Out of this long work, 2 acts are frequently performed: the act commonly called "Kochiyama," in which Kochiyama, pretending to be an osukiya bozu [monk serving the daimyo (feudal lord) in Edo castle] gains entry to the residence of Matsue Izumonokami by impersonating a messenger sent by a miyake (house of a prince of royal blood) and commits extortion there; and the act commonly known as "Naozamurai" in which Naojiro, the subject of a police manhunt, bids a final farewell to his lover, the courtesan Michitose. When the "Naozamurai" act is performed independently, the title "Yuki no yube iriya no azemichi" is used.
The highlights of "Kochiyama" are the eloquent speech beginning "Aku ni tsuyoki wa zen nimoto" in the 'Matsue-tei genkansaki' scene, uttered by Soshun whose true status has just been revealed, and the Makugire (end of act) in which Soshu daringly says, "Baka me," (idiot!) to Izumonokami, then exits in gallant style.

In this scene, Michitose is smoothing Naojiro's hair using her kanzashi (ornamental hairpin) as shown in the photograph. This type of hair-combing scene, called Kamisuki, express the love between man and woman. In Kabuki, Nureba (love scenes) almost never show ordinary physical intimacies: they are expressed by symbolic action set to music, as in Kamisuki.