Changes

[[Image:Sukeroku.JPG|right|thumb|300px|Mannequin of Ichikawa Danjûrô XII as Sukeroku, at the Edo-Tokyo Museum.]]

[[Image:Sukeroku.JPG|right|thumb|300px|Mannequin of Ichikawa Danjûrô XII as Sukeroku, at the Edo-Tokyo Museum.]]

*''Premiere: [[1713]], [[Yamamura-za]]''

*''Premiere: [[1713]], [[Yamamura-za]]''

*''Playwrights: ''

*''Playwrights: [[Tsuuchi Jihei]] and [[Tsuuchi Han'emon]]''

*''Japanese'': 助六由縁江戸桜 ''(Sukeroku Yukari no Edo-zakura)''

*''Japanese'': 助六由縁江戸桜 ''(Sukeroku Yukari no Edo-zakura)''

The play opens with a drunken Agemaki being escorted in by a small entourage. They sit her down on a bench and give her some medicine to help sober her up, along with a letter that has just arrived from Sukeroku's mother, Manko. Manko writes that Sukeroku is supposed to be busy working on avenging his father's murder, and should not be dallying in the Yoshiwara, seeing courtesans and engaging in street brawls; she asks Agemaki to break things off with Sukeroku and to encourage him to get back to his task. But Agemaki says she cannot do this, as she loves Sukeroku too dearly.<ref name=kabuki21>"[http://www.kabuki21.com/sukeroku.php Sukeroku]." ''Kabuki21.com''. Accessed 4 June 2011.</ref>

The play opens with a drunken Agemaki being escorted in by a small entourage. They sit her down on a bench and give her some medicine to help sober her up, along with a letter that has just arrived from Sukeroku's mother, Manko. Manko writes that Sukeroku is supposed to be busy working on avenging his father's murder, and should not be dallying in the Yoshiwara, seeing courtesans and engaging in street brawls; she asks Agemaki to break things off with Sukeroku and to encourage him to get back to his task. But Agemaki says she cannot do this, as she loves Sukeroku too dearly.<ref name=kabuki21>"[http://www.kabuki21.com/sukeroku.php Sukeroku]." ''Kabuki21.com''. Accessed 4 June 2011.</ref>

An attendant appears and tells Agemaki that the samurai Ikyû is on his way to see her. He enters with a small entourage, as does the courtesan Shiratama. It becomes clear that Ikyû has already seen Agemaki a number of times in the past, and that he is a high-paying and well-known Yoshiwara patron. However, he begins saying nasty things about Sukeroku, which upsets Agemaki, who declares she never wishes to have anything to do with Ikyû again, and exits, despite Shiratama's efforts to calm her down.<ref name=kabuki21/>

An attendant appears and tells Agemaki that the samurai Ikyû is on his way to see her. He enters with a small entourage, as does the courtesan Shiratama. It becomes clear that Ikyû has already seen Agemaki a number of times in the past, and that he is a high-paying and well-known Yoshiwara patron. However, Agemaki dislikes him, and when he begins saying nasty things about Sukeroku, she berates him and exits, despite Shiratama's efforts to calm her down.<ref name=kabuki21/><ref name=guide>Cavaye, Ronald, Paul Griffith, and Akihiko Senda. ''A Guide to the Japanese Stage: From Traditional to Cutting Edge''. New York: Kodansha International, 2004. pp135-136.</ref>

Sukeroku enters on the ''hanamichi'', swaggering jauntily and showily in wooden ''[[geta]]'', performing a type of step, or walk, called ''[[tanzen roppo|tanzen roppô]]''<!--丹前六方--><ref>Brandon, James. "Form in Kabuki Acting." in ''Studies in Kabuki''. p89.</ref>. He has one arm tucked inside his kimono, his umbrella over his shoulder, a purple headband tied to one side, the ends dangling down the right side of his face. He stops at ''[[shichi-san]]'', and performs a number of poses and gestures meant to display his bravado, style, and charm. In total, his walk down the ''hanamichi'' and dance at ''shichi-san'' takes about fifteen minutes, and is one of the chief highlights of the play, an opportunity for the star actor to show off, and for the audience to enjoy watching the star perform these dramatic poses, prideful walk, and charming character.<ref>Brandon. "Form in Kabuki Acting." p94.</ref>

A ''[[shakuhachi]]'' plays, and Sukeroku enters on the ''hanamichi'', swaggering jauntily and showily in wooden ''[[geta]]'', performing a type of step, or walk, called ''[[tanzen roppo|tanzen roppô]]''<!--丹前六方--><ref>Brandon, James. "Form in Kabuki Acting." in ''Studies in Kabuki''. p89.</ref>. He has one arm tucked inside his kimono, his umbrella over his shoulder, a purple headband tied to one side, the ends dangling down the right side of his face. He stops at ''[[shichi-san]]'', and performs a number of poses and gestures meant to display his bravado, style, and charm. In total, his walk down the ''hanamichi'' and dance at ''shichi-san'', known as a ''[[deha]]'', takes about fifteen minutes, and is one of the chief highlights of the play, an opportunity for the star actor to show off, and for the audience to enjoy watching the star perform these dramatic poses, prideful walk, and charming character.<ref>Brandon. "Form in Kabuki Acting." p94.</ref>

Courtesans and others fawn over him as soon as he enters, many offering him ''[[kiseru]]'' (pipes) to smoke. Ikyû, looking abandoned, his side of the stage relatively empty, declares that he'd like a smoke too, but Sukeroku, now possessing quite a few pipes, says they're all in use. He then offers Ikyû one with his foot, but Ikyû resists losing his temper.<ref name=kabuki21/>

Courtesans and others fawn over him as soon as he enters, many offering him ''[[kiseru]]'' (pipes) to smoke. Ikyû, looking abandoned, his side of the stage relatively empty, declares that he'd like a smoke too, but Sukeroku, now possessing quite a few pipes, says they're all in use. He then offers Ikyû one with his foot, but Ikyû resists losing his temper.<ref name=kabuki21/>

Sukeroku forces passersby to crawl between his legs, in a famous example of improvisation, or ''[[sutezerifu]]'' in kabuki. While many plays include short sections where one or two lines might be improvised, this entire section is left open for improvisation, which often includes contemporary references.<ref>Brandon. "Form in Kabuki Acting." p106.</ref> For example, in one performance in 2008, the characters performed, briefly, a gag "''sonna no kankei nai'' ("it's got nothing to do with that!") popularized around 2007-08 by comedian Kojima Yoshio.

Sukeroku forces passersby to crawl between his legs, in a famous example of improvisation, or ''[[sutezerifu]]'' in kabuki. While many plays include short sections where one or two lines might be improvised, this entire section is left open for improvisation, which often includes contemporary references.<ref>Brandon. "Form in Kabuki Acting." p106.</ref> For example, in one performance in 2008, the characters performed, briefly, a gag "''sonna no kankei nai'' ("it's got nothing to do with that!") popularized around 2007-08 by comedian Kojima Yoshio.

[[Ichikawa Danjuro VIII|Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII]] was quite idolized in his time, and when he performed this play, bottles of water from the vat he stepped in would later be sold to adoring fans.<ref name=blumner>Blumner, Holly and Naoko Maeshiba. "Sukeroku: A History." in ''101 Years of Kabuki in Hawai'i''. pp42-44.</ref>

 

 

The play often ends here, but sometimes continues with a final scene in which Sukeroku kills Ikyû and then hides from the police in a vat of water. [[Ichikawa Danjuro VIII|Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII]] (1823-54) was quite idolized in his time, and when he performed this play, bottles of water from the vat he stepped in would later be sold to adoring fans.<ref name=blumner>Blumner, Holly and Naoko Maeshiba. "Sukeroku: A History." in ''101 Years of Kabuki in Hawai'i''. pp42-44.</ref>

==History and Style==

==History and Style==

*Brandon, James, William Malm, and Donald Shively (eds.). ''Studies in Kabuki''. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1978.

*Brandon, James, William Malm, and Donald Shively (eds.). ''Studies in Kabuki''. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1978.

<references/>

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[[Category:Edo Period]]

[[Category:Edo Period]]

[[Category:Poetry and Theater]]

[[Category:Poetry and Theater]]