Act III: Actors Bandō Hikosaburō V and Sawamura Tanosuke III - Utagawa Kuniaki II

A traditional Japanese woodblock print depicting a dramatic scene from the kabuki play Kanadehon Chūshingura, featuring actors Bandō Hikosaburō V and Sawamura Tanosuke III.

This woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniaki II depicts a scene from the third act of the famous kabuki play Kanadehon Chūshingura. The composition captures the actors Bandō Hikosaburō V in the role of the samurai Hayano Kanpei and Sawamura Tanosuke III as the lady-in-waiting Koshimoto Okaru. The narrative of the play concerns the vendetta of the forty-seven rōnin, a story deeply embedded in Japanese cultural history.

In this specific scene, the visual arrangement focuses on the interaction between the two characters. Kanpei is shown in a kneeling posture, while Okaru is positioned on a ladder, creating a vertical tension within the frame. The artist employs the traditional conventions of yakusha-e, or actor prints, which were produced in large numbers to satisfy the public appetite for kabuki theatre. The print features the characteristic flat perspective and bold outlines common to the Utagawa school during the mid-nineteenth century.

The colour palette is restrained, relying on muted earth tones, soft greens, and accents of red within the garments. The border of the print is decorated with a geometric triangular pattern, a stylistic choice that frames the theatrical action. Kuniaki II, a student of Utagawa Kunisada, maintains the technical precision required for multi-block printing. The work provides a glimpse into the aesthetic preferences of the Edo period, where the worlds of literature, theatre, and visual art intersected. The print serves as a record of specific performances, documenting the costumes and poses adopted by popular actors of the time. It is a representative example of the commercial print culture that flourished in Japan before the rapid modernisation of the Meiji era.