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Emphasizing the aesthetic beauty of the dance, costumes, and set pieces, and on the actor's skill and technique, and stylized movement or gestures (''shosa'' or ''furi''), ''shosagoto'' contain minimal or no narrative dialogue. ''Shosagoto'' are also set apart from most types of kabuki scenes in that musicians are seated onstage, rather than being hidden behind a latticed screen (''geza'' or ''kuromisu''); off-stage musicians, or those behind the ''kuromisu'', play as well during a ''shosagoto'' dance scene, adding to the music performed by those visible onstage.

Emphasizing the aesthetic beauty of the dance, costumes, and set pieces, and on the actor's skill and technique, and stylized movement or gestures (''shosa'' or ''furi''), ''shosagoto'' contain minimal or no narrative dialogue. ''Shosagoto'' are also set apart from most types of kabuki scenes in that musicians are seated onstage, rather than being hidden behind a latticed screen (''geza'' or ''kuromisu''); off-stage musicians, or those behind the ''kuromisu'', play as well during a ''shosagoto'' dance scene, adding to the music performed by those visible onstage.

''Shosagoto'' first coalesced into a distinctive form in the [[Genroku period]] ([[1688]]-[[1704]]); it continued to evolve over the course of the 18th century, with ''[[nagauta]]'' music becoming the standard genre of music accompanying the dances. The form was pioneered by [[Segawa Kikunojo I|Segawa Kikunojô I]], who specialized in ''[[Dojoji|Dôjôji]]'' and ''[[Shakkyo|Shakkyô]]'' dances; the form was further developed by [[Nakamura Tomijuro I|Nakamura Tomijûrô I]], who combined all the previously-performed ''Dôjôji'' pieces into a single dance piece, called ''Kyôganoko musume dôjôji''.

''Shosagoto'' first coalesced into a distinctive form in the [[Genroku period]] ([[1688]]-[[1704]]); it continued to evolve over the course of the 18th century, with ''[[nagauta]]'' music becoming the standard genre of music accompanying the dances. The form was pioneered by [[Segawa Kikunojo I|Segawa Kikunojô I]], who specialized in ''Dôjôji'' and ''[[Shakkyo|Shakkyô]]'' dances; ''[[Musume Dojoji|Musume Dôjôji]]'', one of the earliest extant ''nagauta'' dances, was debuted in [[1753]]. The nearly one hour long dance piece was adapted from the Noh play ''[[Dojoji|Dôjôji]]''. The ''shosagoto'' form was further developed by [[Nakamura Tomijuro I|Nakamura Tomijûrô I]], who combined all the previously-performed ''Dôjôji'' adaptations into a single dance piece, called ''Kyôganoko musume dôjôji''.

''Shosagoto'' were originally danced exclusively by ''onnagata'' playing female roles. However, in the last decades of the 18th century, ''shosagoto'' danced by male characters began to emerge, in conjunction with the development of the ''[[tokiwazu]]'' and ''[[tomimoto]]'' musical genres, which were then applied to the dance pieces.

''Shosagoto'' were originally danced exclusively by ''onnagata'' playing female roles. However, by the 1780s, ''shosagoto'' danced by male characters began to emerge, in conjunction with the development of the ''[[tokiwazu]]'' and ''[[tomimoto]]'' musical genres, which were then applied to the dance pieces. Around that same time, actors such as [[Nakamura Utaemon III]] and [[Bando Mitsugoro III|Bandô Mitsugorô III]] pioneered a dance form called ''henge-buyô'' (lit. "transformation dance") in which a single actor transforms into a series of different roles as he moves through a series of consecutive dances of related themes, such as the four seasons or famous historical poets. ''Shosagoto'' continued to grow and develop in the 19th century.

 

In the early decades of the 19th century, actors such as [[Nakamura Utaemon III]] and [[Bando Mitsugoro III|Bandô Mitsugorô III]] pioneered a dance form called ''henge-buyô'' (lit. "transformation dance") in which a single actor transforms into a series of different roles as he moves through a series of consecutive dances. ''Shosagoto'' continued to grow and develop in the 19th century.

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==References==

==References==

*"[http://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/kabuki/en/2/2_07.html Development of Shosagoto]." Invitation to Kabuki. Japan Arts Council, 2007.

*"[http://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/kabuki/en/2/2_07.html Development of Shosagoto]." Invitation to Kabuki. Japan Arts Council, 2007.

*McQueen Tokita, Alison. "Music in kabuki: more than meets the eye." ''The Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music''. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, 2008. p237.

*McQueen Tokita, Alison. "Music in kabuki: more than meets the eye." ''The Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music''. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, 2008. pp237, 244.

[[Category:Edo Period]]

[[Category:Edo Period]]

[[Category:Poetry and Theater]]

[[Category:Poetry and Theater]]