Dear Ms. Yuko Nishikawa,
I am deeply impressed by the elegance and beauty of your performance at Yuko no Kai. It was a perfect dance performance for the Noh Theatre. I was utterly mesmerized, while thinking that you would probably have danced differently, on a conventional theater stage.
I also started learning Nihon Buyo at a young age, even though my family was in a conservative steel business. Looking back, I think I was influenced by my grandmother, who dabbled in kouta and kiyomoto (songs accompanied by shamisen music), but more greatly by the city of Kanazawa. Dance teachers were close at hand, while kimonos were parts of daily life, at that time. Kanazawa was also a hub of Kaga hosho Noh and koto (Japansese harp) music. It was a wonderful place to be born and to grow up in.
Perhaps I shouldn’t blame my upbringing for this. I turned out to be an unusual boy, who surprised my mother and grandmother by requesting, “I want to learn to dance (with shamisen music).” I remember my five-year old self, breathlessly watching my mother and grandmother while they discussed the choice of my dance teacher.
I guess everybody remembers his/her first dance tune fondly.
My first song was that nursery song, that starts with (the verse), “Tententen mari”.
“OK, please take bride’s steps.” My teacher used to call pigeon-toed steps, “bride’s steps.” To my teacher, the steps epitomized the style of walking in public, dressed in one’s best kimono. Perhaps that first step already determined my quest to become an onnagata (male actor performing female roles.)
It has been quite a challenge playing female roles as an onnagata, not in Kabuki, but in contemporary theater. I have been able to persevere, thanks to the “bride’s steps.”
“Shake your head three times, one, two, three.”
My teacher has passed away, but I still hear the voice.
Your dance allows me to relive such neophyte feelings.
Eisuke Sasai
Dear Mr. Eisuke Sasai,
Thank you for your correspondence. I was delighted to read your letter, empathizing with the thrill and excitement you felt as a young boy. I would also like to reiterate my appreciation for gracing us with your presence at Yuko no Kai in December 2021.
A Nihon Buyo dancer has three roles to play: performing on stage, choreography and training disciples. I think each role is crucial, although the focus varies from one dancer to another. Why do I perform on stage? Because I can’t teach something that I don’t understand. Why do I choreograph? So that I may explore Nihon Buyo with objectivity. And for me to pass on the foundation of Nihon Buyo to younger generations.
Mr. Sasai, you have indeed been blessed with a fantastic teacher. Your teacher has formed your foundation. Through practice sessions, you have absorbed foundations of Japanese culture, to develop yourself as a one-of-a-kind onnagata in contemporary theater. Public inevitably pays attention to glamor on the stage. You have reminded me of the importance of teachers who pass on the foundations of culture to next generations through their diligence and training.
I would like wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
Yuko Nishikawa