Renowned Japanese actor Nakamura Kotaro VI is on a crusade to promote the heritage-rich Japanese theatrical art form of “kabuki,” choosing the Philippines as his launching pad.
Nakamura is here to get a new generation of Filipinos to appreciate the kabuki, another vital way to enhance the cultural ties between Japan and the Philippines.
“We would like to introduce Japanese kabuki to a new audience so decided that the Philippines, given your own rich tradition in art and culture, would be an ideal stage to promote our traditional theater,” Nakamura said through an interpreter at a recent press conference organized by KG Management Inc.
The kabuki’s closest cousin in the country is the zarzuela, the traditional Philippine theatrical production that depicted romance while highlighting social issues during the Spanish period. The zarzwela is a sung-through theater form that shares similarities to the kabuki.
Nakamura comes from a long and noble line of players who have passed on the role and responsibility to their families from one generation to another.
Nakamura, whose formal name is Yuta, is a sixth generation kabuki actor.
The first to carry the name was his great great grandfather Nakamura Utaemon V, who was adopted into the family of the great kabuki actor Nakamura Shikan IV in the mid-19th century.
“We are here to fully support Mr. Nakamura in his personal commitment to promote, popularize and propagate the traditional theater art of kabuki to those who are interested and willing to know more about our Japanese culture,” said businessman and culture and arts patron Suzuki Hideyuki, who came to the Philippines with the actor.
Besides Suzuki, accompanying Nakamura is Zen A chief executive officer Yoshiki Ishikuza, who is also the actor’s talent manager.
A member of the Narikomaya guild, Nakamura VI, who was born on Dec. 23, 1993, made his debut or omemie on the kabuki stage in Tokyo as a child actor in 1999. He then played the role of the goddess Kanon in the drama “Tsubusaka Reigenki.”
In September 2000, he made his formal appearance as an actor onstage, or as a hatsubutai. He then received the name Nakamura Kotaro VI, performing the dances “Kyôganoko Musume Dôjôji” and “Kiku Biyori Kioi no Wakakoma.”
Even at that age, Nakamura VI had already undergone the rigorous education needed to be a kabuki actor; among these: kabuki pronunciation, voice projection, personal makeup application, dance, body movement, and playing a musical instrument.
Kabuki performances are usually staged at the Kabukiza or Kabuki Theater that the Shochiku Company –Japan’s largest entertainment company –owns and manages.
Realizing that kabuki should be preserved since it is integral to the country’s identity, the Japan National Theater, home of the nation’s performing arts, established the Kabuki Actor Center in 1969 to teach aspiring performers outside of the traditional kabuki families.
Nakamura is serious in popularizing the kabuki overseas. To this end, he made a courtesy call on the National Commission on Culture and the Arts, led by NCCA director Eric Zerrudo. He also had a dialog with Sentro Rizal Culture and Arts officer Mariel Jasmine A. Nini for possible collaborations in the future.
Nakamura and his entourage also visited Philippine Retirement Authority general manager Roberto Zozobrado to explore the potential future kabuki collaborations and projects.
