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Background Information

“Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami” was produced in 1746 as a puppet play, Bunraku. It was written by Takeda Izumo, Miyoshi Shoraku and Namiki Senryu. It come to rank as one of the three classic of the Kabuki repertory with “Kanadehon Chushingura” and “Yoshitsune Senbonzakura”.

The play's hero is Sugawara-no Michizane who was a great doctor of literature and a great politician at the same time. So he has been respected by students preparing for an examination for long years. He is one of the most popular persons in Japan. But he was accused to have plotted the abdication of emperor. It meant his downfall. The play was written based to the incident.

It is important that Michizane doesn't appear on the stage this time. There are triplet brothers, Matsuo-maru, Umeo-maru and Sakura-maru. Matsuo-maru is a retainer of Minister of the Left, Fijiwara-no Tokihira. Umeo-maru is a retainer of Minister of the Right, Michizane. Sakura-maru is a retainer of an imperial prince, Tokiyo. Tokihira appears on the play as the rival of Michizane.

Prince Tokiyo and Kariyahime who is a daughter of Michizane are fallen in love. Sakura-maru arranges them to meet each other. Tokihira accuses Michizane who has used his daughter to make prince Tokiyo coming to the throne. Because Tokihira himself plots to usurp the position of emperor. It causes Michizane's downfall.

In this play Michizane is innocent clearly, but actually nobody knows if Michizane was innocent or not.

Story

Act-1:Kurumabiki

Umeo-maru and Sakura-maru meet by chance near Yoshida shrine. Sakura-maru has despaired because he feels he had unwittingly a hand in causing the downfall of Minister of the Right, Michizane. Tokihira who is Minister of the Left was the rival of Michizane. Tokihira accused Michizane who had used his daughter to make prince Tokiyo coming to the throne. Tokihira knew prince Tokiyo and Kariyahime who was a daughter of Michizane have been fallen in love. Michizane was innocent completely because Tokihira himself has been plotting to usurp the position of emperor. And it caused Michizane's downfall. He was sent to Kyushu as a result. Sakura-maru feels that he is responsible for the incident because he arranged prince Tokiyo and Kariyahime to meet each other. It means he is responsible for Ueo-maru's unemployment because Umeo-maru was a retainer of Michizane. Sakura-maru intends to commit a suicide.

When Sakura-maru is confiding about it to his brother Umeo-maru, a palanquin of Tokihira comes there. Tokihira is an enemy for both of them. Umeo-maru and Sakura-maru attack the palanquin, and they fight with retainers of Tokihira. Then Matsuo-maru who is one of the triplet brothers appears there. Matsto-maru fights with his two brothers. But Tokihira stops them, because he doesn’t want to contaminate Yoshida shrine with any blood. The triplet brothers decide to forget their difference until their father's 70th birthday celebration.

Act-2:Ga-no-Iwai

Matsuo-maru's wife Chiyo, Umeo-maru's wife Haru and Sakura-maru's wife Yae already have arrived at their father-in-law Shiradayu's house in the country. Shiradayu went to the shrine with Yae, and Chiyo and Haru are preparing the meal for Shiradayu's 70th birthday celebration. Matsuo-maru arrives there, and he starts to talk about his brothers badly. After a short time Umeo-maru arrives there, and two brothers start to fight. While they are fighting, they break a branch of a cherry tree in the garden. There are three trees in the garden, they are a pine, a plum and a cherry. A plum means matsu, a plum means ume, a cherry means sakura in Japanese. So the branch of cherry has broken, that means something wrong befell to Sakura-maru.

Shiratayu arrives to his house with Yae. Two brothers ask their wish to their father. Matsuo-maru asks to disinherit himself. Shiratayu accepts it and he kicks out Matsuo-maru and his wife. Umeo-maru asks to be allowed to go to Kyushu, because his ex-lord Michizane is there. Shiratayu doesn't accept his wish. He says that Umeo-maru should find Michizane's wife and child immediately, because nobody knows where they are. Shiratayu kicks out Umeo-maru and his wife like his brother.

There are Shiratayu and Yae at the house. Suddenly Sakura-maru appears there. He has been at the house since this early morning secretly. Shiratayu knew the tragic of Sakura-maru, and hid him behind the house. Shiratayu brings a sword for Sakura-maru's suicide. Yae can't understand what the matter is. Shiratayu didn’t want Sakura-maru to commit a suicide, but he knows there is no method to help him now.

Sakura-maru has committed a ritual suicide that means hara-kiri. As soon as he died, Yae tries to commit a suicide. But she can't die, because Umeo-maru has stopped her. Umeo-maru and his wife Haru didn't go away, they had been watching all of the matters that happened at the home. After that, Shiratayu departs to Kyushu to meet Michizane.

Act-3:Terakoya

Takebe Genzo is a former disciple of Michizane who had been a great master of Japanese calligraphy. Out of loyalty to his former teacher, Genzo and his wife Tonami are bringing up Michizane's son Shusai secretly as their own son. Genzo is running a small country schoolroom teaching the local children. On this day as usual a group of local children are practicing of Japanese calligraphy in the schoolroom.

Genzo has been summoned by the authorities and been informed that it is known that he is sheltering Michizane's son Shusai. He has been ordered to kill the boy, and present his severed head as proof that the order has been carried out. He thinks that he has to kill a student of his schoolroom as a substitution for Shusai. Genzo returns to his schoolroom, and he finds the local children there. Shusai is a honor student and graceful so much. Thus he can’t find any boy to substitute for Shusai.

Tonami comes into the schoolroom with new student Kotaro. When Genzo looks at Kotaro, he decides to kill the boy. Kotaro looks cute and graceful enough as a substitute for Shusai. Genzo makes his students going away from the schoolroom, and starts to talk about Kotaro with Tonami. She is confused so much, but agrees with her husband finally.

Tokihira's retainer, an enemy official, Genba comes to the country schoolroom to see the order Shusai's death is carried out. Genba is accompanied by Matsuo-maru who knows Shusai's looks well. One by one the students leave the schoolroom after careful scrutiny by Matsuo-maru at the entrance. All of the students have gone home except Shusai who has been hidden in the closet. And new boy Kotaro has been behind the school still now. Matsuo-maru and Genba enter the schoolroom for demanding to get Shusai's severed head.

For a time Genzo goes away from the schoolroom and he returns carrying a casket that Kotaro's severed head is kept in. He has killed Kotaro. Matsuo-maru looks at the severed head and says it is really Shusai’s. Then Genba leaves to carry the casket from the school, but Matsuo-maru doesn't. He has gone somewhere. Genzo and Tonami are delighted so much, take Shusai out of the closet, and Tonami takes Shusai to next room.

A woman comes to the school. She is a Kotaro's mother. Genzo invites her into the schoolroom, and attacks her to kill with a sword. She manages to defend herself, and asks him if her son was useful for surviving Shusai. Genzo asks her to explain why she took Kotaro to the school. She answers that she intended to be kill Kotaro as a substitute for Shusai. Matsuo-maru appears on there and says to the woman that she should be delighted, because their son was able to be useful to survive Shusai. Matsuo-maru was Kotaro's father, and the woman was his wife Chiyo. They had taken Kotaro there to kill at the beginning.

Matsuo-maru has had a regret for his brothers because he was a retainer of Tokihira. He could do nothing for the downfall of Michizane, it meant he could do nothing for his brother Sakura-maru. Matsuo-maru thinks the death of his son Kotaro wasn’t useless because Kotaro helped Shusai at the result. Kotaro had done a loyal matter instead his father, Mtsuo-maru. But the suicide of Sakura-maru was useless so much, because it didn’t help anyone. Matsuo-maru laments for the tragedy of Sakura-maru.

Matsuo-maru asks Genzo if Kotaro was disgraceful when he died. Genzo says he told Kotaro that Kotaro had to die to survive Shusai. And Genzo says Kotaro had said it was a great delight for him. After Matsuo-maru and Chiyo hear it, they lament Kotaro so much. Genzo and Tonami lament Kotaro together with Matsuo-maru and Chiyo. Shusai appears on the schoolroom and joins with their tears. In the meantime, Matsuo-maru uses a whistle to notify someone. And a woman, Sonou-no-mae, who is a wife of Michizane appears on there. Shusai and his mother, Sonou-no-mae, have been able to meet each other after a long time. They all offer incense and light the traditional fire at the doorway to spend Kotaro’s soul on its way.