Toy triptych

Japanese Print Description

This “Toy Triptych” was intended to be cut apart to create a model of the play.  Danjuro IX plays the villain Sekibei, weilding a axe about to cut down the cherry tree.  He is confronted by the spirit of the cherry tree played by Onoe Kikugoro V.  The other female character, Ono no Komachi, is played by Onoe Kikunosuke II.  The performance of 1897 would prove to be Kikunosuke’s last performance on stage and he would die 4 months later.