Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) 1786-1865, View of Backstage and Dressing Rooms, Backstage at a Newly Opened Theater (Odori keiyo gakuya no zu, Odori keiyo nikai-iri no zu), oban tate-e double triptych 28 3/8 by 29 1/2 in., 72 by 75 cm
Backstage Pass: KABUKI (Part One)
Scholten Japanese Art is pleased to provide backstage passes to the most exclusive kabuki theater (of the mind)! Their new online exhibition features a selection of prints offering viewers both a front row seat to the drama…as well as a peek behind the curtain.
In October 1855 the Edo theater district was destroyed by a fire triggered by the Great Ansei earthquake. Only five months later, the first theater to rebuild and reopen was the Ichimura Theater. The print above, issued the previous month, would have functioned as a grand announcement in advance of the opening.