Yoshizawa Ayame

Kabuki actor. First generation. He played young female roles for generations, up to the fifth generation during the Bunka era (1804-18), but the first generation is particularly famous. He is considered to be as famous as the first Sakata Tojuro, and is a representative actor of Kamigata Kabuki during the Genroku era (1688-1704), and has left his name in the history of theater as the founder of female role art. His role as Miura in "Keisei Asama-ga-dake," which premiered in 1698 (Genroku 11) with the first Nakamura Shichisaburo playing the role of Tomoe no Jo, was a hit role for him. "Ayamegusa" (included in "Yakusha Rongo"), a collection of his thoughts on the art, is not just a discussion of the art, but is also interesting and valuable as it explains the training of young female actors and what to bear in mind in daily life. The opening sentence, "If a female actor is good at playing the role of a courtesan, everything else becomes easy.... As a man, one must be very careful not to be distracted by the beauty of a courtesan and to be absent-minded...", is a famous sentence that is often quoted about the art of female actors. The second (1704-54) was succeeded by the eldest son of the first, and the third (1720-74) by the fourth son.

[Yukio Hattori]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

歌舞伎(かぶき)俳優。初世。代々若女方(わかおんながた)で文化(ぶんか)年間（1804～18）の5世まであるが、初世がとくに有名。初世坂田藤十郎と並び称される、元禄(げんろく)年間（1688～1704）の上方(かみがた)歌舞伎の代表的名優で、女方芸の確立者として演劇史に名を残した。1698年（元禄11）初世中村七三郎の巴之丞(ともえのじょう)役で初演した『傾城浅間嶽(けいせいあさまがだけ)』の三浦の役は一代の当り役だった。彼の芸談を集めた『あやめ草』（『役者論語(やくしゃばなし)』収載）は、単に芸談というだけでなく、若女方の修業や日常生活における心得などを説いているのが興味深く、かつ貴重である。冒頭の「女形は傾城さへよくすれば、外(ほか)の事は皆いたしやすし。……男の身にて傾城のあどめもなく、ぼんじやりとしたる事は、よくよくの心がけなくてはならず。……」の一文は、女方芸術についてしばしば引用される著名なものである。なお、2世（1704―54）は初世の長男が、3世（1720―74）は同じく四男が継いでいる。

［服部幸雄］

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