Reiwa
The Thirteenth
Ichikawa Danjūrō XIII, Hakuen
Beyond the theatre, toward the world — opening kabuki through screen and stream
- Life
- 1977-12-06
- Bore the name Danjūrō
- 2022-11
- Age at succession
- 44
- Earlier and literary names
- Horikoshi Takatoshi (his name at his first stage appearance) · Ichikawa Shinnosuke VII · Ichikawa Ebizō XI
This generation in thirty seconds
After Ichikawa Shinnosuke VII and Ichikawa Ebizō XI, he took the name Ichikawa Danjūrō XIII, Hakuen, at the Kabukiza in November 2022, on the same bill on which his eldest son became Ichikawa Shinnosuke VIII. Alongside the classical repertoire he has carried his work beyond the theatre — the Paris Opéra, Carnegie Hall, and a live-streamed kōjō address.
What he inherited
Aragoto and the Kabuki Jūhachiban
In May 2004 he took the name Ichikawa Ebizō XI, appearing as Kamakura Gongorō in Shibaraku at the Kabukiza among other roles, inheriting the art of the Ichikawa Danjūrō house — often called the head temple of Edo kabuki.
He first performed Benkei at the Asakusa Kōkaidō in January 1999, and Kanjinchō was again among the pieces at his succession in November 2022.
Hakuen was first used as a poetry name by Danjūrō V and later by Danjūrō VII. The thirteenth has taken it into the stage name itself, as Ichikawa Danjūrō Hakuen.
The house name Naritaya and the mimasu crest
The Japan Actors' Association's Kabuki Actor Directory lists his house name as Naritaya and his principal crest as mimasu.
What he created, changed or revived
The self-produced ABKAI
The Naritaya official site records that he first held his own production in August 2013 and has continued it since.
Roppongi Kabuki
First held in February 2015 and continued since. The Kabuki Actor Directory notes that on such new ventures he works with people from outside the kabuki world.
Live-streaming the succession kōjō
Shochiku's Kabuki Bito announced that the Shumei Hirō Kōjō in the evening programme at the Kabukiza on 7 November 2022 would be streamed live on Shochiku's official service Kabuki On Demand, describing this real-time broadcast from the Kabukiza as a first.
Performing abroad
The overseas performances listed by the Naritaya official site include Shochiku Grand Kabuki at the Palais Garnier of the Paris Opéra in March 2007 and Carnegie Hall in New York in March 2016, as well as appearances in London, Amsterdam, Monaco, Rome, Singapore and Fujairah.
Signature roles and plays
First performed at the Asakusa Kōkaidō in January 1999, and again at his succession in November 2022.
Kabukiza, May 2004 — the piece for his succession as Ichikawa Ebizō XI.
Kabukiza, May 1985 — his stage debut, on which he took the name Ichikawa Shinnosuke VII.
The Kabuki Actor Directory records that in 2000 he performed Sukeroku at the Shinbashi Enbujō, the youngest to do so in the postwar era.
Genji Monogatari — Hikaru Genji
First performed at the Kabukiza in May 2000. The Kabuki Actor Directory notes that a newly staged Genji Monogatari growing out of this work drew wide attention.
Kabuki in his age
Even as the transmission of the classical arts is newly emphasised, fresh ventures follow one after another. The Japan Arts Council records collaborations with contemporary playwrights and directors, new works adapted from manga and anime, and performances outside kabuki's own theatres, noting that kabuki now reaches a wider public than before. Kabuki was proclaimed a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2005 and inscribed on the Representative List in 2008.
Meanwhile, in the world
- 2023-10Society
The first National Theatre closes for redevelopment
The Japan Arts Council states that, nearly sixty years after opening and with the building badly aged, the National Theatre closed at the end of October 2023 together with the National Engei Hall and the Traditional Performing Arts Information Centre. Its own productions have since been staged at other venues.
- 2026-05-27Society
The Osaka Shochikuza closes
Shochiku's Kabuki Bito notes that the Osaka Shochikuza has been closed since 27 May 2026 — part of a period in which the venues for performance are themselves in flux.
- —Art & plays
Kabuki beyond its own theatres
The Japan Arts Council records that collaborations with contemporary playwrights and directors, new works based on manga and anime, and performances outside kabuki's dedicated theatres have all become active.
Where the age and the actor meet
- 2021-07World
Appearing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic opening ceremony
The Naritaya official site records that he took part in the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in July 2021 — before the succession, as Ichikawa Ebizō.
- 2022-10-31–2022-11-01Art & plays
The Kabukiza special performance marking the succession
Shochiku's Kabuki Bito reports that with the Kabukiza special performance of 31 October to 1 November 2022, Ichikawa Ebizō became Ichikawa Danjūrō XIII, Hakuen, and Horikoshi Kangen became Ichikawa Shinnosuke VIII. A succession tour lasting some two years began from there.
- 2022-11-07Media
The first real-time stream from the Kabukiza
Shochiku's Kabuki Bito announced that on 7 November 2022, the opening day of the succession run, the evening programme's Shumei Hirō Kōjō would be streamed live on Kabuki On Demand — described as a first attempt at real-time streaming from the Kabukiza.
- 2007-03World
Kanjinchō at the Paris Opéra
The Kabuki Actor Directory relates that at the first-ever kabuki performance at the Paris Opéra in 2007 he shared the role of Benkei in Kanjinchō with his father, the late Danjūrō XII; after debating the final exit with him, he treated the aisle of the auditorium as a hanamichi and performed the roppō stride along it.
From this generation to the next
The kōjō of his succession was streamed live from the Kabukiza, and a two-year run carried him and his newly debuted eldest son across the country. Inheriting aragoto and the Kabuki Jūhachiban, he is widening where kabuki is performed and how it reaches people — a generation still unfolding.
Where the sources differ
On the following points the sources we consulted disagree. Rather than declare one correct, we set them side by side and state how we have handled each.
The point from which the thirteenth succession is counted
The name Ichikawa Danjūrō XIII, Hakuen, was taken at the succession performances at the Kabukiza in November 2022.
Source: 成田屋(市川團十郎家)公式サイト「市川團十郎白猿 プロフィール」
The name was taken from the special commemorative performances held at the Kabukiza on 31 October and 1 November 2022.
How we handle it
We date the start of the name to November 2022, as both the official Naritaya site and the Kabuki Actor Directory record it. The special performances from 31 October are carried separately, with their own dates, so that both accounts remain visible.
That the age at succession is not counted the same way for every generation
For the second through ninth generations, the age at succession is the figure printed on each generation's page of the official family-tree pages, and appears to be reckoned by kazoedoshi, the traditional count.
Source: 成田屋(市川團十郎家)公式サイト「家系図」各代のページ
The forty-four given for the thirteenth is a full-year age, calculated from the recorded date of birth (6 December 1977) and the month of succession. The twelfth is counted the same way.
How we handle it
Because we print the figures as our sources give them, the method of counting is not uniform across the generations. We have not rewritten any age to make them agree, so ages should be compared across generations with that in mind.
What remains today
The Kabuki Actor Directory describes him as leading the kabuki world as head of the Ichikawa Danjūrō house, while inheriting and refining the family art.
With the succession kōjō streamed live from the Kabukiza, efforts continue to reach audiences who cannot come to the theatre.
Passing on to the next generation
On the same bill his eldest son made his stage debut, taking the name Ichikawa Shinnosuke VIII.