Society

Kabuki actor Kataoka Hidetaro, who was living national treasure, dies at 79

May 28 (Japan Today) - Kataoka Hidetaro, a kabuki actor and living national treasure in Japan, has died of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Shochiku Co, a producer of kabuki performances, said Thursday. He was 79.

Hidetaro, who died at his home in Suita, Osaka Prefecture, on Sunday, was born as the second son of the famous kabuki actor Kataoka Nizaemon XIII. He grew up in one of the most prestigious kabuki families Matsushimaya with his brothers Gato and Nizaemon XV, the latter also a living national treasure.

Popular Kabuki actor Kataoka Ainosuke is his adopted son.

Hidetaro made his stage debut in 1946 and later made his name as a superb onnagata, a male actor who specializes in female roles, as he excelled in playing a wide variety of women including prostitutes and housewives, and from young to old.

He was known as a champion of the Kamigata style of acting originating in the Kyoto and Osaka area, and passed on a tradition distinctive from kabuki in Tokyo to younger actors.

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