Last week we had the remarkable experience of seeing Nakamura Kanzaburo XVIII and the Heisei Nakamura-za perform Kanjincho, a famous Japanese Kabuki play. All of this was COMPLETELY NEW TO ME. We sat transfixed by the magnificent costumes, the bold movements, and the dramatic facial expressions. Entirely in Japanese, we understood only what had been described in a brief synopsis of the play given beforehand by a host. Kanjincho was followed by the play Migawari Zazen, full of humor and stylized slapstick. Miraculously accessible to us westerners who laughed along with those who actually understood fragments of the centuries-old Japanese. Nakamura Kanzaburo made the entire experience all the more memorable by breaking into English during the last scene and adding a traditional Kabuki-style aside to the audience. This print is by the Ukiyo-e master Yoshitoshi of the main character of Kanjincho, Benkei. Art, again, thrives transcendent.
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