It's a traditional performing art with a rich history.

It draws a million theater-goers per year...

It's kabuki!

Explore this art with kabuki actor Kataoka Ainosuke on KABUKI KOOL!

Today we focus on one play, "Genpei Nunobiki no Taki."

The Genji and Heike were famous warrior clans locked in a bitter war

and the play reveals the emotional struggles of these warriors.

Let's open the curtain to find out more.

Hello, I'm Sarah Àlainn.

I started off as a complete novice in Kabuki,

but with every episode my fascination for this unique world continues to grow.

Today we'll be focusing on a single play in detail.

Our guide is Kabuki Actor Kataoka Ainosuke.

- Hello!
- Hello.

Today's play is a very special work for me personally.

It's "Genpei Nunobiki no Taki," "The White Cascade of the Genji Banner."

What's the story about?

It's about the famous war between the Genji and Heike families that began in the early 1100s.

So it's a fight between rival warrior clans!

That's right. We'll start with the act called "Yoshikata Saigo."

It's about Kisono Senjo Yoshikata, also known as Minamoto no Yoshikata, a key general for the Genji family.

And I understand that Yoshikata is a role you've performed several times.

Yes, I've acted the role about five times.

It's a play I'm careful to get exactly right.

Yoshikata's older brother Yoshitomo was the head of their branch of the Genji and Yoshitomo died fighting the Heike.

Yoshikata has convinced the Heike that he's on their side,

and is hiding his actual commitment to restoring the Genji family.

This is a vital prop.

It appears several times in the play.

Let's open it.

- There.
- It's quite a chic design.

Yes, this black and white flag is the Genji's mark.

It is a symbol of the clan's existence.

It must be preserved and Yoshikata puts his life on the line to ensure it never ends up in Heike hands.

The mansion of Kiso Yoshikata.

Yoshikata's brother Yoshitomo was the head of his branch of the Genji clan,

but after his brother's death, Yoshikata has been forced to support the enemy Heike clan.

Yoshikata laments that the Genji clan may disappear forever.

Yoshikata has hidden the white banner of the Genji clan and with another loyalist, he pledges to try to restore the clan.

Yoshikata reveals to his wife Aoi Gozen that he is determined to die fighting the enemy Heike clan.

I will wear robes of peace, draw the enemy here and die.

Quickly go from here and protect the Genji banner!

Must we be parted?

We can never talk together again!

Aoi Gozen is pregnant with Yoshikata's child.

He parts from her forever by giving her the banner

and telling her to have his son restore the Genji clan.

The Heike forces come to attack Yoshikata.

Yoshikata wears no armor and faces the Heike all alone.

All alone?

But still, Yoshikata cuts down the enemy, one after another.

How powerful!

Finally, Yoshikata is cornered.

He continues to fight back.

There is a special fight technique called "toita daoshi" "falling doors."

Wow!

Heike arrows shower him from all sides.

Yoshikata is cornered.

The Heike clan took the banner from Aoi Gozen, but Yoshikata has risked his life to get it back.

Koman, the wife of his footman Orisuke, comes to Yoshikata.

My lord! You are hurt!

I do not matter.

What is important is this banner.

See that this goes to Aoi Gozen!

My lord!

Yoshikata entrusts Koman with the all-important banner.

Go quickly!

Do not worry about me!

Yoshikata is confident Koman will defend the banner with her life.

Then Yoshikata prepares for his own death.

That looked so painful!

Does your face ever hit the stage?

Yes, I have actually done that twice during the big finale.

Did you get a nosebleed?

I thought I'd broken my nose!

At least the curtain closes straight away and I was OK, but a huge shock - it's a dangerous move.

Mm, how risky!

And I really felt the strength of Yoshikata's conviction,

but Ainosuke-san, what do you find most appealing about Yoshikata?

The first time I saw the play I was blown away by the action scenes.

It's all I remembered!

But the more I played the role the more I realized that the truly interesting part comes before all the fighting.

He's Heike on the outside, but deeply loyal to the Genji.

As an actor you have to express those deeply suppressed emotions as subtly as possible.

But that's really fun to play.

- So, the little nuances...
- Yes.

And the white Genji banner is the key to this story and Yoshikata entrusts Koman with it.

So, what happens to her?

We find out in a later act called "Sanemori Monogatari," which we'll look at now.

It focuses on a samurai called Saito Sanemori.

He's intelligent and affectionate, very upright and an extremely appealing character.

Sanemori is currently sworn to the Heike, but was once a Genji retainer.

So Sanemori is in the same kind of situation as Yoshikata.

That's right.

I played Sanemori in the performance we're about to see.

This is the house of Koman's father Kurosuke and they are there with Koman's 7 year old son, Tarokichi.

Kurosuke went fishing with his grandson, but in their net was the cut off arm of a woman.

This silk looks valuable, but I can't get it from this arm.

Wife, help me to get the cloth from this arm.

But the arm will not let go of this white cloth.

Grandpa, I know what to do!

Gently release one finger at a time.

Strangely enough, the arm releases its grip for Tarokichi.

I got it!

They are protecting Aoi Gozen, who is pregnant with Yoshikata's child.

They show her the white cloth.

But... this is the banner of the Genji clan!

If this is the banner of the Genji clan...

...could this arm belong to our daughter?

Two Heike warriors come to investigate: Seno'o no Juro and Saito Sanemori.

That's Kurosuke's house.

They have been ordered to kill Aoi Gozen's child if it is a boy, to exterminate the Genji clan.

They say Aoi Gozen has just had her child and tell Sanemori to examine the baby.

Inside the brocade bundle is...

...the cut off arm that they had fished up.

What? Aoi Gozen gave birth to this?!!

Seno'o is furious at this ridiculous idea.

But Sanemori says that such things have been known to happen and defends Aoi Gozen.

The arm was a bit scary.

- But that last scene was bizarre!
- Bizarre, do you think?

I mean, instead of a baby, He claims a woman gave birth to an arm!

It's a shock, isn't it?

Seno-o insists he will cut Aoi Gozen open to discover the sex of her baby.

Kurosuke's wife attempts to stave him off by pretending the cut off arm is a baby.

Mm, Sanemori used to be a Genji retainer, right?

So he's trying to save Aoi Gozen and the baby?

Yes, he is. He uses the old story about a Chinese princess who gave birth to an iron ball to try and convince Seno'o.

- Still, that's a bit farfetched!
- It is.

What a trick to try to use!

Does that arm actually belong to Koman though?

Well, we'll find out the answer as Sanemori confesses what he has done.

So let's watch.

Originally a Genji retainer, after Seno'o leaves, Sanemori reveals that he is on Aoi Gozen's side.

I now live on a stipend from the Heike, but I have not forgotten the Genji clan.

I took on today's mission to preserve the future of the Genji.

Sanemori says that this arm must be the one he cut off.

On a boat on Lake Biwa, I cut off the arm of a young woman.

Her name was... Koman!

Tarokichi weeps uncontrollably and his grandparents grieve

when they realize that this is indeed Koman's arm.

"Sanemori sits formally to tell his story."

Sanemori explains how he was forced to cut off Koman's arm.

Not only in speech, but with movements and words that he chants, together with the music of the shamisen.

- So it isn't just spoken words.
- That's right.

She was holding something white with her teeth.

Sanemori was together with the Heike on a boat when a desperate woman came swimming towards it.

"Sadly, it looked like she was about to drown."

These movements express the woman floundering in the water and the waves.

Sanemori gets an idea to save her.

He ties a rope to an oar, throws it into the water and tells her to grab it and hold tight.

Woman! Grab this oar and hold it tight!

"She is pulled onto the Heike boat."

Your name is... Koman?

"Ko-ma-n" Koman was rescued by the Heike boat, but she was carrying the banner of the enemy Genji.

The Heike warriors called, "She has the banner of the Genji. Get it from her!"

The Heike samurai tried to get the white banner away from her.

- So you're showing the fight over the banner!
- That's right!

Sanemori doesn't want the Heike to get the banner, but Koman also does not let go of it.

So this is what Sanemori is forced to do.

You mean...

I had to preserve the future of the Genji clan, and could not protect the life of this woman.

"So I cut off the arm holding the banner."

While they lament these events, Koman's dead body has been brought in.

When the arm is united with the body, miraculously, Koman revives briefly.

My lady, do you have the Genji banner?

Yes, I am holding the banner now.

Knowing that she has carried out her mission of getting the banner to Aoi Gozen, now Koman dies at peace.

So that severed arm really did belong to Koman.

It did.

I wasn't expecting her to come back, to be honest - that was so scary.

I mean, Koman revives to confirm she fulfilled her duty before dying again.

She seemed so noble, even romantic, quite cool actually.

Definitely.

I noticed that you don't just say the lines - you were moving to the shamisen music.

That's right. The shamisen music that you heard hear at this moment is called "gidayu."

"Gidayu-bushi" played specifically for kabuki is also known as Takemoto.

It plays a narrative role but also provides an undercurrent to the emotions of characters on stage.

Actors say their lines to the Takemoto music.

It influences our acting and movements.

We work together to create the moment.

This is the cornerstone and the major selling point of "gidayu kyogen" plays.

I see. It's like today when a group of musicians come together in an ensemble.

Yes, it's similar.

We actors move to the shamisen, and the player reacts to our acting.

It's a two-way process. We have to breathe together.

- Like breathing!
- It really is.

And what's the hardest part of this role?

We often get told off for slipping into dancing when we perform our actions.

There's quite a few of them!

It's pantomime, basically. We relive what we did.

How we used the oar, where we threw it, and how we pulled her out.

We're told: Don't dance!

So it isn't a dance, is it?

'Tell the story.' That's what we're told.

It's a very fine line which makes it very difficult but also very rewarding.

Now let's get back to the story.

After this explanation Aoi Gozen gives birth to a healthy son.

- Yoshikata's son, right?
- Yes.

Sanemori must be pleased the Genji have a future.

He is. But Seno'o discovers that she's given birth to a boy and returns to Kurosuke's house.

Yoshikata's child is a boy and cannot live. Give him to me!

Please don't ask for that!

He's only an infant. Sparing him is the kindness of a samurai!

Seno'o insists that Aoi Gozen's baby will grow up to be a Genji warrior and must be killed,

but Sanemori says a samurai should be merciful and begs him to spare the child.

It is your fault, hateful woman!

Seno'o blames everything on Koman and kicks her dead body.

Tarokichi is furious and tries to attack Seno'o with his mother's sword.

Actually, purposely Seno'o allows himself to be stabbed.

But why?

Kurosuke and his wife raised Koman,

but she was actually a foundling and her real father is Seno'o.

Really?

So Seno'o purposely lets Tarokichi strike him so that by killing a member of the enemy Heike, his grandson can advance as a warrior.

My grandson!

Cut off your grandfather's head and let this be your first samurai deed.

So Aoi Gozen gives her permission for Tarokichi to become her son's retainer.

- All due to his grandfather's sacrifice.
- Yes.

Sanemori!

But now Tarokichi challenges Sanemori.

Even if it was to protect the banner of the Genji clan, still, Sanemori killed Koman.

We will fight here and now!

Tarokichi wants to avenge his mother's death.

But he's just a little boy! He couldn't possibly win!

Well, let's see what Sanemori does.

What? Sanemori blows Tarokichi's nose!

Remember my face.

And when you grow up, you can kill me as your mother's killer.

Sanemori promises to let Tarokichi kill him when he grows up.

Then, Sanemori gives Tarokichi a ride on his horse.

Do you think Sanemori is kind to Tarokichi to atone for having killed his mother?

Certainly!

Of course there was a larger mission of keeping the Genji banner from the Heike,

but that meant Sanemori had to kill Koman.

May you all be strong and healthy!

Then Sanemori again gallantly promises to meet Tarokichi in the future

so he can avenge his mother's death, and Sanemori leaves.

- I was really moved by this scene.
- Were you?

All the characters are likeable.

- I mean, no one is truly bad.
- You're right.

Seno'o reveals that he's Koman's real father and lets his grandson kill him.

He sacrifices himself.

And he does it all to protect Tarokichi's future.

He starts out as the bad guy but redeems himself.

That's right.

Having the apparent villain turn out to be a good guy all along is a technique in "gidayu kyogen" known as "modori."

I hadn't heard the term before but it feels very Japanese.

I think Western stories like to make the good and evil bad extremely clear.

Maybe so, yes.

And I think the idea that good and bad can change due to people's situation is very Japanese.

- And that was really refreshing and I found it extremely moving.
- I'm glad.

Well we've taken an in-depth look at "Genpei Nunobiki no Taki" today.

Any thoughts, Sarah?

To be honest, at first I thought because I don't know much about the history,

it would be really hard to understand the story.

But I was surprised that it hit me so deeply!

Yoshikata, Sanemori and all the other characters have strong ideals,

and yet, there is so much love and compassion tenderness in what they do.

Yes.

So even though it is a story of about battle, it was the human drama that got me.

I think I cried more here than with any of the other plays I've seen so far.

Oh really?

- This play was the best!
- Glad to hear!

I hope you were able to explore kabuki's depths in this piece today!

We have lots of questions and letters from our viewers.

Thank you everyone!

Here's a question from Renee Brown, of the USA.

After watching for a few years and reading all of the info on your website,

it appears that all of the plays are old, historic ones.

My question is, are there any playwrights today writing plays based upon modern life in the kabuki style?

The kabuki that we perform in is 'classic kabuki.'

So most people think that it's ancient, but it began as contemporary theater.

We all wear wigs now but the hairstyle used to be the norm.

It was how everyone wore their hair.

Kabuki was everyday life on stage.

Even today there are lots of new kabuki plays being written and performed.

There are collaborations with other genres.

A recent new kabuki production was based on a manga.

There really are all kinds of new and interesting performances happening.

So we study and learn the classics thoroughly to be ready to tackle these new and exciting plays.

- Thank you for the question!
- Thank you!

Don't forget to visit our website.

You can find lots of information on kabuki.

And now you can also view video digests of our show.

Don't forget send us questions and comments!

So, are you ready for our usual ending?

- I am. Ready?
- Yes!

Hear ye!

That's all for today!