Amusement for Audiences

Shikitei Sanba, a connoisseur of theatrical performance, gave a critique of "audiences", not actors, in accordance with the style and structure of books on actors' reputation of that time published by Hachimonjiya, a bookshop in Kyoto. This book is on reputations of the guests at the pleasure quarters, as if they were audiences at a play. As with other hyobanki, this book is a long horizontal book, with a foreword by Hachimonjiya Jisho, an ukiyozoshi (literally, “books of the floating world”) writer and hanmoto (publisher). The reviews are done under the name of Shibai Kenbutsuzaemon, a greenroom manager (host).

Kabukishinpo was the first theatrical magazine in Japan, founded in February 1879 (Meiji 12). Originally it was published three times a month, but later increased to ten times a month. Its final issue was vol. 1669, published in March 1897 (Meiji 30). The original editorial board included famous writers such as Kanagaki Robun and Kubota Hikosaku. The content was full of interesting articles, such as each theatre's scripts and plots, updates on actors, critiques of performances, articles like chronicles, and theatrical pieces. The cover of this volume also shows the content, saying "Actors and Titles and Casting of Every Theatre, Surprising Tales, and Contributed Hokku (the first lines of Japanese linked poems)"

The color printed picture displayed here is a kind of toy called "kirikumi toro" in Edo and "tatebanko" in the Kyoto and Osaka area. People enjoyed constructing paper dioramas by lining them with cardboard, cutting out all the parts, and sticking them in the right positions. From ca. 1894 (Meiji 27), it became a big trend in Tokyo, and new kumiage-e which featured new programs of the Meiji-za, Kabuki-za, and Tokyo-za theatres were published one after another. They were usually printed in o-ban and from triptych to quintych. Some dioramas were as big as half a tatami mat (about 91x91cm), with complicated structures.