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Yanagisawa Nobutoki was a ''daimyô'' of [[Koriyama han|Kôriyama han]], known for his love and patronage of the [[kabuki]] theater.

Yanagisawa Nobutoki was a ''daimyô'' of [[Koriyama han|Kôriyama han]], known for his love and patronage of the [[kabuki]] theater.

Nobutoki stepped down from his position as ''daimyô'' in [[1773]] and retired to a home in Somei, in the Komagome neighborhood of [[Edo]], in part in order to devote himself more fully to engagement with the theater world, and with ''[[haikai]]'' poetry circles. His diary ''Enyû Nikki'' ("Diary of Banquets and Pleasures") is a valuable text for scholars, providing insights into the worlds of patronage and social circles of that time. It contains daily entries every day for a span of some thirteen years, and includes mention of as many as 119 visits to the Kabuki theater.

Nobutoki stepped down from his position as ''daimyô'' in [[1773]] and retired to a home in Somei, in the [[Komagome]] neighborhood of [[Edo]], in part in order to devote himself more fully to engagement with the theater world, and with ''[[haikai]]'' poetry circles. His diary ''Enyû Nikki'' ("Diary of Banquets and Pleasures") is a valuable text for scholars, providing insights into the worlds of patronage and social circles of that time. It contains daily entries every day for a span of some thirteen years, and includes mention of as many as 119 visits to the Kabuki theater.

Yanagisawa not only visited the theater, but also wrote his own plays, which he had his servants and maids perform, granting them actor-sounding names like Bandô Shitsugorô and Ichikawa Benzô. Yanagisawa also commissioned an otherwise unknown ''[[ukiyo-e]]'' artist named Beisha to produce [[yakusha-e|actor prints]] of these workers. He also engaged in close social relationships with a number of kabuki actors, including [[Nakamura Nakazo I|Nakamura Nakazô I]]; when the [[Nakamura-za]] was briefly replaced by the [[Kiri-za]] in [[1784]], Nobutoki and Nakazô sent numerous materials back and forth to one another, including advertising materials and other information about the upcoming theater season.

Yanagisawa not only visited the theater, but also wrote his own plays, which he had his servants and maids perform, granting them actor-sounding names like Bandô Shitsugorô and Ichikawa Benzô. Yanagisawa also commissioned an otherwise unknown ''[[ukiyo-e]]'' artist named Beisha to produce [[yakusha-e|actor prints]] of these workers. He also engaged in close social relationships with a number of kabuki actors, including [[Nakamura Nakazo I|Nakamura Nakazô I]]; when the [[Nakamura-za]] was briefly replaced by the [[Kiri-za]] in [[1784]], Nobutoki and Nakazô sent numerous materials back and forth to one another, including advertising materials and other information about the upcoming theater season.