The Actor Arashi Tokusaburō as the Female Gallant (Onnadate) Ohashi

Utagawa Sadamasu (Kunimasu) 初代歌貞升 Japanese

Not on view

The Kabuki actor Arashi Tokusaburō III (later known as Arashi Rikan III, 1812–1863) achieved great renown for his performances as young women (waka-onnagata). Here he is represented in the role of the onnadate (chivalrous woman) Ohashi, who defended the weak and oppressed against abusive samurai, and who were popularized in literature and on the Kabuki stage as champions of the townspeople. The hokku (17-syllable poem), by the actor himself, refers to the tachibana (mandarin orange blossom) crest used by this family of actors:

Tachibana no
kaori wa yomo ni
negaunari

We pray that the fragrance
of mandarin orange blossoms
will spread in all directions.

(Trans. John T. Carpenter)

The Actor Arashi Tokusaburō as the Female Gallant (Onnadate) Ohashi, Utagawa Sadamasu (Kunimasu) 初代歌貞升 (Japanese, active ca. 1830–1852), Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper; vertical ōban, Japan

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