Chochiku Grand Kabuki will tour Beijng in September. Artists Nakamura Kanjyaku and Sakata Tojuro will perform the popular Kabuki number Kagami Jishi.

Kagami Jishi, known as Lion Dance, is a gorgeous piece performed to nagauta music.

In the first half, the spirit of the lion head possesses a character named Yayoi, while in the second half the spirit of the "shishi" lion, dressed in brocade costumes, swings its long mane from left to right of the stage.

The actor who performs this role must be an expert capable of performing two contrasting dances - a dance of a maiden in the first half and a valiant dance in the second half.

Kabuki is a traditional Japanese form of theater with its origins in the Edo period. Kabuki, in contrast to older surviving Japanese art forms such as No, was popular among the lower classes.

Kabuki plays are about historical events and moral conflicts in relationships. The actors use an old language, which is difficult to understand even for some Japanese people. They speak in a monotonous voice and are accompanied by traditional Japanese instruments.

The kabuki stage rotates and is equipped with trapdoors through which the actors can appear and disappear. Another specialty of the kabuki stage is a footbridge that divides the audience.

Time: 7:30 pm, September 4, 5

Place: Poly Theater, Donsi Shitiao

Tel: 9609-6260, 6506-5343, 6506-5345

(China Daily August 11, 2007)