Naka no Shibai (中の芝居, Central Theatre), also known as Naka-za (中座), was one of the major

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to ...

theatres in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

History

It was first built in 1652, in Osaka's

Dōtonbori is one of the principal tourist destinations in Osaka, Japan, running along the Dōtonbori canal from Dōtonboribashi Bridge to Nipponbashi Bridge in the Namba district of the city's Chuo ward. Historically a theater district, it is now a popula ...

entertainment district, and saw the premieres of many famous plays; closely related to the nearby '' jōruri'' theatres, Naka would often be the first to adapt puppet plays to the kabuki stage, and often also arranged the

Kamigata Kamigata (上方) was the colloquial term for a region today called Kansai (''kan'', barrier; ''sai'', west) in Japan. This large area encompasses the cities of Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe. The term is used particularly when discussing elements of Edo ...

(Kansai) premieres of plays earlier performed in

Edo Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...

. Also tied closely to other theatres in the area, and the general theatre culture and community of Kamigata, Naka hosted a number of competitions between actors and troupes, as well as reconciliation ceremonies between actors who had been feuding, and a variety of other theatrical community events. Some of the plays premiered at the Naka no Shibai include '' Natsu Matsuri Naniwa Kagami'' (1745), ''

Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura ''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 ...

'' (Aug. 1748), and '' Kanadehon Chūshingura'' (Dec. 1748) which was first performed as a puppet play six months earlier. '' Ichi-no-Tani Futaba Gunki'' was first performed in Osaka, at the Naka no Shibai, in 1752, as was '' Meiboku Sendai Hagi'' in 1777. Destroyed by fire twice in the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

(1868-1912), the theatre was rebuilt almost immediately in both instances, and saw the installation of electricity when rebuilt in 1884. In 1920, the theatre was bought by production company

Shōchiku () is a Japanese film and kabuki production and distribution company. It also produces and distributes anime films, in particular those produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks (which has a long-time partnership—the company released most, if not all ...

, and renamed Naka-za. In November 1927, during a performance of ''Honzō Shimoyashiki'', actor

Nakamura Jakuemon II Nakamura may refer to: Places *Nakamura, Kōchi, a former city in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan *Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, a ward in Nagoya city in Aichi Prefecture, Japan People *Nakamura (surname), a list of people with the surname Other uses *Nakamura s ...

collapsed and died on stage. Destroyed and rebuilt in 1934, the Naka-za became the most major theatre in the city, surpassing the Naniwa-za, but was destroyed along with most of the rest of the city in the 1945

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

bombing of Osaka in World War II. The Naka-za was rebuilt once more, and reopened in 1948. Holding around 800 seats through most of its incarnations, this newest building held 1200. The theater was closed in 1999, however, by Shōchiku, on account of financial problems and the effects of the overall worsening Japanese economy. The final kabuki performance at the Naka-za was ''Natsu Sugata Naniwa Goyomi'', featuring Kataoka Hidetarō II,

Arashi Tokusaburō VII is a Japanese boy band consisting of five members formed under the Johnny & Associates talent agency. The members are Satoshi Ohno, Sho Sakurai, Masaki Aiba, Kazunari Ninomiya, and Jun Matsumoto. Arashi officially formed on September 15, 1999 ...

Bandō Takesaburō V Bandō may refer to: People *Eiji Bandō, Japanese entertainer/sportsman *Naoki Bandō, Japanese voice actor *, Japanese long-distance runner *Japanese surname, especially among Kabuki actors, such as: **Bandō Kakitsu I (1847–1893), Japanese kabu ...

Kataoka Ainosuke VI is a Japanese actor, kabuki actor and TV host. His ''yagō'' is ''matsushimaya''. His '' mon'' is the ''Oikake Go-mai Ichō''. His current stage name is Ainosuke Kataoka. He is a renowned '' tachiyaku'', specializing in both the ''aragoto'' and ' ...

and

Kamimura Kichiya VI Kamimura (written: 上村 or 神村) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese kickboxer *, Imperial Japanese Navy admiral *, Japanese voice actress *, Japanese manga artist *, Japanese animator *, Japanese footbal ...

. Though the theatre was not intentionally destroyed at that time, a gas explosion and the resulting fire in September 2002 burnt it to the ground. An office building now stands in its place.

References

Naka at Kabuki21.com
{{Authority control 1652 establishments in Japan Buildings and structures completed in 1652 1999 disestablishments in Japan Culture in Osaka Former kabuki theatres