Nakamura Jakuemon IV

Nakamura Jakuemon IV
Nakamura Jakuemon IV in a 1954 film still.
Born
Seiji Aoki (青木清治)[a]

(1920-08-20)August 20, 1920
Nihonbashi, Chūō-ku, Tokyo, Japan
DiedFebruary 22, 2012(2012-02-22) (aged 91)
OccupationKabuki actor
SpouseAkiko Aoki (Unknown-2012)[b]
ChildrenŌtani Tomoemon VIII (eldest son)[1]
Nakamura Jakuemon V (youngest son)[1]
ParentŌtani Tomoemon VI (father)[1]
RelativesNakamura Sagisuke II (grandfather)
Nakamura Fukunojō (great uncle)
Matsumoto Kōshirō VII (father-in-law)
Ōtani Hirotarō III (grandson)[c][2]
Ōtani Hiromatsu II (grandson)[d][2]

Nakamura Jakuemon IV (四代目 中村 雀右衛門, Yodaime Nakamura Jakuemon) (20 August 1920—22 February 2012)[3] was a Japanese kabuki actor most known for onnagata performance.

Biography

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Born in Tokyo, Japan on August 20, 1920, he was the son of popular Kabuki actor Ōtani Tomoemon VI[e] (1886-1943), a well-known Tachiyaku actor (i.e. he only played male roles) and who died during the 1943 Tottori earthquake while on tour in Shimane Prefecture, when the kabuki theater where he was to perform collapsed on top of him.[1]

In 1991 the Japanese government designated him as a Living National Treasure.[4]

His two sons are also Kabuki actors: his eldest son, Ōtani Tomoemon VIII (Real Name: Tomoyuki Aoki[f], Nihongo: 青木智之, Aoki Tomoyuki) inherited the name and acting style of his grandfather, Ōtani Tomoemon VI (unlike his father and younger brother, Tomoemon VIII became a Tachiyaku just as his grandfather Tomoemon VI) while his youngest son, Nakamura Jakuemon V (Real Name: Sadayuki Aoki[g], Nihongo: 青木貞之, Aoki Sadayuki) inherited the name and acting style of Jakuemon IV himself (becoming one of the main Onnagata of the current era).[1][2][5]

Filmography

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Further reading

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  • Beautiful boys/outlaw bodies: devising Kabuki female-likeness, 2005, By Katherine Mezur
  • Nakamura Jakuemon IV: The Art of Onnagata Acting, 2005, by Rei Sasaguchi

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "中村 雀右衛門 (4代目)". Kabuki on the Web (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  2. ^ a b c "大谷 友右衛門 (8代目)". Kabuki on the Web (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  3. ^ "歌舞伎俳優の中村雀右衛門さん死去 ９１歳". Asahi Shimbun Digital. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
  4. ^ "人間国宝の女形、中村雀右衛門さんが死去". MSN Sankei News. Archived from the original on 11 March 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  5. ^ "中村 雀右衛門 (5代目)". Kabuki on the Web (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-05-11.

Notes

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  1. ^ While the stage names of all kabuki actors have retained traditional order (Surname-Givenname) on Wikipedia, birth names of those born after the Meiji Restoration are in Western order (Givenname-Surname).
  2. ^ Daughter of Matsumoto Kōshirō VII and sister of the legendary kabuki actors Ichikawa Danjūrō XI, Matsumoto Hakuō I and Onoe Shoroku II.
  3. ^ Son of Ōtani Tomoemon VIII.
  4. ^ Son of Ōtani Tomoemon VIII.
  5. ^ Real Name: Yaetaro Aoki (Japanese: 青木八重太郎, Hepburn: Aoki Yaetarō)
  6. ^ While the stage names of all kabuki actors have retained traditional order (Surname-Givenname) on Wikipedia, birth names of those born after the Meiji Restoration are in Western order (Givenname-Surname).
  7. ^ While the stage names of all kabuki actors have retained traditional order (Surname-Givenname) on Wikipedia, birth names of those born after the Meiji Restoration are in Western order (Givenname-Surname).
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