忠臣蔵（英文）

“Chusingura” is a very important play for japanese.I make clear the meaning of the title、 word by word:”Chu”means “loyal”,”Sin””retainer” and “Gura” “Treasure”.So the title means “The treasure of Loyal Retainers”.This is one of the most popular Kabuki plays adapted from the Buranku puppet play. The play consists of 11 acts and it takes more than 12 hours to stage all acts.In almost every December the play is staged ,of course,not entirely but partly.Generally speaking,in Kabuki world all acts of a play are not performed.In many cases only one act is staged.Performance systems of Kabuki theatre are so complicated for briefing.Leaving them aside,I am going back to “Chusingura.”.
The play is based on a sensational historical incident.On march 14,1701,Asano, the lord of the small domain of Ako far away from Edo(the present Tokyo),was performing his duties as one of the representatives of the shogun(supreme power) to receive emissarues from the imperial court.Suddenly Asano drew his sword and attacked Kira,the chief of ceremonies for shogun.This incident is wrapped in mystery.Why did Asano try to kill Kira,though he knew it was strictly forbidden to draw swords in the palace?It has been said that Kira,who knew perfectly the scenario of ceremonies, was in charge of teaching local lords and received some briberis from them.Did’nt Asano know the custom of bribery or did he refused to bribe Kira sufficiently?Whatever the matters might be,Asano’s behavior offended Kira.The chief of ceremonies insulted the lord in the presence of other lords.Asno lost face completely. and drew his sword.
The shogun was furious at the incident and ordered immedeately Asano to commit suicide(it is a ritual form of execution) within the day.As Asao’s domain was confiscated,his retainers became ronins(samurai without lord),that is,the unemployed.
47 retainers made a plot secretly to remove the disgrace which was brought on their lord.Retainers were under the leadership of a brilliant retainer named Oishi.Thus,they achieved their aim.On December 14,1702,they attacked Kira’s mansion and killed him.Their brave act,which is called “vendetta”,brought out a collective praise in Edo.Citizens regarded Asano’s retainers as Samurai’s ideal.
The incident was soon dramatized by Chikamatsu in 1706 . As the Tokugawa government banned all mention of contemporary events,this vendetta could only be dramatized by transposing it into a different period and using the names of historical figures frome the remote past.It was changed into a incident occured in the 14 cenntury,but people knew it was the vendetta of Asano’s retainers.After the dramatization by Chikamatsu,the story was written for the puppet theatre in 1748.It was a big hit.Ever since that time,the play has been performed constantly and is considered a sure recipe for hit.Moreover,the original “Chusingura” has given birth to a lot of variations in the field of entertainments,such as movies,comics,operas popular songs etc..We can draw many elements for understanding Japanese mentality from the play..I will talk about them next time.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（ルーマニア向けの演劇レポート）