The Haunted Sword

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The Haunted Sword

May 1888, Tokyo

This drama is based on an actual incident in the early 18th century known as “the hundred murders of Yoshihara”, when a crazed man named Jirozaemon from northern Kanto killed a large number of courtesans and others in the popular district. The playwright, Kawatake Shinshichi III, was a disciple of the famed Kawatake Mokuami, and updated his master’s old drama Hachiman Matsuri Yomiya no Nigiwai for the modern era, turning it into a story of the parting of lovers. It won immediate acclaim and remains an audience favorite. The original work had eight acts, but Jirozaemon’s background story is now omitted and only the Yoshiwara act is performed. A rare full-length production was presented in Tokyo in May 2011. The scene “Misome” offers the glamorous sight of Yoshiwara and a procession of gorgeous oiran. The breakup scene in particular is full of beauty and pathos, including Yatsuhashi’s mental struggle having been caught between her lover and her patron, the sorrowful sight of Jirozaemon after he is discarded, and the need of the famed sword Kagotsurube to taste blood once it is unsheathed.

●main graphic ［from left］Sano Jirozaemon（Nakamura Kichiemon）、Yatsuhashi（Nakamura Fukusuke）　　May 2011　Shinbashi Enbujo Theatre

●publication date　March 2017