Living National Treasures of Kyoto

The system of designating persons as living national treasures was begun in 1955 (Showa 30). The first individual to be so designated was Yachiyo IV (who now goes by her real name, INOUE Aiko), former head of the Inoue school of Kyoto-style dancing, which has its headquarters in the Gion quarter of Kyoto. Her transcendent artistry, the fruit of strict training and refined over many years, was swiftly acclaimed. Her granddaughter Michiko (Yachiyo V) was appointed as head of the school in 2000, but when INOUE Aiko performed in public in the autumn of 2001, her dancing seemed as lively and vigorous as ever.
The most recent recipient of the living national treasure designation is KATAYAMA Kurouemon, a Noh performer of the Kanze school. The Katayama family has lived in Kyoto from the Edo period and has managed the Kanze school since that time. Kurouemon is the current head of the family and is well known for his elegant dancing and declamation. In addition to works in the current repertoire, he has worked actively in recent years to revive neglected classics, with Nagae no hashi (The Bridge at Nagae) being a notable success. He also serves as chairman of the Japan Noh Association. Incidentally, Kurouemon's mother is the above-mentioned INOUE Aiko. Mother and son have both been designated living national treasures and are both currently active.
Another living national treasure from the field of Noh is SOWA Hiroshi, who plays the kotsuzumi or shoulder drum. Members of the Sowa family have been Noh musicians since the time of Hiroshi's grandfather, who was active in the Meiji period. Hiroshi was seventeen when he assumed his position as the third in the family artistic line. He lost his grandfather and then his father, enduring many hardships, and through perseverance and hard work eventually attained his present stature. His well rounded tone and solid accompaniment, perfectly matched to the spirit of each work, lend an added depth to the Noh performances in which he participates.
Then there is SHIGEYAMA Sensaku, a kyogen performer of the Okura school who also comes from a long and illustrious line. Sensaku II, the grandfather of the present Sensaku, played an important role in the reorganization of the Noh world in the confusion that followed the Meiji Restoration. The Shigeyama family subsequently worked to popularize kyogen and can be said to have been a driving force behind the current kyogen boom. Sensaku is a born kyogen performer, and his mere appearance on the stage is enough to move the audience to laughter.