Title : Ichikawa Monnosuke II as O-some and Ichikawa Komazö III as Hisamatsu

Artist : Torii Kiyonaga

Date : 1789

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Source : Honolulu Museum of Art
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Description : Depicted in this scene are the lovers Osome and Hisamatsu, popular characters whose story was used for many Kabuki and jöruri (puppet theater) plays. This particular print shows the story as recounted in Sakurada Shisuke's Yukari no Hinagusa (Bond of Nesting Grass), performed in Edo in 1789 at the Nakamura-za Theater. Osome is the daughter of a shop owner who takes on Hisamatsu as his apprentice, and the two fall in love. When Hisamatsu is betrothed to another, Osome resolves to kill herself but is later persuaded against doing so. Hisamatsu is shown wearing a trademark kimono and obi dyed with a striped pattern derived from a technique using bamboo slats, while Osome's attire typically consists of long sleeves and a trailing obi, a style reserved for unmarried women. Osome is among the more renowned of the musume (young maiden) roles, one of the many onnagata archetypes. Playing the roles of Osome and Hisamatsu are Ichikawa Monnosuke I (1743-1794) and Ichikawa Komazö III (1764-1838), respectively; they can both be identified by the crest of concentric squares seen on their costumes, indicative of the Ichikawa line of actors. Monnosuke was the disciple of Ichikawa Danjürö IV, a member of the most famous line of actors in the history of Kabuki.

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