The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa's dance and theater department continued to honor the Japanese art form of kabuki this summer. The department hosted its inaugural two-week intensive training program led by kabuki master Ichikawa Monnosuke VIII.
Kabuki is a classical Japanese form of theater that contains dancing, singing, voice acting, and miming. Colorful costumes, exaggerated facial expressions, and kumadori makeup are widely used throughout productions to heighten the drama.
This practice is no stranger to Hawaiʻi, as last year marked 100 years of English-led kabuki in the islands.
Julie Iezzi, a theater professor at UH Mānoa and main organizer of the showcase, noted that training under a kabuki master is incredibly rare outside of Japan.
“Unless you're Japan-born and a male going into the kabuki world, you're really not getting this instruction. I feel it's important to continue giving back to the community and to continue this tradition,” Iezzi said.
“We are known for giving students an embodied experience so they're able to speak from a place of knowledge that's not just theoretical. I know that Monnosuke-san is very interested in how these wings of various people will spread around the world.”
The “wings” of kabuki are already breaking ground through different parts of UH. This fall, the Hamilton Library's Asia Reading Room will have a new exhibit dedicated to this art form. It will permanently showcase an original kabuki theater model that was gifted to UH in 1939 and has been kept in various places since.
“This shows students firsthand what opportunities they have to learn (about kabuki) right here in Hawaiʻi. Everyone knows about Shakespeare, so we want kabuki to be as well-known, appreciated, and understood as him,” Iezzi said.
This year's showcase is not a main-stage production, which means the participants will not be in full traditional kabuki makeup or costume. Iezzi noted that the event is solely to show what can be learned in a short period of time with a high level of mentorship and training.
The free, public showcase is Monday, Aug. 18, at 4 p.m. in the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Earle Ernst Laboratory Theatre.
