Scene from a Drama "Hoshiai Nagoya" Performed at the Nakamura Theatre

Art Historical Context

Step into the vibrant world of Edo-period Japan with Okumura Masanobu's *Scene from a Drama "Hoshiai Nagoya" Performed at the Nakamura Theatre*, likely created around 1709. This woodblock print, rendered in ink and color on paper (10 3/8 x 14 3/4 in.), captures a dramatic moment from a kabuki performance at one of Tokyo's most famed theaters. Kabuki, with its exaggerated poses, elaborate costumes, and all-male casts, was a cornerstone of popular entertainment, drawing crowds eager for tales of valor and romance. Masanobu, a pioneering ukiyo-e artist active in early 18th-century Japan, specialized in yakusha-e—prints celebrating actors' star power. His innovative techniques, including early experiments with multi-block color printing like benizuri-e (rose-tinted prints), brought theatrical scenes to life for everyday viewers. This work reflects the "floating world" of urban pleasures, making high art accessible and fueling a print-buying craze among Edo's merchants and samurai. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Asian Art Department (Rogers Fund, 1918), this print offers a window into Japan's cultural boom during the Edo period (1615–1868), when theater prints immortalized fleeting performances and turned actors into celebrities. A delightful glimpse of history's stage!

About the Artist

Okumura Masanobu · 1686–1764

Japanese, 1686–1764