Weaving together careful readings of plays and reviews, memoirs and interviews, biographies and critical essays, this text traces the emergence of the first generation of modern actresses in Japan, a nation in which male actors had long dominated the public stage.

Weaving together careful readings of plays and reviews, memoirs and interviews, biographies and critical essays, this text traces the emergence of the first generation of modern actresses in Japan, a nation in which male actors had long dominated the public stage. What emerges is a colourful and complex picture of modern Japanese gender, theater, and nationhood. Using the lives and careers of two dominant actresses from the Meiji era, the author reveals the fantasies, fears, and impact that women on stage created in Japan as it entered the 20th century.

PART I: SETTING THE STAGE - Acting Like a Woman - Modern Formations of Gender and Performance - PART II: KAWAKAMI SADAYAKKO - Wifeing the Woman - Straightening the Theater - Reproducing the Empire - PART III: MATSUI SUMAKO - A New Woman - A New Theater - Feminists and Femmes Fatales - Epilogue: Revealing the Real Body