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Nakamura Kichiemon II

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Name
  
Nakamura II

Role
  
Actor


Spouse
  
Chisa Namino

Siblings
  
Matsumoto Koshiro IX



Full Name
  
Tatsujiro Namino

Born
  
22 May 1944 (
1944-05-22
)
Tokyo, Japan

Other names
  
Harimaya, Nakamura Mannosuke, Matsu Kanshi II

Parents
  
Matsumoto Hakuo I, Nakamura Kichiemon I, Seiko Fujima

Cousins
  
Nakamura Kanzaburo XVIII, Katsuo Nakamura

Movies
  
Kuroneko, Double Suicide, Rikyu, Snow on the Blades

Similar People
  
Matsumoto Koshiro IX, Onoe Kikunosuke V, Somegoro Ichikawa, Nakamura Kanzaburo XVIII, Yorozuya Kinnosuke

2003忠臣蔵〜決断の時「吉良邸討ち入り」part3 Nakamura Kichiemon II Nidaime Nakamura Kichiemon?, born May 22, 1944), born Namino Tatsujirō, is a Japanese actor, kabuki


Nakamura Kichiemon II (二代目 中村 吉右衛門, Nidaime Nakamura Kichiemon, born May 22, 1944), born Namino Tatsujirō, is a Japanese actor, kabuki performer and costume designer. He is a so-called Living National Treasure.

Contents

Nakamura Kichiemon is a formal kabuki stage name. The actor's grandfather first appeared using the name in 1897; and Nakamura Kichiemon I continued to use this name until his death. Kichiemon I was the maternal grandfather of Kichiemon II.

In the conservative Kabuki world, stage names are passed from father to son in formal system which converts the kabuki stage name into a mark of accomplishment. In choosing to be known by the same stage name as his grandfather, the living kabuki performer honors his family relationships and tradition.

Early life

Born in Kōjimachi, Chiyoda, Tokyo. His elder brother is Matsumoto Kōshirō IX. His father was Ichikawa Somegorō V, later known as Matsumoto Kōshirō VIII, and finally as Matsumoto Hakuō I. His mother was Seiko Fujima, Nakamura Kichiemon I's daughter and only child. According to Kichiemon II himself, his grandfather was "furious" and couldn't accept that his only child was a girl (due the fact that in Kabuki there are no actress it meant that he couldn't give his name to his daughter), and treated her like a boy during her childhood. As a result, when she got married, Seiko promised her father that she would have at least two sons: the first would have carried his husband's traditions, while the second would have carried his name. She kept her promise and gave to adoption Kichiemon II to his grandfather. Unlike the most of Kabuki actors, who are only formally adopted when joining an acting family, he was legally adopted by his grandfather.

He attended Waseda University. His yagō is "Harimaya" and his crest is the ageha-no-chō butterfly of the Taira clan.

Career

Active in kabuki and television, Kichiemon is famous in the role of Musashibō Benkei, whom he has portrayed on stage in Kanjinchō and Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura. He also played the title character in the NHK jidaigeki series Musashibō Benkei. Another heroic role was Ōboshi Yuranosuke (the historical Ōishi Kuranosuke) in Kanadehon Chūshingura, the story of the Forty-seven Ronin.

He assumed the television role of Hasegawa Heizō ("Onihei") in the Shōtarō Ikenami series Onihei Hankachō. It ran through nine series, from 1989 to 2001, and has recurred in short series and specials since, the most recent being in 2007. His father had previously played Onihei.

Selected works

Nakamura's published writings encompass 25 works in 34 publications in 3 languages and 543 library holdings.

  • 2000 — Kichiemon's palette (吉右衛門のパレット /, Kichiemon no paretto) ISBN 9784104425013; OCLC 48917600
  • 1996 — A long story (語り, monogatari) ISBN 9784838707089; OCLC 36046366
  • Honors

  • Japan Art Academy, 2002.
  • Living National Treasure, 2011
  • References

    Nakamura Kichiemon II Wikipedia