"Kawasho" is a Sewamono describing the double suicide of Kamiya Jihe and the courtesan Koharu. The original work was "Shinju ten no amijima," written by Chikamatsu Monzaemon, but "Kawasho" as presently performed is based on a later rewritten version.
When Jihe, who vowed to commit suicide together with Koharu, visits the Kawasho brothel, Koharu is entertaining a samurai customer. The samurai is actually his elder brother Magoemon, who has come to admonish Jihe. As ordered by his elder brother, Jihe decides to part from Koharu. Magoemon finds a letter from Osan, Jihe's wife, tucked into the futokoro (the overlap that covers the bosom) of Koharu's kimono, and Magoemon assumes that Koharu has decided to withdraw from the suicide pact because she feels sorry for Osan.
Jihe is a typical Wagoto role. This role was a specialty of Nakamura Ganjiro 1st, who performed mainly in Osaka in the Meiji period and early Showa period. He selected this work as one of the Ganjiro-junikyoku (12 Ganjiro roles), that is, "Ie no gei" (specially chosen repertoire for the actor's family). The Ganjiro junikyoku also include "Shigure no kotatsu," a scene still performed, depicting husband and wife, Jihe and Osan. This is the scene that follows "Kawasho."
When Jihe, who vowed to commit suicide together with Koharu, visits the Kawasho brothel, Koharu is entertaining a samurai customer. The samurai is actually his elder brother Magoemon, who has come to admonish Jihe. As ordered by his elder brother, Jihe decides to part from Koharu. Magoemon finds a letter from Osan, Jihe's wife, tucked into the futokoro (the overlap that covers the bosom) of Koharu's kimono, and Magoemon assumes that Koharu has decided to withdraw from the suicide pact because she feels sorry for Osan.
Jihe is a typical Wagoto role. This role was a specialty of Nakamura Ganjiro 1st, who performed mainly in Osaka in the Meiji period and early Showa period. He selected this work as one of the Ganjiro-junikyoku (12 Ganjiro roles), that is, "Ie no gei" (specially chosen repertoire for the actor's family). The Ganjiro junikyoku also include "Shigure no kotatsu," a scene still performed, depicting husband and wife, Jihe and Osan. This is the scene that follows "Kawasho."
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Jihe, who has promised to commit double suicide with Koharu, and is firmly determined to die with her today, appears on the Hanamichi while the Takemoto reciter chants, "Tamashii nukete tobotobo, ukauka" (plodding spiritlessly and absent-mindedly). The actor playing Jihe puts both hands inside his kimono over his heart, has his eyes only half-open, and moves with unsteady steps to express Jihe's dispirited condition. The actor shows the amorous mood of Wagoto by the soft way he moves in this famous scene of "Kawasho."
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A unique feature of Wagoto roles in Kamigata (Kyoto and Osaka area) is that these roles are performed somewhat humorously.
A distinctive aspect of Jihe's character is clearly shown in the scene where he is at first surprised when he finds that the supposed samurai customer is actually his elder brother Magoemon, and then argues with Magoemon.
A distinctive aspect of Jihe's character is clearly shown in the scene where he is at first surprised when he finds that the supposed samurai customer is actually his elder brother Magoemon, and then argues with Magoemon.
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