The Actor Bando Hikosaburo II in the Role of the Oiran Hatsuito of Yamashiro-ya 1760 - 1780

This woodblock print by Ippitsusai Bunchō dating from the late 18th century, shows the actor Bando Hikosaburo II in the role of an oiran, or high-ranking courtesan. It’s interesting to consider the phenomenon of male actors playing female roles in the context of Japan’s Edo period. The floating world of the kabuki theater was closely linked to the pleasure districts and celebrated for its stylishness and eroticism. The performance of gender was clearly a complex and self-conscious affair. We might ask, was this image of Bando Hikosaburo II as the oiran Hatsuito progressive or conservative in its own time? Was it a critique of social norms, or complicit with them? Exploring questions like these requires delving into the archives, reading the popular literature of the period, and looking closely at the ways gender and class were represented across different media.