TAKASHIMAYA — YAGŌ
Takashimaya
Takashimaya is the yagō (house name) of the Ichikawa Sadanji family. Its house art is the Kyōka Gikyoku Jisshu — 'Kyōka' was the haiku name of Ichikawa Sadanji II — distinctive for gathering modern plays written by Okamoto Kidō and others. Ichikawa Sadanji IV (1940–2023) is listed in the 'actors remembered' section of the Kabuki Actor Directory.
According to the Kabuki Actor Directory, Ichikawa Sadanji IV made his stage debut in May 1947 at the Tokyo Gekijō under the name Ichikawa Otora V, took the name Ichikawa Omezō V in February 1962, and became Sadanji IV in February 1979. He was born on 12 November 1940 and died on 15 April 2023.
The names Ichikawa Otora and Ichikawa Omezō, which Sadanji IV once bore, are now carried by Ichikawa Omezō VI and his eldest son Ichikawa Otora VII — but the Directory records their yagō as Takinoya. It is an instance of one bloodline carrying two house names.
The house art is the Kyōka Gikyoku Jisshu. The Kabuki Play Guide records that 'Kyōka' was the haiku name of Sadanji II, who earlier used 'Shōen', so the set is also written as the Shōen Gikyoku Jisshu. It centres on works by Okamoto Kidō such as Shuzenji Monogatari and Banchō Sarayashiki — modern drama, rather than classical form, taken as a house art.
Crest — Mimasu ni hidari and matsukawabishi ni onitobi: The Kabuki Actor Directory gives the crest of Ichikawa Sadanji IV as mimasu ni hidari and matsukawabishi ni onitobi. The mimasu is the same nested-measures form as the crest of the Ichikawa Sōke, here with the character 'hidari' set within it.
House arts and repertoire
A 'selected repertoire' and a 'house art' are different things. Their names and origins differ from house to house; no single system is shared by all.
Kyōka Gikyoku Jisshu
The signature art of Ichikawa Sadanji II, made up of new plays by contemporary writers — Okamoto Kidō, Oka Onitarō, Matsui Shōō. Though called 'ten', the Kabuki Play Guide lists eight.
See the listHereditary names of this house
- Author
- KABUKI Universe Editorial Team
- Published
- Sep 12, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 12, 2026