Kabuki became common in red-light districts and also generally associated with prostitution, as performers sometimes offered their services to spectators. This guerilla form of entertainment quickly became so immensely popular that rival troupes formed as far away as Tokyo (then called Edo) and Okuni herself was asked to perform for the Imperial Court. Known as onna-kabuki ( onna means woman), the performances were witty and suggestive. These women portrayed both male and female characters in comedic plays parodying everyday life. She formed an all-female troupe of local misfits and prostitutes, instructing them in theater, song, and dance.
Izumo no Okuni was a Shinto priestess who began performing in the early 1600s at various locations around Kyoto, including at shrines and in the dry riverbed of the Kamo River.
Today’s kabuki actors are all male, but the art was created by a woman.
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