Sakata Tōjūrō IV
| Sakata Tōjūrō IV 四代目坂田藤十郎 |
|
|---|---|
| Born |
Hirotarō Hayashi 31 December 1931 |
| Other names | Kōtarō Hayashi, Nakamura Senjaku II, Nakamura Ganjirō III, Narikomaya Yamashiroya |
| Years active | 1941 - present |
Sakata Tōjūrō IV (四代目坂田藤十郎 Yondaime Sakata Tōjūrō?) (born 31 December 1931) is a Japanese kabuki actor in the Kamigata style. and is officially designated a Living National Treasure. Unlike most kabuki actors, he performs both male and female roles, and is renowned as both a skilled wagotoshi (actor of male roles in the wagoto tradition) and onnagata (actor of female roles). He is the fourth in the line of Sakata Tōjūrō, having revived the name after a lapse of over 230 years.
Though he bears no direct hereditary connection to the previous lineage of Sakata Tōjūrō which he has revived, Tōjūrō does trace his line back several generations within the kabuki world. He is the eldest son of Nakamura Ganjirō II, grandson of Nakamura Ganjirō I, and great-grandson of Nakamura Kanjaku III who was adopted into the kabuki families by Nakamura Utaemon IV.
Tōjūrō's sons Nakamura Kanjaku V and Nakamura Senjaku III perform as kabuki actors, as do his grandsons Nakamura Kazutarō and Nakamura Toranosuke.
He was born on New Year's Eve 1931, the eldest son of actor Nakamura Ganjirō II. He made his first appearance on stage in October 1941, under the name Nakamura Senjaku II, at the Kado-za in Osaka, in the play Komochi Yamanba.
Throughout his career, he has performed primarily in Osaka, performing in both traditional pieces long in the repertoire, and in new kabuki works, primarily by playwright Nobuo Uno. He also frequently took part in revival performances in Tokyo of works by the great bunraku (puppet theatre) playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon. "The Love Suicides at Sonezaki" (Sonezaki Shinjū), one of the playwright's most famous works, was performed for the first time since before World War II at the Shinbashi Enbujō in 1953. The playwright's 250th memorial service was observed with the revival of Horikawa Nami no Tsuzumi in 1973.
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