Danjuro's girls: The Ichikawa family and women on the kabuki stage.
Item
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Title
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Danjuro's girls: The Ichikawa family and women on the kabuki stage.
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Identifier
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AAI3213151
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identifier
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3213151
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Creator
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Edelson, Loren.
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Contributor
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Includes supplementary digital materials | Adviser: Samuel L. Leiter
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Date
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2006
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Theater | History, Asia, Australia and Oceania | Women's Studies
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Abstract
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This dissertation examines the Ichikawa Shojo Kabuki (Ichikawa Girls' Kabuki) Troupe, an all-female kabuki company that was a national sensation in Japan in the 1950s. The troupe evolved from a provincial teenage girls' dance club to a serious, big city, professional contender after it earned the artistic patronage of the illustrious Ichikawa Danjuro kabuki acting dynasty and the financial backing of the Hamamatsu Theatre (Hamamatsu-za). As a recipient of the coveted "Ichikawa" kabuki name, the troupe performed on almost every major city stage and received popular and critical acclaim. Thus, it briefly became part of the otherwise impenetrable all-male kabuki establishment that continues to monopolize Japanese traditional theatre today.;Despite its stellar success, the troupe has been all but relegated to an historical footnote. Apart from brief mentions in a few encyclopedias, no scholarly study about the troupe in English or Japanese has ever been published. Paying close attention to theoretical concerns such as age, gender, and class, I examine the troupe in all its complexity, arguing that despite its composition as an all-girls' troupe, it appropriated many of the same feudalistic ideals as male "grand" kabuki.;While focusing on Ichikawa Girls' Kabuki, the study provides insight into the complex hierarchy of mainstream kabuki's social relations, as well as a broad discussion of the history of women on the kabuki stage. By situating the Ichikawa Girls' Kabuki company as an in-depth case study, I raise questions as to why women are still barred from participating in professional kabuki in Japan today.*.;*This dissertation is a compound document (contains both a paper copy and a CD as part of the dissertation). The CD requires the following system requirements: Microsoft Office, with PowerPoint.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
