The gleaming white architecture of the Kourakukan invites locals and travelers to see kabuki performances in Japan’s oldest traditional wooden playhouse. Rotating kabuki troupes use the facility year round, so there is always a new show just a few months away. I have seen three performances at the the Kourakukan, all amazing. Shows are often “super-kabuki,” a form of kabuki that incorporates a bit more comedy and fun during the dance portion to make the show more engaging with the audience. Super kabuki is also under two hours, while an authentic kabuki play can run several hours. This means ticket prices are more affordable as well, at around 2000 yen. Although shows change time to time, the Kourakukan theater itself has changed slowly over the years, looking much like it did when it first opened its doors in 1910.
The Kourakukan is located in Kosaka, the northern region of Akita Prefecture. Kosaka is famous for its mining history. With the mining boom came foreign influence. Foreign mining experts, culture, and architecture have made their mark in Kosaka since the early 1900s. The Kourakukan theater is purely Western on the outside, but step inside and things are very different.
Take off your shoes and pass through the lobby. The theater opens up into a wide seating area-- it is not Western, but a Japanese setting. Audience members sit on cushions which lie on top of tatami rice mats. Plank walkways separate the seating areas, used by performers to walk through the crowd during performances, allowing close up picture opportunities. Even Japanese snacks, ramen, and beer are sold to add to the experience and create a relaxing atmosphere. Kabuki is entertainment. You are meant to laugh and enjoy yourself during appropriate times of the play. Gazing at you while you wait for the show to begin is an exquisite piece of art: the stage curtain. It displays a winter scene of deer galloping across the landscape. When the curtain goes up, it’s show time. During the play and afterwards, you will be seeing a few surprises.
No historical site is complete without a few secrets. Thankfully, the Kourakukan takes pride in its work to put on great theater, so it is more than happy to share. At one part of the performance you are bound to see the suppon, a trap door elevator used to give an actor a dramatic entrance. Another delightful shock during the play comes when the stage starts revolving. The speed the stage rotates is fairly fast, receiving many sounds of astonishment from the crowd. In fact, both the suppon and revolving stage are man-powered. By two men and pulley ropes and a large circular wheel moved by pushing pillars under stage respectively. If the staff are in a happy mood, they offer a behind the scenes tour of the theater before or after shows. Also tours are offered by the theater in the off season for just a few hundred yen. You’ll learn more about the history of the theater, seeing the back stage, under the stage and more. A hallway in the basement is lined with kabuki advertisements of yesteryear. A dressing room in the back is filled with messages from past and present kabuki actors, giving the theater real character. At the end of the tour, they will even let you try on some kabuki costumes and take some pictures.
The Kourakukan kabuki theater hosts different performing troupes year round. You’ll be bound to see diehard Kabuki fans attending the shows. These people shout out their favorite actors’ names when they first appear. After the show you have a chance to meet the performers because they kindly come out to chat with patrons, sign autographs, and wish you farewell. If you can’t catch a performance, make sure to at least stop by to catch a theater tour of this historical landmark.
