Kabuki time

We have a kind of bucket list for things we want to do in Japan. I've crossed off a couple (watched a sumo tournament, wielded a Katana) during this trip, but a few remain (I want to eat Fugu, climb up mount Fuji, watch a kabuki, for example). The kabuki one is easy to cross off the list, so we decided to go for it this Tuesday. Kabuki is, in case you didn't realize, dear reader, one of the two most famous types of traditional Japanese theater (No is the other one, and apparently it's more difficult than Kabuki)

So off we headed to Ginza, where the legendary Kabuki-za is located (or rather, the latest of many incarnations, this one is only a few years old, even if it looks like a historical building from the outside). We weren't really mentally (nor financially) prepared to take on a full 5-hour kabuki play, so decided to rather go for single act tickets. For this, you have to show up an hour before the play starts, and queue. Actually, we got tickets for the two first acts, in the end...

The first act was all about dancing, and only lasted about 20 minutes. But it was all very beautiful (the costumes, the music, the dancing, everything basically). The second act was proper kabuki (although apparently the play was a bit of a satirical take on a very famous kabuki play). We decided to get a "visual guide" (which basically translates all the dialog for you, and describes the action, on a tablet-like device). Which was an excellent call, as we would've been completely lost without the guide (indeed, our Japanese is certainly not up to scratch to follow a kabuki act, I'm afraid...). With the guide, it was a pretty interesting experience.

The story was basically about the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate, after defeating the rival clan in battle, then decides to wear the emperors dress. This shocks both his opponents, as well as the hero of the story, who challenges the future shogun. (the twist of the story is that the hero of the story is a woman, rather than a man - played by an actor specializing in female roles).

An interesting cultural experience then, one that I can warmly recommend (do go for a single act ticket though, and remember to get the translation unit!).