Sanja Matsuri

（ ）

Sanja Matsuri

1832, Edo (original name: Asakusa’s March Flower Festival)

This piece focuses on the religious festival of Asakusa Shrine (nicknamed “Sanja” or Shrine of the Three Gods), located in the precincts of today’s Sensoji Temple in Asakusa. The three gods refer to the two fishermen brothers Hamanari and Takenari, who found the god of the Asakusa shrine ensnared in their fishing net, and their master Hajinomatsuchi. A Kabuki dance was developed on this basis from an old folk tale, incorporating the battle of evil vs. good. The premiere featured Bando Mitsugoro IV as the good character and Nakamura Shikan II (later Utaemon IV) as the bad character. These actors were the children of famous dancers and created a friendly rivalry that proved popular. Many famous pairings have followed, most recently the Nakamura brothers Kankuro and Shichinosuke. This was originally part of a three-act dance play entitled Asakusa’s March Flower Festival, where dolls on a festival float come to life and start dancing. That play begins with the dance of a mythical empress and her consort, who become good and evil spirits that capture two fishermen brothers. The pair then change to a young merchant and country samurai, and conclude with a mad lion dance. The theme of good vs. evil came to be performed independently as Sanja Matsuri. The other scenes were forgotten until resurrected by the National Theatre in 1968 as Dances of the 19th Century. That success led to many revivals since.

●main graphic ［from left］Akudama（Nakamura Kantaro）、Zendama（Nakamura Shichinosuke）　December 2005　Kabukiza Theatre

●publication date　November 2016