The Minamiza Theater Through the Eyes of a Kabuki Prodigy

Birthplace of Kabuki

“The area along the banks of the Kamo River around Shijō Street is where kabuki was born. It’s where Minamiza stands today, so the theater holds a very special place for kabuki actors.” Thus muses 25-year-old kabuki star Nakamura Takanosuke on the history of his art as he gazes across at Shijō Ōhashi Bridge from the roof of the storied Kyoto playhouse.

Nakamura Takanosuke on Minamiza’s roof (not open to the public). Behind him is a small shrine dedicated to Benzaiten, the deity of the performing arts. (© Matsuda Tadao)

Takanosuke was interviewed in late November at the theater, where he was starring in his first Western-style play, Uchōten kazoku (The Eccentric Family). Temperatures had suddenly dipped, but the streets around the playhouse were bustling with tourists. He was also scheduled to perform there the following month in the traditional kaomise (“face showing”) performance.

“As I walk along the Kamo River to get to the theater, I’m often pleasantly surprised by the stylish shops lining the streets, or I’ll hear someone playing music,” Takanosuke says. “The thought then occurs to me that rivers and bridges are places where people naturally gather and where culture and civilization are born. This was probably truer in the past, when such areas were major transportation hubs. But even today, Minamiza sits next to the geisha districts of Gion and Miyagawachō, and there are also many charming restaurants and bars across the bridge in Pontochō and along Kiyamachi Street. It was this vibrant milieu that nurtured the development of the plays and artistry of kabuki.”

The Minamiza hanamichi and stage. (Courtesy of Shōchiku)

Sharing thoughts from the first-floor seating area. (© Matsuda Tadao)

Lone Remaining Licensed Playhouse

Minamiza’s roots go all the way back to the legendary founder of kabuki, a dancer named Izumo no Okuni. According to the Tōdaiki, a historical document compiled in the early seventeenth century, Okuni worked as a shrine maiden at Izumo Taisha shrine (now in Shimane Prefecture) and in 1603 came to Kyoto, where she performed what was described as a “kabuki dance.” She became so popular that a stage was set up to showcase her dance-drama at Kyoto’s famed Kitano Tenmangū shrine.

A statue of Izumo no Okuni stands on the northeast corner of Shijō Ōhashi bridge. The inscription reads, “Here, near the Kamo River around Shijō Street, is where Okuni performed her kabuki dance, sporting the stylish costumes of free-spirited males.” At right, a monument marking the birthplace of “Okuni kabuki” stands along the western wall of Minamiza. (© Matsuda Tadao)

She also toured around the country and was even invited to perform at Edo Castle, the seat of the shogunal government in what is now Tokyo. Her success spawned many imitators in various regions, while in Kyoto, people flocked to kabuki playhouses lining the banks of the Kamo River near Shijō. Seven such venues were granted licenses by the shogunal magistrate in Kyoto during the Genna era (1615–24), but the magistrate banned onna kabuki, performed by women dressed as men, which was deemed to disrupt public morals. This led to the emergence of yarō kabuki, where men played both male and female roles.

A series of fires during the eighteenth century forced the closure of many playhouses, and only two major theaters remained in Kyoto by the late Edo period—one on the south side of Shijō and another facing it on the north. The northern hall closed in 1893, leaving Minamiza (literally, the “south theater”) as the only kabuki theater in Kyoto with a yagura (watchtower with a flag of the troupe) certifying that it was officially recognized by the Tokugawa shogunate.

Minamiza’s stately Momoyama-style façade, photographed in November 2024. The yagura near the roof, detailed at right, certified that the theater was licensed by the Edo shogunate. (© Matsuda Tadao)

Preserving a Traditional Feel

Minamiza was acquired by Shōchiku in 1906 and rebuilt in 1929 as a five-story, reinforced-concrete structure with an elegant, Momoyama-style façade. It underwent several renovations over the years, but the building itself was preserved, and in 1996, it was designated as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan.

It was closed while undergoing seismic reinforcement from January 2016 through October 2018, and reopened in November with a 400th anniversary kaomise event that ran for two months. The bill was noted for featuring the first performances of three generations of an acting family under new stage names: Matsumoto Hakuō II, Matsumoto Kōshirō X, and Ichikawa Somegorō VIII.

The opening day of the 2018 kaomise performance at Minamiza. The maneki signboards bearing the names of featured actors include those of Hakuō, Kōshirō, Somegorō, and many other top performers. (© Jiji Press)

Minamiza has a seating capacity of 1,082, which is smaller than the two main theaters for kabuki in Tokyo: Kabukiza with 1,964 seats and Shinbashi Enbujō with 1,428 seats. But Minamiza holds a special place for Takanosuke, as it retains the feel of a traditional kabuki playhouse.

“The building’s graceful silhouette, the vermilion-themed lobby, and the vintage lighting are all very charming. And I feel very comfortable with the compact stage and seating capacity. Tokyo’s Kabukiza may be the ‘home ground’ for most kabuki actors today, but it’s a bit too large to be called a playhouse; it’s definitely a theater. My impression is that in the past, kabuki plays and performance styles were developed with Minamiza’s scale and feel in mind. And so, acting here is a valuable learning experience for me.”

The view from the third-floor seating area, favored by kabuki connoisseurs. The curved gable above the stage is a unique Minamiza feature. (Courtesy of Shōchiku)

Takanosuke is fond of Minamiza’s lobby, decorated with a painting of a Taishō-era performance of Kanjinchō. (© Matsuda Tadao)

First Encounter

Takanosuke first appeared on the Minamiza stage when he was 19 during the December 2018 kaomise performance, immediately after the theater reopened. “There was a festive atmosphere all around the city,” he recalls. “The house was fully packed every day, and I remember being very nervous.”

Kaomise performances are traditionally held at the start of the kabuki season and historically were the most important. Back when many playhouses competed for audiences, actors would sign yearly contracts running from November to October, and the names of the actors under contract would be prominently displayed at these “face showing” events in November. Minamiza’s kaomise is the oldest surviving example of this practice.

Shōchiku acquired management rights to Kabukiza in 1913, thereby becoming the only company in the country to offer commercial kabuki performances. It has since continued the kaomise tradition, holding such performances at Kabukiza in November and Minamiza in December, although actors today are no longer under annual contracts.

Takanosuke stands before the Uchōten kazoku and the kaomise posters at Minamiza, where he performed for two straight months at the end of 2024. (© Matsuda Tadao)

Performances Before Discerning Audiences

Takanosuke’s father, Nakamura Tomijūrō V, was designated a national living treasure. Takanosuke was just 11 years old when his father passed away, and his visits to Minamiza had consequently become less frequent. He continued to travel to Kyoto, though, since both his father and grandfather (Tomijūrō IV) are buried there. Still, he was overwhelmed at first by the distinctive atmosphere of the kaomise, particularly the sight of so many professional and apprentice geishas dressed in their full attire in the audience.

All the geishas from Kyoto’s five districts attend in turn as part of their artistic training (these outings are called kagai sōken). During intermissions, they customarily come backstage to have special hairpins—shaped like the maneki signboards displayed outside the theater—autographed by their favorite performer.

Young, apprentice geishas attending Minamiza’s kaomise performance in 2022. (© Kyōdō)

“At my first kaomise, I shared a dressing room with Nakamura Ganjirō and was stunned by the number of young geishas who would visit us backstage,” Takanosuke recalls. “I thought, ‘Wow, this is amazing!’ At the same time, I was struck by the enduring dynamism of Kyoto’s culture and tradition. Minamiza’s kaomise is not just full of pageantry but also an opportunity to perform before discerning audiences. I’ve grown more accustomed to its distinctive practices now, but I’ll still be geared up for my roles at the upcoming kaomise. And I hope many more people around the country will visit this historically important playhouse, especially with the Expo coming up in Osaka in 2025.”

As the star of Uchōten kazoku, Takanosuke was given his own dressing room. (© Matsuda Tadao)

He will be performing at the New Year Asakusa Kabuki, considered a “gateway to success” for up-and-coming actors, in January 2025. (© Matsuda Tadao)

Kyoto Minamiza Theater

• Address: Higashizume, Shijō-Ōhashi, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto
• Getting there: Enter the theater directly from Gion-Shijō Station on the Keihan Main Line or walk about 3 minutes from Kyoto-Kawaramachi Station on the Hankyū Kyoto Line; the theater is about 15 minutes from JR Kyoto Station by taxi.

(Originally published in Japanese on November 30, 2024. Interview and text by Hashino Yukinori of Nippon.com. Hairdressing and makeup by Hanai Nao of Jouer. Banner photo: Kabuki actor Nakamura Takanosuke sits on the hanamichi walkway at Kyoto’s Minamiza Theater. © Matsuda Tadao.)