August Program at the Kabukiza Theatre: Article Roundup (August 2026)

Thanks to the flat-rate theatre subscription, I found myself going back to the Kabukiza again and again in August. I saw Parts 1, 2, and 3, then went back for more. Part 1 alone? Three times. Even I was thinking, “What am I doing?!” But a third visit has pleasures all of its own. (laughs)

The performances, of course, but also the seats, the intermission meals, and the little detours before curtain time… Here is my August at the Kabukiza, in the order I went.

Part 3, Opening Day | August Began in a Second-Floor Box Seat

My first visit was opening day of Part 3 at the Kabukiza. With the flat-rate subscription, I somehow managed to get a second-floor east-side box seat. It really is worth asking, even when you don’t expect much!

Before the performance, I had a tuna rice bowl at Hanakago. There was plenty of tuna, and I polished off the rice too. Dessert was melon, in all its glory. Then I admired the opening-day banners outside the Kabukiza, looked at the actors’ uchiwa fan display, and settled into my box seat. There is already so much to enjoy around the performance, before you even get to the performance itself.

During Tamasaburo’s Yuki and Zangetsu, I found myself watching intently in the hushed auditorium. I already had plans to see them again from the first floor, so it was lovely knowing there was still another visit to look forward to.

Part 1, First Visit | The Humans Were Scarier Than the Ghosts

My second subscription visit was Part 1: Kaidan Botan Doro. I was in the front row of the second floor, waaaaay over on the audience’s right. The stage felt a little distant, but I could see the shichisan acting spot on the hanamichi runway too. Not bad at all, actually. Opera glasses were essential for me, though.

It is a ghost story, so naturally it is frightening. But human greed is scarier than the ghosts. And the exchanges between Minosuke’s Tomozo and Ukon’s Omine had me laughing out loud. How does Ukon’s timing even work? He makes the most ordinary little line funny. It’s almost unfair.

Tatsunosuke’s Otsuyu was supposed to be frightening, yet she was so adorable that I couldn’t look away. There are so many dark scenes that I wished I could see a little more… but she is a ghost, so I suppose that’s how it has to be. (laughs)

Part 2, First Visit | Laughter, Uchiwa Fans, and Medetai-yaki

I stayed on after Part 1 for Part 2, my third subscription visit. Kankuro and Koshiro in Rakuda were simply wonderful. Put two funny people in a play together, and of course it is going to be funny. I could happily laugh at this again and again.

This time I was in an east-side box seat. I discovered that a seat a little farther from the stage might actually give me a better view than one closer to it. Even within the east-side boxes, the exact seat makes a difference.

And then there were the actors’ hand-drawn uchiwa fans. Somegoro’s looked like a report listing everything he wanted to say in bullet points, and the more I looked, the funnier it became. I also had a medetai-yaki before curtain time. Every time, I think the same thing: putting mochi inside is almost unfair. It is just too delicious. 🥺

Part 1, Second Visit | Knowing the Ending Changed Things

For my second Kaidan Botan Doro, I sat in the sixth row, right beside the hanamichi. On my first visit, keeping up with the story had taken all my attention. This time, I began to notice the little shifts in Tomozo and Omine’s feelings.

Their back-and-forth when they still had no money, but were happy together. Knowing what comes next made that time feel all the more precious. It was a funny scene, yet I found myself feeling a little differently than I had the first time.

At intermission, I had the Hazuki no Gozen set at Tokyo Kitcho. Every little dish was delicious, and I was enjoying it so leisurely that I only just made it back to my seat in time. The play matters, but the meal is a major event too. I could still learn a thing or two about time management. (laughs)

Part 2, Second Visit | More Laughter, and This Time Tears Too

Next came my second visit to Part 2. Rakuda made me laugh all over again. Kankuro’s Kyuroku, his exchanges with Koshiro, and Chozaburo’s adorableness. Knowing what is coming doesn’t make it any less fun.

And then came Kijin no Omatsu. Shichinosuke was so heartbreaking that I found myself in tears watching him on the hanamichi. I was in the sixth row beside the runway again. The stage was easy to see, and I could admire Shichinosuke on the hanamichi up close. A feast for the eyes. Always wonderful to watch.

All that laughter in Rakuda, followed by this heartache. My feelings were getting quite a workout within a single Part 2.

Part 3, Second Visit | I Didn’t Understand It All, but It Was Beautiful

On my return visit to Part 3, I was once again captivated by Kantaro and Chozaburo as the pine crickets in Bukaku Setsugekka. Those two are endlessly precious. And I felt as though Kantaro had grown up yet again…

Honestly, I can’t say I fully understand Tamasaburo’s Yuki and Zangetsu. But they are simply beautiful. The change of colour in the backdrop during Zangetsu was mysterious too, and I found myself gazing at it. I want to understand more of what lies beyond that first feeling of “How beautiful.”

Incidentally, Part 3 barely uses the hanamichi. And there I was, with a seat right near it! (laughs) Still, I was delighted by the moment when I got to see Kantaro up close. Even sitting in much the same area, a different program changes what there is to enjoy.

Part 1, Third Visit | This Time, the Expressions and the Timing

And then, Kaidan Botan Doro for the third time. This was my fourth visit on the subscription. From the second row of the second floor, on the audience’s right, I watched Ukon’s expressions closely through my opera glasses.

Knowing the story meant I could wait for a moment to arrive: “Oh, here it comes, here it coooomes!” That is such fun. Ukon can make the audience laugh with just a little line or the tiniest pause. Kenken, you really are too good.

This was also the visit when I finally took a proper look at Midori Onoe as the nursemaid Oyone. I was starting to notice not just the actors’ expressions, but where the audience laughed too. By the third time, what I was watching for had changed.

At intermission, I had the Hanaguruma set at Hanakago, then tea in Ginza after the performance. Even when I see the same play, everything around it makes each visit a different day.

There Was Something to Enjoy Every Time

The first time, I followed the story. The next time, I found myself thinking about the characters’ feelings. By the third visit, I could really watch the expressions and timing. August gave me plenty of opportunities to savour the pleasure of seeing the same production more than once.

Trying different seats, enjoying intermission meals, grinning to myself in front of the uchiwa display. I was grateful that the flat-rate subscription made it so much easier to keep going back to the Kabukiza.

Another wonderful day, as always. However many times I go, I end up saying the same thing. (laughs)