Ja-yanagi (The snake-willow)  蛇柳

The play

"Jayanagi" was premiered in Edo in 1763. It was entitled "Kôyasan Jayanagi" and it was staged within the new year drama "Momo Chidori Ôiso Gayoi". The leading role of Tanba no Suketarô, later the spirit of the Snake Willow was played by Ichikawa Danjûrô IV. It went to oblivion and the original script was lost but it was nevertheless added to the 18 kabuki plays collection of drama in 1840 by Ichikawa Ebizô V. It was revived in May 1947 with a new script starring Ichikawa Sanshô V in the leading role. Never performed by either Ichikawa Danjûrô XI or Ichikawa Danjûrô XII, "Jayanagi" was finally revived by Ichikawa Ebizô XI as a dance-drama written by Matsuoka Ryô and choreographed by Fujima Kanjûrô VIII. It was staged for the first time in August 2013 for the first edition of the ABKAI - Ebikai, the gala of the young star Ichikawa Ebizô in Tôkyô. This revival was quite successful and it was staged for the first time in Grand Kabuki, in Tôkyô at the Kabukiza in May 2015, using the same script. 

The scene opens in sacred Mt.Koya. A mysterious and beautiful Jayanagi (Snake Willow) is set on stage. According to the legend, the priest Kûkai turned a maleficent giant snake into a weeping willow. This evil snake, which was terrorizing the area, was in fact a monster carrying the jealousy of all the women who had been abandoned by their husbands in order to become monks on the male-only Mt.Koya. As a result of this miracle, the jayanagi is said to represent a thousand year bond between men and women. The rumor says that this foul tree is causing harm to the people of this area. The priest Jôken has been called to subdue it with his religious powers. Near the tree is the idiot Tanba no Suketarô (Suketarô from the Tanba province). He tells the story of his recently deceased wife to whom he is still obsessively attached. Dancing his love for his late wife, he lapses into frenzy. Before long, it becomes obvious that Suketarô is possessed by the evil Spirit of the Snake Willow who aggressively attacks the priest Jôken. At last, the powerful warrior Kongômaru Terutada appears on the hanamichi. He is a demon-repeller (oshimodoshi) and he has the power to save Jôken and drive back the spirit. The spirit of the Snake Willow is subdued and Kongômaru Terutada strikes a mie pause at the end this play.

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