was a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

actor. He was the twelfth

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought ...

actor to hold the illustrious name

Ichikawa Danjūrō is a stage name taken on by a series of Kabuki actors of the Ichikawa family. Most of these were blood relatives, though some were adopted into the family. It is a famous and important name, and receiving it is an honor. There are a number of r ...

Career

He was the eldest son of

Ichikawa Danjūrō XI may refer to: Places *Ichikawa, Chiba, a city in Chiba, Japan **Ichikawa Gakuen (Ichikawa Junior and Senior High School), a large private boys and girls school in Moto-kita-kata, Ichikawa, Chiba * Ichikawa, Hyogo, a town in Hyōgo, Japan * Ichikaw ...

. He first appeared on stage in 1953 under his birth name Natsuo Horikoshi, and in 1958 took the name Ichikawa Shinnosuke. In 1969, he graduated from

Nihon University , abbreviated as , is a private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice, in 1889. It is one of Japan's leading private univers ...

, and took the name Ichikawa Ebizō X, acting in major roles such as the title character in ''Sukeroku'' and Togashi in ''

Kanjinchō ''Kanjinchō'' (勧進帳, ''The Subscription List'') is a kabuki dance-drama by Namiki Gohei III, based on the Noh play '' Ataka''. It is one of the most popular plays in the modern kabuki repertory. Belonging to the repertories of the Naritay ...

''. He assumed his present name in 1985, appearing as

Benkei , popularly known as simply Benkei, was a Japanese warrior monk (''sōhei'') who lived in the latter years of the Heian Period (794–1185) ">/sup>. Benkei led a varied life, first becoming a monk, then a mountain ascetic, and then a rogue war ...

(again in ''Kanjinchō''). Though he underwent the formal '' shūmei'' naming ceremony at the

Kabuki-za in Ginza is the principal theater in Tokyo for the traditional ''kabuki'' drama form. History The Kabuki-za was originally opened by a Meiji era journalist, Fukuchi Gen'ichirō. Fukuchi wrote kabuki dramas in which Ichikawa Danjūrō IX and ...

in Tokyo, the celebrations continued for several months, as is traditional; his performances that year in New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles would mark the first (and as of 2006, only) time that a ''shūmei'' was celebrated abroad. Active outside Japan, Danjūrō appeared in New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Brussels, East Berlin, Dresden, Vienna, and Paris. In addition, he acted in television roles, and has portrayed

Ōoka Tadasuke was a Japanese samurai in the service of the Tokugawa shogunate. During the reign of Tokugawa Yoshimune, as a magistrate ('' machi-bugyō'') of Edo, his roles included chief of police, judge and jury, and Yamada Magistrate (Yamada bugyō) prior ...

in '' Honō no Bugyō Ōoka Echizen no Kami'', as well as

Tokugawa Mitsukuni , also known as , was a Japanese daimyo who was known for his influence in the politics of the early Edo period. He was the third son of Tokugawa Yorifusa (who in turn was the eleventh son of Tokugawa Ieyasu) and succeeded him, becoming the s ...

and

Ashikaga Yoshimasa Ashikaga (足利) may refer to: * Ashikaga clan (足利氏 ''Ashikaga-shi''), a Japanese samurai clan descended from the Minamoto clan; and that formed the basis of the eponymous shogunate ** Ashikaga shogunate (足利幕府 ''Ashikaga bakufu''), a ...

. Danjūrō was diagnosed with

acute promyelocytic leukemia Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APML, APL) is a subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the white blood cells. In APL, there is an abnormal accumulation of immature granulocytes called promyelocytes. The disease is characterized by a ...

in late spring 2004, after falling ill and becoming unable to perform alongside his son ( Ichikawa Ebizō XI), who was celebrating his ''shūmei'' at the time, having become the latest to take the name Ichikawa Ebizō.Ichikawa, Danjūrō. . Tokyo: PHP Shinsho, 2008. pp13-14. Though illness, and subsequent hospitalization, forced Danjūrō to leave the stage for long stretches in 2004-05, he later returned. He died of pneumonia in a Tokyo hospital on February 3, 2013, at the age of 66.

References

Sources

Ichikawa Danjūrō XII at Kabuki21.com

External links

NARITAYA Ichikawa Danjuro/Ebizo Official Website

J'Lit , Authors : Danjuro Ichikawa , Books from Japan
1946 births 2013 deaths Kabuki actors People from Tokyo Male actors from Tokyo Nihon University alumni Deaths from pneumonia in Japan {{japan-stage-actor-stub

Career

See also

References

Sources

External links