©2014 Sakura Sawa.

18th Manga Division Jury Selections

Kabuki Actor Iza

SAKURA Sawa [Japan]

Outline

Modelled on real-life Kabuki actors and the history of Kabuki theater at the end of the Edo period, this story gives a new interpretation of a Kabuki youth group at the end of the Tokugawa period. The main character, 19-year-old ICHIMURA Izaemon, is a kabuki actor and manager of the Ichimura-za theater. The story depicts the struggling ICHIMURA positioned between rival actors and the expectations of his patrons, in addition to the daily life of the Ichimura-za theater house.