folded fan. He makes use of a unique tone of voice to make the audience imagine the picture he wishes to convey.
  • Kodomo Shibai (子供芝居) : Troupes of Kabuki child-actors.
  • Koi tsukami (鯉つかみ) : A spectacular giant carp-catching scene in some Kabuki drama.
  • Kōjō (口上) : A formal stage announcement, which shows the close relationship between the actors and the audience in Kabuki. When the occasion is especially important, like the taking of a distinguished acting name, or commemorating the death of a great actor, the announcement becomes a separate act. The top members of the company assemble in formal costume to offer their congratulations and the audience is always delighted by this blend of kabuki style and glimpses of the private lives of their favorite actors.
  • Kō-jō-jō-kichi (功上上吉) : A prestigious rank in a hyōbanki, which can be translated as "meritorious - superior - superior - excellent."
  • Kōken (後見) : A Kabuki stagehand. His role is similar to that of a kurogo, but he wears formal stage dress, decorated with the mon of his master.
  • Kokera Otoshi (杮落し) : The opening ceremony for a new Kabuki theater.
  • Kokon Shibai Irokurabe Hyakunin Isshu (古今四場居色競百人一首) : The title of an illustrated book, published in 1693. It translates as the "Beauty Contest of One Hundred Actors of All Ages". It listed 100 actors from Edo, Ōsaka, Kyōto and Ise.
  • Kokusai Kekkon (国際結婚) : An international wedding, with one of the spouses being Japanese. These are still a hot topic of discussion in modern Japan. It has been depicted only once in Kabuki so far, in Chikamatsu Monzaemon's masterpiece "Kokusen'ya Gassen".
  • Kokyū (鼓弓) : An oriental fiddle.
  • Komusō (虚無僧) : A wandering Zen priest with a flute, who wears a deep sedge hat that covers his face.
  • Koroshiba (殺し場) : A spectacular murder scene in a Kabuki play.
  • Koroshi no Mie (殺しの見得) : A special set of 13 fixed mie, performed by the actor playing the role of Danshichi Kurobei in the famous murder scene of the play "Natsu Matsuri Naniwa Kagami".
  • Kosan-kingorōmono (小三金五郎物) : Dances or dramas whose main characters are the lovers Kosan, a bathhouse girl, and Kanaya Kingorō, a Kabuki actor from Ōsaka. Both characters existed in the Genroku era.
  • Koseri (小セリ) : A trapdoor located in the center of the stage and used to bring actors on stage. The koseri is set within the ōseri.
  • Koshibai (小芝居) : Small, unlicensed Kabuki Theatres. Many Edo Period actors started their careers and gained experience at Koshibai before being accepted in the major theaters.
  • Koshimoto (腰元) : A lady's maid, usually a low-ranking samurai's wife, in the service of a daimyō's wife.
  • Koto (琴) : A Japanese horizontal harp.
  • Kouta (小唄) : Short ballads using shamisen, flute and the percussion ensemble, which were used to accompany all kind of Kabuki dances at the end of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century. It was replaced by Nagauta.
  • Kowakare (子別れ) : A drama where a mother and child are separated in a sad scene.
  • Koyaku (子役) : A child role.
  • Kubi jikken (首実検) : The rather grisly inspection of the decapitated head of a samurai, a prince or a lord. It forms the climax of many epic dramas.
  • Kubioke (首桶) : A standard wooden box, cylindrical in shape, which is used for a kubi jikken.
  • Kudoki (口説き) : A highly dramatic scene during which an onnagata actor depicts a woman's sighs, tears, love, passion or regrets for the past.
  • Kugeaku (公家悪) : A noble villain, who plots to overthrow the Emperor.
  • Kumadori (隈取) : Distinctive Kabuki make-up used for aragoto roles.
  • Kurogo (黒衣) : Kabuki stage attendants, who are dressed all in black, with a san-benito-type black cloth covering their face. This is designed to convey invisibility on stage. If the background is a snowy landscape, they are dressed in white. If the background is the Sea, they are dressed in blue. They fulfill multiple roles, such as moving stage props, helping actors during the costume or role changes, animating fake animals or will-o'-the-wisps. Their technical skills and efficiency are essential for the success of many stage tricks. They are also called kurombō. The word kurogo itself is used to describe either the stage assistant or his black costume.
  • Kuruwa (廓) : Pleasure quarters. The most famous ones were Yoshiwara in Edo (Tōkyō) and Shimabara in Kyōto.
  • Kyōgen (狂言) : A generic term for a Kabuki drama.
  • Kyōkaku (侠客) : A man of chivalrous spirit.
  • Kyoku-jō-jō-kichi (亟上上吉) : An important, prestigious and rare rank in a hyōbanki, which can be translated as "fast - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Kyōran (狂乱) : A state of madness that occurs during a dance. The main character is frantically searching for somebody (usually a lover, or a lost child) in a dazed state and the dance describes their mental state.
  • Kyōranmono (狂乱物) : Dramas or dances that deal with kyōran.

M

  • Machi Musume (町娘) : The daughter of a member of the townsfolk.
  • Maegami (前髪) : A forelock.
  • Maruhonmono (丸本物) : Kabuki dramas which were adapted from the original puppet theater play (ningyō jōruri)
  • Matatabi (股旅) : A wandering gambler.
  • Matatabimono (股旅物) : Drama that depicts the adventures of a wandering gambler.
  • Matsu (松) : A pine tree.
  • Matsubamemono (松羽目物) : A Noh drama or Kyōgen (Noh farce) adapted to Kabuki, which uses a giant pine tree as a backdrop.
  • Matsukaze-murasamemono (松風村雨物) : Dramas or dances, which deal with the two famous salt-making sisters Matsukaze and Murasame, who both fell in love with the same man, the courtier Ariwara no Yukihira (818 - 893).
  • Matsuri (祭) : A festival sponsored by a local shrine or temple. It usually features a procession of portable shrines, which serve as a vehicle for deities.
  • Mawaributai (回り舞台) : A revolving stage.
  • Megatakiuchi (女敵討) : Literally "wife revenge". The Tokugawa legal code gave the samurai husband, who was the victim of adultery, the right to perform a "wife revenge", usually by murdering both his wife and her lover.
  • Meitei (明帝) : The Chinese Ming Empire.
  • Men (面) : A mask.
  • Michiyuki (道行) : A dance interlude, which forms part of a Kabuki drama. It generally depicts two young lovers on the way to commit suicide or two traveling characters with a romantic implication attached to their journey.
  • Midori (見取) : A Kabuki program made up of an act from a historical play (jidaimono), a dance number (shosagoto) and a realistic play (sewamono).
  • Mie (見得) : A self-contained dramatic pose performed by a tachiyaku actor. Mie poses are struck at moments of heightened tension and, present to the audience a powerful crystallization of emotion.
  • Migawarimono (身替り物) : A scene or a drama where one person substitutes for another, for example an actor substituting their child for that of their Lord, either as an act of penance or as an act of loyalty.
  • Mitsugumi Sakazuki (三組杯) : A traditional set of three large sake cups.
  • Miuri (身売り) : This can be roughly translated as "selling one’s body". During the Edo period, it was not uncommon for a woman, or a daughter, to sell herself to a brothel in order to help her family in difficult times. This is a common element in many Kabuki plots.
  • Mishima Kabuki (三島歌舞伎) : Modern kabuki dramas written by the writer Mishima Yukio (1925 - 1970). The two most famous ones are "Iwashi Uri Koi no Hikiami" (1954) and "Chinsetsu Yumihari Zuki" (1969).
  • Miyaji Shibai (宮地芝居) : Kabuki performances stages located within the precincts of temples or shrines.
  • Miyazono (宮薗) : A music school in Kamigata, which was founded by a disciple of Miyakoji Sonohachi, who was himself a disciple of Miyakoji Bungonojō. This style is also called Sonohachi.
  • Modori (戻り) : The change a character makes from bad to good, for example the villain at the beginning of the play who repents of all his bad deeds at the end. Normally before committing ritual suicide, or after being mortally wounded by a character on the good side, he reveals to the audience that he has secretly accomplished some good deeds leading to the salvation of the heroes of the play. He dies as a noble-hearted character.
  • Momiji (紅葉) - The leaves of the maple tree in autumn.
  • Mon (紋) : A family crest.
  • Monogatari (物語) : An important scene in a Kabuki drama, during which the leading character relates the story of past events, with words or mime, using only his fan to describe some actions.
  • Mono-urimono (物売物) : A kabuki dance or drama in which the leading character is a street peddler, selling, for example dumplings (dango uri), fermented soya (nattō uri) or Bonito (katsuo uri).
  • Moritaza (守田座) : One of the 3 most famous Edo theaters.
  • Mottoi (元結) : A paper string traditionally used to fasten the topknot of a chonmage hairstyle.
  • Mugen no Kane (無限の鐘) : The legendary "Bell of Hell". The person who dares to strike the bell will become immensely rich in this world, but will go directly to hell after his death, where they will suffer for eternity. In Kabuki, many dances were created based on this legend and in association with the world of courtesans, always desperately helping their lover in need of money and ready to sacrifice themselves by striking the Bell of Hell.
  • Murui (無類) : A very prestigious rank in a hyōbanki, which can be translated as "unequaled".
  • Musume (娘) : A daughter.
  • Musumegata (娘方) : An actor who specialises in musume roles.

N

  • Nadai (名題) : A special title accorded to actors, which stared during the Meiji era. It was awarded to actors who were considered to be competent by their elders, thus enabling them to take on more significant roles. It is a very difficult examination for Kabuki actors, only available open to them after 10 years of training and stage appearance. There are three ranks of nadai: ōnadai (major), chūnadai (middle) and hiranadai (ordinary). Lead Kabuki roles are played by ōnadai, while the supporting roles are played by chūnadai. The minor actors who are not yet nadai are called nadaishita ("below nadai") and make up the bottom rung of Kabuki actors.
  • Nadai (名代) : During the Edo period, a nadai owned the right to organize Kabuki performances in Kamigata.
  • Nagabakama (長袴) : The Japanese traditional long hakama (pleated trousers).
  • Nagauta (長唄) : This literally means "long song" and is one of the most important schools of traditional music. Nagauta was created entirely to meet the requirements of the Kabuki theater and became a musical style which served a number of purposes on the stage. A notable feature of its development lay in the fact that it received a great deal of inspiration from the music of the Noh theatre, but it was used with the shamisen, an instrument completely foreign to the Noh orchestra. Nagauta may be described as the general purpose music of the Kabuki theater.
  • Nakamuraza (中村座) : One of the 3 most famous Edo theaters.
  • Naka no jō-jō (中ノ上上) : An intermediate rank in a hyōbanki. Can be translated as "superior - superior in the middle class."
  • Nibanme (二番目) : The second section of a Kabuki program during the Edo period.
  • Nikai tokoyama (二階床山) : This literally means "second floor hairdresser" and refers to a hairdresser who specialises in creating the wigs for female roles.
  • Nimaime (二枚目) : An actor who specialises in the roles of handsome and refined young lovers, often performed in the wagoto style.
  • Ningyōburi (人形振り) : A method of acting, which imitates the exaggerated motions of a puppet. A stage assistant, dressed as a puppeteer, stands behind the actor and gives the illusion that he is controlling the puppet.
  • Ninjōbon (人情本) : A genre of illustrated romantic fiction popular in 19th century Japan. The forerunner to today's manga
  • Ningyō Jōruri (人形浄瑠璃) : The fusion of two arts into one, for example puppetry (ningyō shibai) and chanted narrative (jōruri). It is also commonly called Bunraku.
  • Nureba (濡れ場) : A love scene in a Kabuki drama.
  • Nuregoto (濡れ事) : Refers to the style and techniques used by an actor portraying either a young man or a young woman in a love scene (nureba).
  • Nyōbō (女房) : A role portraying a character's wife.

O

  • Obi (帯) : A belt for a kimono
  • Ochiyo-hanbeimono (お千代半兵衛物) : Kabuki dramas that deal with the tragic couple of Ōsaka, the greengrocer Hanbei and his wife, Ochiyo.
  • Odamaki (苧環) : A spindle of thread or yarn.
  • Ōdōgu (大道具) : The large stage props, such as all the elements that make up the scenery, including buildings, trees, rocks, etc.
  • Oguri-hanganmono (小栗判官物) : Kabuki dramas that deal with Oguri Hangan and his betrothed, Princess Terute.
  • Oiran (花魁) : A high-ranking courtesan.
  • Okiya (置屋) : The house where Geisha live; not the place where they meet their customers (ageya).
  • Okonomiyaki (御好み焼) : A popular Japanese specialty, which originates from both Hiroshima and Ōsaka, and is made from flour, water, eggs and cabbage, with a special sauce on top of it. It means "cook what you like" and is sometimes nicknamed the "Japanese pizza" by foreigners.
  • Okugata (奥方) : This literally means "honourable wife" and is used to refer to the wife of a daimyō. An okugata was the key to many successful power struggles within or outside the clan and played an important part in strengthening a daimyō's grip on his territory.
  • Omamori (御守り) : A traditional Japanese amulet, purchased in temples or shrines, which is supposed to protect the wearer from any catastrophes or devilment. In Kabuki, the omamori is always used by characters to identify some previously unknown relatives. For example, a brother and sister, separated at birth, will have the same omamori.
  • Omemie (お目見得) : To make one's stage debut. Refers to the first stage appearance of a child-actor, who is introduced at a very young age to the audience. He does not receive any stage name and sometimes does not even play any role.
  • Ōmi Hakkei (近江八景) : "The Eight Views of Ōmi". This is a set of outstanding landscape views around Lake Biwa in the Ōmi province, much loved for centuries by poets, painters or illustrators.
  • Omodaka Jûshu (澤十種) : A collection of ten dances, which were the favorites of Ichikawa Danshirō II and Ichikawa En'ō, gathered by their heir Ichikawa Ennosuke III in November 1975. They are: Renjishi, Sannin Katawa, Sumidagawa, Higaki, Ninin Tomomori, Buaku, Ukiyo Buro, Tsuri Gitsune, Cho Hakkai and Yugaodana.
  • Onagori Kyōgen (お名残狂言) : A farewell performance by a Kamigata actor, who is about to leave Edo and return to his native land, at the end of his season in an Edo theater.
  • Oni (鬼) : An ogre, devil, or a demon.
  • Ōnin no Ran (応仁乱) : The troubles of Ōnin, or the Ōnin war. Plays based around an absurd succession war that completely destroyed the Imperial Capital of Kyōto between 1467 and 1477.
  • Onna Budō (女武道) : A woman of warrior rank, or a woman of warlike spirit, capable of fighting a man.
  • Onnagata (女方) : A male actor who plays the female roles in Kabuki.
  • Onna Karō (女家老) : A senior female retainer.
  • Ono no Komachi (小野小町) : Ono no Komachi (c.825 - c.900 AD) was a famous Japanese poet of the early Heian period. She was one of the six Rokkasen.
  • Ono no Tōfû (小野道風) : Ono no Michikaze (894 - 966 AD), commonly called Ono no Tōfû, was a Japanese calligrapher during the Heian period.
  • Onryōgoto (怨霊事) : The styles and techniques used by an actor portraying an angry female ghost.
  • Ōoka-seidanmono (大岡政談物) : Kabuki dramas that deal with the Edo Period magistrate, Ōoka Echizen-no-Kami Tadasuke (1677 - 1751), who had the reputation of being both wise and benevolent in his rulings.
  • Ōseri (大セリ) - A large trapdoor located in the center of the stage and used to lift big structures like ōdōgu into place.
  • Ōshibai (大芝居) - The major licensed theaters during the Edo Period. From the Meiji Period onwards, it came to meant the senior Kabuki actors, who performed in the big theaters, as opposed to the minor Kabuki actors (koshibai).
  • Osome-hisamatsumono (お染久松物) - Kabuki dramas that deal with the tragic Ōsaka lovers, Osome and Hisamatsu.
  • Otokodate (男伊達) - A gallant and chivalrous man. In reality otokodate were gangs of tough and fearless commoners who banded together to protect ordinary townspeople. However, they came to have more in common with protection rackets than anything else and were the ancestors of today's Yakuza (the Japanese mafia). They were seen as the heroes of the common folk, because they were said to stick up for the little man and protected the merchants against the injustices of the powerful. Otokodate had great appeal amongst the Edo Kabuki audience.
  • Otsuma-hachirobeimono (お妻八郎兵衛物) : Kabuki dramas that deal with the tragic Ōsaka lovers, Otsuma and Hachirobei.
  • Oyajigata (親仁方) - An actor who plays the roles of old men (fukeyaku) in Kabuki.
  • Ōzatsuma (大薩摩) - A school of narrative music founded in Edo by Ōzatsuma Shuzendayû I during the first years of the Kyōhō era. The style was absorbed into Nagauta around the start of the Meiji Era. It is a lively and bombastic style of music, still used in Kabuki, especially for the dramas in the aragoto style.

P

  • Pontochō (先斗町) - A famous pleasure quarter of Kyōto.

R

  • Rakugo (落語) - A traditional form of Japanese comic storytelling.
  • Rakugoka (落語家) - A Rakugo storyteller.
  • Reigenkimono (霊験記物) - Reigenki are Buddhist tales that relate miracles. Reigenkimono are Kabuki dramas one of the highlights of which is a Buddhist miracle. The two most famous examples are "Hakone Reigen Izari no Adauchi" and "Tsubosaka Reigenki".
  • Reishū (冷酒) - Cold sake, which is intended to be drunk chilled.
  • Renshō (蓮生) - The Buddhist name of the warrior Kumagai Jirō Naozane.
  • Rokkasen (六歌仙) - The "Six Immortal Poets". Six outstanding poets of the 9th century, who were designated by Ki no Tsurayuki in the preface of the Kokinshū, the first imperial anthology, compiled in 905. These poets were Ariwara no Narihira, Sōjō Henjō, Kisen, Ōtomo no Kuronushi, Bun'ya no Yasuhide and Ono no Komachi.
  • Rōnin (浪人) - A samurai with no master.
  • Roppō (六法) - A kabuki technique used for a spectacular, rapid-paced, gesticulative exit on the hanamichi. Roppō literally means "six directions" (North, South, East, West, Sky, Earth).
  • Ryō (両) - A famous a unit of currency in use during the Edo period. 1 ryō was a gold piece, which could be used to purchase up to 140 kilograms of rice. Today, 1 ryō would be equivalent to ￥70,000 (approx $712).

S

Cherry Blossom - Sakura
  • Sabakiyaku (捌き役) - A tachiyaku role, corresponding to a man of judgment, who thwarts the villains' plans and proves the innocence of the falsely-accused ones, using his intelligence and his clear-sightedness.
  • Sagi (鷺) - A Heron.
  • Sakaro (逆櫓) - The art of maneuvering an oared boat backwards, as well as forwards.
  • Sakazuki (杯) - The traditional Japanese cup for sake.
  • Sake (酒) - A Japanese alcoholic beverage, made from fermented rice.
  • Sakeoke (酒桶) - A wooden barrel fitted with a handle, which contains sake.
  • Sakura (桜) - The blossom of the cherry tree.
  • Sambasō (三番叟) - The Sambasō is one of the most important ceremonial dances in the Kabuki theater. It originates from the ritual dance, Okina in the classical Noh theater and with vigorous stamping and shaking of bells, it is a prayer for agricultural prosperity. In the Kabuki theater, the Sambasō used to be performed early in the morning as an opening ritual. The literal meaning of Sambasō is "the third oldest man".
  • Sanbaba (三婆) - The 3 most difficult and laudable old women roles in the Kabuki repertoire: Kakuju, Bimyō and Koshiji in the plays "Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami", "ōmi Genji Senjin Yakata" and "Honchō Nijûshikō".
  • Sandai Adauchi (三大仇討) - This expression, which literally means "the three great revenges", is used for the three most famous revenge stories in Japanese history: the revenge of the Soga brothers (sogamono), the revenge of the Akō forty-seven rōnin (akō rōshi) and the Igagoe revenge (igagoemono).
  • Sangai tokoyama (三階床山) - A hairdresser who specialises in male character wigs. Literally "third floor hairdresser".
  • Sangai yakusha (三階役者) - This expression, which literally means "third floor actor", is used for lower rank actors.
  • Sanhime (三姫) - The 3 most difficult and praiseworthy Princess roles in the Kabuki repertoire: Yaegaki, Yuki and Toki in the plays "Honchō Nijûshikō", "Kamakura Sandaiki" and "Kinkakuji".
  • Sanja Matsuri (三社祭) - The most spectacular and popular matsuri in the city of Tōkyō (it is one of the "Three Great Festivals of Edo"). The present day festival was established during the Edo period and is still held every year in May around the Asakusa Jinja Shrine in the popular district of Asakusa.
  • Sankatsu-hanshichimono (三勝半七物) - Dances or dramas whose main characters are the lovers Akaneya Hanshichi, the son of a sake merchant in the Yamato province, and Minoya Sankatsu, a courtesan of Ōsaka. Both characters really existed and committed double suicide on the 7th of December 1695 in the burial ground of Sennichi in Ōsaka.
  • Sanmaime (三枚目) - An actor who specialises in comical roles.
  • Sannō Matsuri (山王祭) - One of the most important matsuri in the city of Tōkyō (it is one of the "Three Great Festivals of Edo"). The present day festival was established during the Edo period and is still held every year in June around the Hie Jinja Shrine in Nagata-chō in the district of Chiyoda.
  • Sannyōbō (三女房) - The 3 most difficult and laudable wife roles in the Kabuki repertoire: Otane, Otoku and Kanjo in the plays "Honchō Nijûshikō", "Keisei Hangonkō" and "Yoshitsune Koshigoejō".
  • Sano-yatsuhashimono (佐野八橋物) - Kabuki dramas whose main characters are the rich farmer Sano Jirōzaemon and the courtesan Yatsuhashi. Both characters really existed. Sano Jirōzaemon was deeply in love with the Yatsuhashi. The courtesan broke off the relationship and the farmer went mad, running amok and killing many people in the pleasure quarter. This event, which happened during the Kyōhō era, was nicknamed "Yoshiwara hyakuningiri" ("the killing of one hundred people in Yoshiwara").
  • Santo Yakusha Omokage Zukushi (三都役者面影尽) - The "Santo Yakusha Omokage Zukushi" was an illustrated book, dedicated to Kamigata actors as well as some Edo stage giants, illustrated by Suifutei in a comic and modern style and published in Ōsaka in 1784 by Yamatoya Kaemon.
  • Sarashime (晒女) - A cloth-bleaching girl in traditional Japan.
  • Satomi-hakkendenmono (里見八犬伝物) - Dramas based on Takizawa Bakin's voluminous novel "Nansō Satomi Hakkenden".
  • Sayaate (鞘当) - Rivalry in love, where two impetuous and elegant lovers compete for the love of the same courtesan in the heart of the pleasure quarters. The most famous love competition is between Nagoya Sanza and Fuwa Banzemon, confronting each other to win the love of the courtesan Katsuragi (Sanza's wife who had to sell herself into prostitution). The scene requires the use of two hanamichi for the simultaneous entrance of both lovers.
  • Seigen-sakurahimemono (清玄桜姫物) - Plays that tell the story of the priest Seigen, abbot of the Kiyomizudera Temple in Kyōto, and Princess Sakura. The burning passion of the priest for the beautiful princess leads to a series of tragedies and deaths.
  • Seiryōzan (清涼山) - Mount Seiryō in China. A sacred mountain, famous for its legendary Shakkyō.
  • Sekai (世界) - A world. In Kabuki, a sekai is a dramatic world, with a well-defined set of characters and actions, related to well-known historical events or legends.
  • Semeba (責め場) - A scene of physical or psychological torture in a Kabuki play.
  • Sengoku jidai (戦国時代) - The Age of the Warring provinces. A long, troubled period in Japanese history, starting with the Ōnin War (1467 - 1477) and ending with the final victory of the Tokugawa clan.
  • Senryō Yakusha (千両役者) - Literally, an actor who is worth 1,000 ryō. A stage giant during the Edo period.
  • Seppuku (切腹) - Ritual suicide by self-disembowelment, usually performed by warriors to atone for their mistakes.
  • Seriage (セリ上げ) - The operation of stage trapdoors to bring actors or scenery on stage. There are 3 trapdoors in a normal Kabuki theater: the suppon, the ōseri and the koseri.
  • Sewa Nyōbō (世話女房) - The role of a commoner's wife in a sewamono drama.
  • Sewamono (世話物) - Domestic dramas that deal with the lives of commoners. More realistic in style, scenery and costums than the historical plays (jidaimono). The first sewamono in Kabuki history was Chikamatsu Monzaemon's "Sonezaki Shinjû". Sewamono means the "sewa things", sewa being a contraction of the words seken (society of the day) and wadai (subject).
  • Shaberi (しゃべり) - The equivalent for onnagata of the monogatari for tachiyaku.
  • Shakkyō (石橋) - A legendary stone bridge, 30 centimeters in width, 30 meters in length, located on top of mount Seiryō in China and overlooking a bottomless precipice.
  • Shakkyōmono (石橋物) - Lion dances based on the Shakkyō legend.
  • Shakuhachi (尺八) - A traditional bamboo flute.
  • Shamisen (三味線) - A traditional Japanese musical instrument and a key instrument for Kabuki musical accompaniment. It resembles a fretless lute made up of a long neck, three strings and a body of snake, or cat skin. The player uses a plectrum to strike a chord.
  • Shibai (芝居) - A play, or drama.
  • Shibai jaya (芝居茶屋) - A tea house (chaya) located within a theater.
  • Shichi Fukujin (七福神) - The Seven Gods of Good Fortune.
  • Shichinin no Kai (七人の会) - A Kabuki study group created by seven Kamigata actors in 1958. The main goal of this group was to revive old Kamigata dramas or to perform classics in the Kamigata style.
  • Shichisan (七三) - An important feature in Kabuki, the shichisan is located on the hanamichi, on top of the suppon. Its distance from the stage is 30% of the length of the hanamichi, which also explains the origin of the name (shichisan literally means "7-3", 7 units of length to the agemaku and 3 units to the stage). Any actor entering or leaving the stage through the hanamichi has to stop on this symbolic point, either to strike a mie or to deliver a line. It is also the point of apparition or disappearance through the suppon for supernatural creatures.
  • Shigoku-jō-jō-kichi (至極上上吉) - A very prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "exceedingly - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Shi-jō-jō-kichi (至上上吉) - An important and prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "unique - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Shimabara (島原) - A famous pleasure quarter in Kyōto.
  • Shimote (下手) - Stage right. The left of the stage from the audience's point of view.
  • Shin-goku-jō-jō-kichi (眞極上上吉) - A very prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "truly extreme - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Shinie (死絵) - A commemorative print made after the death of a popular actor.
  • Shin-jō-jō-kichi (眞上上吉) - A prestigious rank in a hyōbanki. Translates as "truly - superior - superior - excellent".
  • Shinjū (心中) - A lovers' double suicide.
  • Shinjūmono (心中物) - Dramas that deal with a shinjū.
  • Shinkabuki (新歌舞伎) - New Kabuki dramas written in the post-Meiji era, by playwrights from outside the Kabuki world.
  • Shinpa (新派) - Literally means "the new school". Shinpa was a genre of theater, which appeared in Japan during the Meiji era. It depicted the manners and customs of contemporary Japan and was characterized by a more naturalistic style than Kabuki and the coexistence of onnagata and actresses. Shinpa dramas were usually very sentimental with a tragic end. Shinpa quickly became extremely popular and was a serious rival for Kabuki during the second half of the Meiji era. This genre got finally caught between tradition and modernity, losing its appeal for both the Kabuki audience and the modern "Western" theater audience. There are still Shinpa actors and performances in Japan, mainly in Tōkyō at the Shimbashi Embujō. Shinpa still has its aficionados, who love its nostalgic flavor. Some Kabuki actors sometimes perform in Shinpa productions.
  • Shinyoshiwara (新吉原) - The "New Yoshiwara". In 1657 the city of Edo was destroyed by a big fire and the pleasure quarter of Yoshiwara was reduced to ashes. The Bakufu deciced to rebuild it in the district of Asakusa, at the bend of the Sumida river. Shinyoshiwara played its social role and prospered up to the anti-prostitution law of 1 April 1957.
  • Shiokumi (汐汲) - A woman who hauls brine in order to make salt. In Japanese Traditional Theater, the word shiokumi refers specifically to the two famous salt-making sisters Matsukaze and Murasame, who both fell in love with the same man, the courtier Ariwara no Yukihira (818 - 893), an exile at Suma.
  • Shiomi no Mie (汐見の見得) - The "staring at the sea" mie, a ferocious pose by Kezori Kuemon, the hero of the drama "Koi Minato Hakata no Hitofushi", who stands imposingly at the prow of his boat.
  • Shiranami (白浪) - A term synonymous with thief.
  • Shiranamimono (白浪物) - A Kizewamono drama depicting the adventures of a thief or a band of thieves.
  • Shishi (獅子) - A shishi is a mythological lion-like animal said to be the king of beasts and always associated with the Buddhist deity Monju.
  • Shitamachi (下町) - A downtown area, also a traditional working-class neighborhood in Tōkyō.
  • Shitennō (四天王) - This expression comes from the four Deva kings in Buddhism. It was used for the four valiant and strong retainers of Minamoto Yorimitsu. It was also used for the four retainers of Minamoto Yoshitsune.
  • Shitennōmono (四天王) - Dramas or dances whose main characters are Minato Raikō and his shitennō.
  • Shittogoto (嫉妬事) - The styles and techniques used by an onnagata actor portraying an extremely jealous woman. In many of the plays, she dies and becomes a vengeful ghost.
  • Shōji (障子) - Sliding doors and windows made of a latticework wooden frame and covered with a tough, translucent white paper, used in traditional Japanese architecture. It forms a key element for Kabuki plays' interior design.
  • Shosagoto (所作事) - A Kabuki dance-drama.
  • Shūtangoto (愁嘆事) - The style and techniques used by an onnagata actor in a grieving scene.
  • Sōdō (騒動) - Jidaimono drama that depicts the disturbances, scandals and succession conflicts within a clan.
  • Soga Matsuri (曾我祭) - The Soga festival. It was a custom in Edo theaters to produce a sogamono as new year program and to use the characters of the Soga world from January up to the end of May. It ended the 28th of May - the day of the revenge - and a festival called soga matsuri was held backstage to celebrate both the end of the new year program and the killing of Kudō Saemon Suketsune. During the middle of the Edo Period, the soga matsuri moved from the backstage to the stage, in order to please not only the actors but the theater's audience.
  • Sogamono (曾我物) - Dramas or dances based on the famous revenge of the Soga brothers. On the 28th of May 1193, the brothers Soga Gorō Tokimune and Soga Jūrō Sukenari killed Kudō Saemon Suketsune, who assassinated their father in 1175.
  • Suifutei Gigafu (翠釜亭戯画譜) - The "Suifutei Gigafu" was an illustrated book dedicated to Kamigata actors, illustrated by Suifutei in a comic and modern style and published in Ōsaka in 1782.
  • Sumidagawamono (隅田川物) - Dances or dramas, which relate to the legend of the Kyōto boy Yoshida Umewakamaru, who was kidnapped by slave traders and died in Edo along the Sumida River.
  • Sumiyoshi Odori (住吉踊) - Lively folk dances, popularized by Buddhist priests and traveling bonzes, as a means of propagating their religion. The expression derives from the Sumiyoshi Shrine in Ōsaka, where the dances originated.
  • Sumō (相撲) - Traditional Japanese wrestling.
  • Sumōtori (相撲取り) - A Sumō wrestler.
  • Sūpā Kabuki (スーパー歌舞伎) - "Super Kabuki". A new genre, which makes full use of the newest techniques, spectacular costumes, synthesizer sound effects and laser lighting, while incorporating some elements of Kabuki. Super Kabuki uses modern language scripts, which are written by modern playwrights. The plays have proved tremendously popular and are becoming a core element of new-style Kabuki. The first of these premiered in 1986.
  • Suppon (鼈) - A trap door on the hanamichi, located at the shichisan, used for the apparition of supernatural creatures.
  • Sushi (鮨) - One of the most famous Japanese delicacies. A slice of raw fish or shellfish on a small ball of cold rice.
  • Sushiya (鮨屋) - A Sushi shop or restaurant.

T

  • Tachimawari (立回り) - A stylized fight scene, usually a "one against all" spectacular scene present in almost all the epic dramas.
  • Tachiyaku (立役) - An actor who specialises in male roles, also called a tateyaku.
  • Taiheiki (太平記) - The "Chronicles of the Great Peace", an important Kabuki world (sekai).
  • Taika no Kaishin (大化の改新) - The Taika coup d'etat of 645. The Emperor Tenchi and his loyal minister Fujiwara no Kamatari succeeded in defeating the wicked Soga no Iruka, who attempted to overthrow Imperial power.
  • Taiko (太鼓) - A traditional Japanese drum.
  • Taikōki (太閤記) - The "Chronicle of the Taikō" - an honorific title for the great warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. One of the three most important Kabuki worlds (sekai). Its heroes are the warlords who fought for the unification of Japan and ended the sengoku jidai period. The shōgunate banned any reference in Kabuki plays to recent historical facts and the playwrights resorted to thinly disguised names.
  • Taiko Mochi (幇間) - A male entertainer in the pleasure quarters.
  • Taishuka (大酒家) - A heavy drinker.
  • Takatsuki (高杯) - The traditional pedestal upon which the cup of sake is placed.
  • Takeda Yakko (竹田奴) - Roles played by minor actors imitating some simple, crude and gaily-coloured Bunraku puppets.
  • Takemoto-za (竹本座) - A famous ningyō jōruri theater founded in 1684 by Takemoto Gidayū in Ōsaka's Dōtombori district.
  • Tako (蛸) - An octopus.
  • Tanabata (七夕) - The Star Festival celebrated on July 7 in the city of Hiratsuka and August 7 in the city of Sendai. According to an old Chinese legend, it celebrates the reunion of the lovers Princess Orihime and Prince Hikoboshi, shining in the summer sky as Vega and Altair, who are separated the rest of the year by the milky way but can cross it and meet for one night.
  • Tanzen (丹前) - The young, chivalrous and refined customers of the tanzen buro. Also a padded kimono worn over the yukata, after a bath to protect from the cold.
  • Tanzen buro (丹前風呂) - Famous bathhouses with female attendants, built in Edo in the district of Kanda during the Kan'ei era (1624 - 1644). The immoral conduct within these bathhouses was well-known and they were ordered to close down, or move to the pleasure quarter in 1658.
  • Tateonnagata (立女方) - The leading onnagata in a Kabuki theater or troupe, also called a tateoyama.
  • Tateshi (立師) - A choreographer for a tachimawari.
  • Tedai (手代) - A shop employee whose rank is above Decchi and below Bantō.
  • Tekomai (手古舞) - The tekomai were young geisha, walking in procession during a religious festival in a special costume. They led the mikoshi (御輿 portable shrine) while singing festival chant-like songs like the famous "kiyari ondo".
  • Tengū (天狗) - A long-nosed goblin.
  • Teodori (手踊り) - A colorful and lively section in a traditional dance in which the dancer dances without any stage props, to a rhythm set by the musical ensemble and using refined hand movements.
  • Teoigoto (手負事) - Acting a wounded hero, who is about to die on stage. The scene shows the suffering of the dying character and it is usually used for the final revelation of the truth and their true feelings.
  • Teppō (鉄砲) - A rifle, or musket.
  • Tobae (鳥羽絵) - The tobae were comical and fantastic scroll pictures made by Toba Sōjō, depicting animals frolicking as if they were human. Toba Sōjō (1053 - 1140), also known as Kakuyû, was the 47th head priest of the Enryakuji Temple. The tobae are considered to be oldest form of manga and Toba Sōjō as the very first mangaka in Japanese History.
  • Tobi (鳶) - A fireman during the Edo period.
  • Tōdori (頭取) - A manager in a Kabuki theater in charge of all the backstage logistics.
  • Toitagaeshi (戸板返し) - A stage trick (keren) performed by flipping a large wooden shutter to reveal the same actor in two different roles. Two headless human-sized puppets are set on each side of the shutter and there are holes for the actor's head and hands.
  • Tokiwazu (常磐津) - A style of narrative music, originating in the Bungo style, created during the Enkyō era and used in some Kabuki dance-dramas. The current head of the
  • Toko no Ma (床の間) - A very important alcove, used for the exhibition of paintings or pots, in the main room of a traditional Japanese house.
  • Tombo (とんぼ) - A somersault performed by a minor actor during a spectacular tachimawari.
  • Tōmi (遠見) - Literally "a distant view". In the Kabuki world, this expression is used for child-actors who replace adult actors in the same role to create the illusion of a distant view.
  • Torii (鳥居) - A gateway, in either wood or stone, leading to a Shintō shrine.
  • Tōshi Kyōgen (通し狂言) - A performance of a play in its entirety or one program made up of several acts of the same play.
  • Toshima (年増) - A middle-aged woman.
  • Tsuno Katsura (角鬘) - The horned wig, used to portray the traditional Japanese demons (oni)
  • Tsurane (連ね) - A long declamatory speech spoken without a break on the hanamichi by an aragotoshi. Most tsurane occur during an actor's entrance and are delivered in a musical voice. It is full of puns and tongue twisters.
  • Tsuzumi (鼓) - A traditional Japanese hand drum.
  • Tsuzura (葛篭) - A wicker basket.

U

  • Uma (馬) - A horse. The Kabuki stage horse is a work of art, made of wood and velvet and carried by two specialist assistants. These job of these assistants is passed down from generation to generation, and from watching them, there is very little about the behavior of horses that they do not know and reproduce. The horses toss their heads, paw the ground, back away from obstacles and fret at the bit like any thoroughbred. The actor who rides such horses must give a tip known as "hay money" (kaibaryō) to the artists if he does not wish to risk an undignified fall - this quaint tradition persists at least, even if present-day stage discipline militates against any such calculated mishaps.
  • Ume (梅) - The plum tree or its blossom. It is associated with Umeōmaru, one of the main characters in the epic drama "Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami".
  • Ume-no-yoshibeimono (梅の由兵衛物) - Dances or dramas whose leading character is the otokodate Ume no Yoshibei.
  • Utazawa (うた沢) - Utazawa is a style of singing, using shamisen that dates back to the late Edo Period. The voice is drawn out and highly ornamented and there is a very subtle relationship between the voice and the shamisen.
  • Utō (善知鳥) - The name of a Japanese bird, which calls out its children with the onomatopoeic "utō". Children answer with the onomatopoeic, "yasukata".

W

  • Wagoto (和事) - The "gentle style". One of the important Kabuki acting styles, usually opposed to the aragoto style. The father of wagoto was the great Kamigata actor Sakata Tōjūrō. The typical wagoto hero is a young, soft, romantic refined gallant, the heir of a rich family of merchants and deeply in love with the most beautiful courtesan of the Ōsaka pleasure quarter. He has spent all the family fortune in the pleasure quarter or doesn't have enough money to buy back the contract of his lover. At the end of the play, he often has to run away with her, committing a beautiful shinjū in order for them to live happily together in the afterlife. Speech and gestures in wagoto are much more realistic and delicate than in the aragoto style.
  • Wagotoshi (和事師) - A subdivision of tachiyaku. A wagotoshi is an actor who specialises in wagoto-style roles.
  • Wajitsu (和実) - A subdivision of tachiyaku, wajitsu is a subtle combination of wagotoshi and jitsugotoshi.
  • Wakaonnagata (若女方) - An onnagata actor, who specialises in playing young maiden or princess roles.
  • Wakashugata (若衆方) - Actors who specialise in playing young adolescent roles.
  • Wankyūmono (椀久物) - Dances or dramas whose main characters are Wanya Kyūbei and his lover, the courtesan Matsuyama. Kyūbei, nicknamed Wankyū, is the son of a wealthy Ōsaka drygoods dealer. He spends all his time and family's money in the pleasures quarter and his extravagance has no limit. His parents are so exasperated that they decide to confine him in a room. He escapes and wanders in the countryside in a state of madness, desperately looking for his lover. The story has some factual basis. There was a man named Wanya Kyūemon, who led an extravagant life in the Shinmachi pleasure quarter, loving a courtesan named Matsuyama. His tombstone is located in the Jissōji temple in Ōsaka.
  • Washi (和紙) - Traditional Japanese hand-molded paper.

Y

  • Yagō (屋号) - An actor's guild name. The equivalent of a store name for actors. During the feudal times, lower class people were not allowed to hold family names. It was however possible for a merchant or an employee to use his store name as a family name. For example, Chōbei, head clerk at the Yamadaya liquor shop was called Yamadaya Chōbei. The Kabuki actors used family names, like Ichikawa, Nakamura, Onoe, Kataoka or Bandō to name the most famous ones, but it was of course a breach in the law and the yagō was a good way to trick the Shōgunate authorities into thinking that actors were not trying to usurp some privileges of the higher classes. The yagō is very important in Kabuki, more important than the family name of the actor, because it strictly defines the guilds of acting families. For example the Ichikawa clan is divided in several guilds like Naritaya, Omodakaya or Mikawaya. Without the yagō, there would be no way to understand the close link between the Onoe Kikugorō and Bandō Hikosaburō lines of actors, which share the same guild name (Otowaya). The first ideogram used in a yagō is ya, which means roof, house, or shop in Japanese.
  • Yagyū Shinkage Ryū (柳生新陰流) - One of the most famous Japanese schools of swordsmanship.
  • Yakko (奴) - A low-ranking footman, who serves a high-ranking samurai. They lead their Lord's cortège to clear the streets with their spears when he travels in the country. They play key roles in many Kabuki dramas, either helping the hero or the villain of the play and they are at the center of many famous tachimawari. Yakko's costumes are always colorful and they often wear kumadori make-up.
  • Yakkomono (奴物) - Play or dance whose main character is a yakko.
  • Yakusha (役者) - An actor.
  • Yakusha Mono Iwai (旦生言語備) - The "Yakusha Mono Iwai" was an illustrated book dedicated to Kamigata actors, illustrated by Ryûkōsai and published by Inaba Shin'emon and Murakami Kuhei in Ōsaka in 1784.
  • Yamabushi (山伏) - An itinerant Buddhist priest practicing asceticism in the mountains.
  • Yamambamono (山姥物) - Dramas or dances whose main character is Yamamba, the supernatural mountain hag of the Japanese legends. In Kabuki, she is the mother of Sakata Kintoki, a strong boy who will be one of the shitennō.
  • Yanagi (柳) - A willow tree.
  • Yaoya Oshichi (八百屋お七) - Oshichi was a 16 year-old girl, the daughter of a vegetable store owner (hence the "family name" or yagō, "Yaoya", which is "vegetable" in Japanese), who lived in the district of Hongō in Edo (the current Bunkyō-ku ward in Tōkyō). In 1681, Oshichi fell in love with a young priest whom she met at his temple while seeking shelter from a large fire. Hoping to see him again, she set fire to her own home in 1682, causing a massive blaze that destroyed a huge section of Edo. She was arrested, convicted and condemned to death for arson. She was burnt alive to pay for her crime. Her grave is located in a temple in the district of Hakusan (Bunkyō-ku, Tōkyō). Yaoya Oshichi became a legend and a leading character in several Kabuki plays.
  • Yari Odori (槍踊り) - A "Dance with a Spear" (keyari).
  • Yarite (遣り手) - A shrewd character.
  • Yarō Tachiyaku Butai Ōkagami (野良立役舞台大鏡) - The "Great Mirror of Adult Male Role Players", which was published in ōsaka by Izumiya Yazaemon in January 1687, was the very first hyōbanki in Kabuki history.
  • Yatai kuzushi (屋台崩し) - The spectacular destruction of a pavilion or building on a Kabuki stage. Forms a part of the stage tricks (keren).
  • Yatsushi (俏し) - A former wealthy man, who fallen into the lower classes because he spent all his money for the love of a courtesan.
  • Yatsushigata (俏し方) - A nimaime actor, who excels in yatsushigoto roles.
  • Yatsushigoto (俏し事) - A form of wagoto, with the main character being a yatsushi.
  • Yōshi (養子) - An adopted child.
  • Yoshiwara (吉原) - A famous pleasure quarter in Edo. The Shōgunate authorities ordered the construction of Yoshiwara in 1615. The first location was in the current district of Nihonbashi Ningyōchō. After being destroyed during the great fire of 1657, Yoshiwara moved to the district of Asakusa and took on the name of Shinyoshiwara.
  • Yukata (浴衣) - An unlined cotton kimono used for casual wear or sleeping</font>). Also an informal, light, cotton kimono for summer.
  • Yusuriba (強請場) - A blackmail scene in a Kabuki play.

Z

  • Zagashira (座頭) - The head of a Kabuki troupe. The zagashira was both the main producer of all the performances, as well as the supervisor of the scripts provided by the playwrights. He was also in charge of the organization of both stage and backstage, working closely with the zamoto and the tatesakusha.
  • Zamoto (座元) - A promoter of Kabuki performances during the Edo Period. He owned of the right to organize Kabuki performances. There were important differences between Edo and the Kamigata. In Edo, the zamoto was somebody who received a license from the Shōgunate authorities to produce Kabuki in his own theater. He had the right to transmit his title, his license and his name to his son or adopted son. In Kamigata, the zamoto was an actor, who produced Kabuki performances in the name of a nadai, the owner of the right to organize Kabuki performances. It was usually a yearly assignment.
  • Zangirimono (散切物) - The "Cropped Hair Plays". A genre of sewamono dramas, dealing with contemporary Meiji characters. The name originates from the fact that in the Meiji Era, with the abolition of certain social distinctions, hair-styles also changed. Until Meiji a man's station in life was indicated by his hairdo, i.e., the way the scalp was shaved and the length of hair and method of tying it. With the leveling of all ranks of men, ordinary close-cropped hair (zangiri) became the fashion for all classes. Kikugorō's "Cropped Hair Plays" were so-called because the characters appeared with the characteristic haircut and costume of the Meiji Era.
  • Zatō (座頭) - A blind masseur.
  • Zōri (草履) - A straw sandal.
  • Zōriuchi (草履討ち) - To hit somebody's head with a straw sandal. A very insulting and humiliating act in old Japan.

Also See

Bibliography

  • Nojima Jusaburō, Kabuki Jōruri Gedai Yomikata Jiten (歌舞伎浄瑠璃外題読み方事典 Reading Encyclopaedia of Kabuki), Nichigai Associates, 1990
  • Hattori Yukio, Tomita Tetsunosuke, Hirosue Tamotsu, Kabuki Jiten (歌舞伎事典 Kabuki Encyclopaedia), Heibonsha, 2000
  • Ronald Cavaye, Paul Griffith, Senda Akihiko, A guide to the Japanese Stage, Kōdansha, 2004
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