Hanamichi Productions and Select Japan present An Actor’s Revenge: A Kabuki Salon, a multi-disciplinary performance event that celebrates the magnificent artistry and history of Kabuki. This 400-year-old Japanese theatrical tradition is known for its stylised movement, elaborate costumes, and vivid visual storytelling.

The evening begins with a live Tsugaru shamisen performance by Hibiki Ichikawa and a sake reception in the Garden Cinema bar. This is followed by a Kabuki-inspired poetry performance by actor-dancer Suleiman Suleiman, whose original poem offers a lens through which to view Kon Ichikawa’s 1963 masterpiece An Actor’s Revenge.

Drawing on the visual and performative language of Kabuki - particularly the tradition of the onnagata (male actors who portray idealised female roles) - Suleiman will guide the audience into the film’s dreamlike world of disguise, gender illusion, and poetic vengeance.

After the screening, guests are invited to return to the bar for an ambient soundscape by English Garden Lounging and an informal Q&A with the artists.

Guests are warmly encouraged to take inspiration from Kabuki or Bowie in their attire.

About the film:

A uniquely prolific and chameleonic figure of world cinema, Kon Ichikawa delivered a burst of stylistic bravado with this intricate tale of betrayal and retribution. Set in the cloistered world of nineteenth-century kabuki theatre, the film charts a female impersonator’s attempts to avenge the deaths of his parents, who were driven to insanity and suicide by a trio of corrupt men. Ichikawa takes the conventions of melodrama and turns them on their head, bringing the hero’s fractured psyche to life in boldly experimental widescreen compositions infused with kaleidoscopic colour, pop-art influences, and meticulous choreography.

Programme Timings

19:00 - Doors open, sake at the bar

Live shamisen performance by Hibiki Ichikawa

19:30 - Poetic introduction by Suleiman Suleiman

20:00 - An Actor’s Revenge screening

22:00 - DJ set and ambient visuals in the bar

Soundscape by English Garden Lounging

23:00 - Close

Tickets for the event are £18 for members and £20 for non-members, and include a complimentary serving of sake (or non-alcoholic alternative).

Artist Credits:

Kabuki-inspired poetry performance: Suleiman Suleiman

Live Tsugaru shamisen: Hibiki Ichikawa

DJ set and ambient soundscape: English Garden Lounging (Mary McCaughey)

Cast:
Kazuo Hasegawa, Fujiko Yamamoto, Ayako Wakao, Eiji Funakoshi