Hideyoshi and Okuni’s Kabuki

This chapter draws attention to the well-known screen Okuni Performing Kabuki, an important source for understanding the early years of kabuki performance. The chapter's focus is not on the performance itself, but rather on the subject of the screen, its intended viewer, and how it was meant to be viewed. It attempts to answer these questions by exploring the portrayal of the warrior hegemon in this painting within a context that positions Toyotomi Hideyoshi in relation to the imperial family and also as a patron of new and emerging arts. By elucidating the process of producing the work, including the intended viewer, the purpose, the commissioner, the date, and the artist, the chapter aims to clarify that the true function of this screen painting was memorialization and that the image of Hideyoshi was inserted consciously to activate this particular function. The chapter reinforces the identification of Hideyoshi with additional analysis and seeks to identify, with as much certainty as possible, the figures seated with Hideyoshi, a task that has never been undertaken before. Ultimately, the chapter reveals the irony of Hideyoshi's presence overseeing a world he helped create, but from which his family was erased, in this work commemorating the warrior hegemon at the start of a peaceful age.