Kabuki for first-timers

Where kabuki came from

Wikipedia says the history of kabuki began in 1603, during the Edo period, when Izumo no Okuni, a former shrine maiden, started performing with a troupe of young female dancers in Kyoto. The name may come from kabuku, to lean or to be out of the ordinary; kabukimono originally meant people who dressed in bizarre ways. The three characters used to write kabuki read as sing, dance and skill, though Wikipedia calls them ateji that do not reflect the real etymology.

Why the casts are all male

Wikipedia reports that women lost the right to perform kabuki in 1629, and that the art then grew into the all-male form it has today. Male actors known as onnagata, a term meaning woman role, play the female parts. UNESCO, which listed kabuki as intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2008, three years after first proclaiming it, says the stories concern historical events and moral conflict in relationships of the heart.

Makeup, poses and the walkway

UNESCO says actors speak in a monotone voice, accompanied by traditional instruments, and hold a characteristic pose called the mie to establish their character. Kumadori is the striped makeup of some roles: Wikipedia says red marks a powerful and virtuous hero, and blue marks a villain or negative emotions such as fear and jealousy. The hanamichi is a footbridge extending into the audience, used for dramatic entrances and exits. The stage also has revolving sections and trapdoors.

The people in black

Kuroko are stagehands who, in Wikipedia's words, are always dressed entirely in black and are traditionally considered invisible. They move scenery and props and help with scene and costume changes, and sometimes play animals or other small roles by holding a prop. You are meant not to see them. That convention matters beyond the theatre, because the historian Stephen Turnbull suggested that the image of the ninja dressed all in black came from kabuki.

How a programme is built

Wikipedia says kabuki was traditionally performed in full-day programmes, with one play of several acts spanning the day, and that nearly every full-length play has five acts. At the Kabuki-za today, it says, programmes change monthly, with a different afternoon and evening set of plays and dances, performed nearly every day. KabukiWeb notes that intermissions are usually 20 to 30 minutes, with restaurants open to the audience during them.

Seeing it as a first-timer

The Kabuki-za stands in Ginza; Wikipedia says its current building opened on 28 March 2013 and was designed by Kengo Kuma, and that Shochiku operates it. KabukiWeb lists two ticket types for English-language services, a full programme and a single act, with the single-act box office on the first level to the left of the main entrance. It also describes an English captioning service giving essential translations of dialogue and lyrics. Check the theatre's current ticketing before you go.

Other places to watch

Wikipedia names the National Theatre, the Kabuki-za and the Minami-za as major theatres fitted with the stage-flying installations called chūnori. Each theatre publishes its own programme, so check what is on before you go. If you want a modern show that borrows kabuki's staging instead, the ninja kabuki guide on this site explains what that evening is, and how it differs from the theatres listed here.

Read next: Ninja kabuki show, explained

Who this isn't for

Classical kabuki is not for anyone who wants fast action in a short time with no explanation. A full programme is long, the pace of the older plays is deliberate, and much of the pleasure is in details such as a held pose or a costume change. If that sounds like too much, a single act is the gentle way in, and a modern fusion show with drums and sword fights is a different evening altogether.