The stars who created kabuki : their lives, loves, and legacy
Kabuki is widely recognized as one of the world's foremost theatrical arts, and here are the unforgettable stories of the three great early actors who made kabuki what it is today: Danjuro I, who made bargains with the gods, promising to give up extramarital affairs if only he could be named "peerless among all actors in Japan"; Tojuro, the "Rudolph Valentino" of Japan who kept his private life a closely guarded secret, perhaps as a deliberate ploy to inflame his legions of women fans; and Ayame, who rose from a childhood of poverty spent working in a brothel to become a great onnagata, or performer of women's roles
Print Book, English, 1997
Kodansha International ; Distributed in the U.S. by Kodansha America, Tokyo, New York, 1997
History
300 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
9784770018687, 4770018681
37499920
1. Setting the Stage: Kabuki Theater in 1680
2. Ichikawa Danjuro I: The Wild God of Edo Kabuki
3. Sakata Tojuro: Kabuki's First True Actor
4. Yoshizawa Ayame: Patron Saint of Kabuki's Onnagata
5. Four Leading Actors in Kabuki Today: Danjuro, Ganjiro, Ennosuke, Tamasaburo