Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura (義経千本桜), or Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees, is a Japanese play, one of the three most popular and famous in the kabuki repertoire. Originally written in 1747 for the jōruri puppet theater by Takeda Izumo II, Miyoshi Shōraku and Namiki Senryū I, it was adapted to kabuki the following year.
Adapted to kabuki, the play was premièred in that mode in January 1748, in the city of Ise, in Mie Prefecture. Kataoka Nizaemon IV and Yamamoto Koheiji were two of the actors in this performance, playing Ginpei and Tadanobu/Genkurō respectively. The premiere in Edo was held at the Nakamura-za in May the same year, and in Osaka at the Naka no Shibai just a few months later in August.
The play is derived from the world of the Heike Monogatari, a classical epic which details the rise and fall of the Taira clan of samurai. The latter portions describe the eventual defeat of the Taira in the Genpei War (1180–85), at the hands of the Minamoto clan, led by Minamoto no Yoshitsune, the title character of this play.
Yoshitsune takes place a few years after the end of the Genpei War. Minamoto no Yoshitsune, the famous general, is being pursued by agents of his brother, Minamoto no Yoritomo, who has recently established himself as shōgun. Yoshitsune travels with his mistress Shizuka and loyal retainer Benkei in search of three Taira generals who escaped justice at the end of the war, and who he believes may pose a threat to the shogunate. This aspect of the plot is the primary departure from both history and from the epic. In reality, the three generals Taira no Koremori, Taira no Tomomori, and Taira no Noritsune, along with the young Emperor Antoku and his nursemaid who feature in the play, all perished in the war, most of them sacrificing themselves in the Battle of Dan-no-ura.
Characters
Yoshitsune
Benkei – Yoshitsune's loyal retainer
Shizuka – Yoshitsune's mistress (also referred to as Lady Shizuka) Genkurō – a kitsune disguised as Yoshitsune's retainer Satō Tadanobu Tomomori – Taira general disguised as shopowner Tokaiya Ginpei Koremori – Taira general disguised as Yasuke, adopted son of Yazaemon Noritsune – Taira general disguised as a priest Kawatsura Hōgen – a priest of Yoshino who hides Yoshitsune Satō Tadanobu – a retainer of Yoshitsune Shitennō (Suruga Jirō, Kamei Rokurō, Kataoka Hachirō, Ise Saburō) – four of Yoshitsune's retainers, generally considered together in drama, in literature and history. Oryū – Ginpei's wife, actually Suke no Tsubone, Emperor Antoku's nursemaid Oyasu – Ginpei & Oryū's daughter, actually Emperor Antoku Wakaba no Naishi – Koremori's wife Rokudai – son of Koremori and Naishi Kokingo – retainer to Koremori and Naishi Yazaemon – sushi-shop owner O-bei – Yazaemon's wife Gonta – Yazaemon's son Ozato – Yazaemon's daughter, Yasuke's betrothed
Plot
The fullest version of Yoshitsune consists of fifteen scenes in five acts. Though this was originally intended to be performed across the better part of a day, modes of performance have changed, and the full version would today take twice that long, due to the style and speed of current forms of acting.
For this reason and others, kabuki plays are almost never performed in their entirety today, and Yoshitsune is no exception. The fullest standard version of any play is called tōshi kyōgen, which in the case of Yoshitsune consists of nine of the full fifteen scenes. However, again as is the case with most plays, individual scenes or elements of Yoshitsune may be performed alone as part of a day's program of other such bits and pieces. The first, second, and fourth scenes of Act One are the most rarely performed today.
The fundamental structure of the play is very much in keeping with that of Japanese traditional drama forms as a whole. The philosophy of jo-ha-kyū is employed throughout, as actions, scenes, acts, and the play as a whole begin slow (jo), then get faster (ha), and end quickly (kyu). Also, Yoshitsune follows the traditional five-act structure and the themes traditionally associated with particular acts. Act One begins calmly and auspiciously, including scenes at the Imperial Palace. Act Two features combat. Act Three is something of a sewamono insertion into the jidaimono tale, turning away from the affairs of warriors and politics to focus on the lives of commoners. Act Four is a michiyuki journey, metaphorically associated with a journey through hell. Act Five wraps up the plot quickly and returns to themes of auspiciousness.
The following plot summary is based on the full fifteen-scene version.