The Story in Three Lines
Kabuki loses nothing when you know the story in advance. Start with just three lines.
- 01
An actor draws mask after mask from a box, transforming his performance with each one—a play built on the delight of metamorphosis.
- 02
Danjūrō II is said to have premiered it in 1740, but no script survives.
- 03
Danjūrō IX revived it in the Meiji era as the dance piece Shin Nanatsumen, and the National Theatre staged a new revival in 1977.
Three Things to Watch For
These three points are all the preparation you need. On the day, simply give yourself to the stage.
Masks in quick succession
With each new mask the figure and its movement transform entirely—a showcase of one actor's range across seven faces.
A rarity in kabuki
Masked performance is a rarity in kabuki, which developed painted faces instead—the piece gestures back to older layers of Japanese theatre.
A lineage of revivals
With the text lost, every revival since Danjūrō IX's Shin Nanatsumen has had to reinvent the piece anew.
Characters
- The mask-carver (settings vary by revival)
- The protagonist who transforms from mask to mask; in revivals he has been portrayed as a carver of masks.
Stagecraft and Highlights
Said to have premiered in 1740 with Danjūrō II, the piece lost its script and went long unperformed; Danjūrō VII likely included it among the eighteen as a speciality of his great predecessor.
Danjūrō IX brought it back as the dance Shin Nanatsumen, and the National Theatre mounted a fresh revival in 1977. The pleasure of movement changing with each mask keeps inviting new invention.
The Ichikawa Connection
One of the Kabuki Jūhachiban, linked to Danjūrō II's specialties and revived by Danjūrō IX—the family's art of transformation, carried into the present.
Related terms
Sources
- Author
- KABUKI Universe Editorial Team
- Supervision
- Ichikawa Danjūrō
- Published
- Aug 15, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 9, 2026
Supervision means Ichikawa Danjūrō has reviewed this page's intent and key points. The text is the editorial team's writing, not Ichikawa Danjūrō's own statements. Editorial responsibility rests with the team, which corrects any error. Read the editorial policy