Tokyo · Ginza
Kabuki-za
Four hundred years of stagecraft, and a ticket for one act sold at the door
The hanamichi, a walkway through the audience that actors enter along
Kabuki began in the early seventeenth century, all roles are played by men, the onnagata specialists who play women train for decades, and the leading families pass names down through generations. A full programme runs four hours or more with intervals long enough to eat a bento in your seat.
The current theatre reopened in 2013 behind its restored 1920s facade with a tower behind it. English audio guides explain plot, convention and why the audience shouts an actor's house name at particular moments.
The detail
Good to know
- Form
- Kabuki, from the early 17th century
- Building
- Rebuilt 2013 behind the 1920s facade
- Single act
- Day tickets at a separate window
- Audio guide
- English, rented at the counter
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