is a Noh

Noh

, or - derived from the Sino-Japanese word for "skill" or "talent" - is a major form of classical Japanese musical drama that has been performed since the 14th century. Many characters are masked, with men playing male and female roles. Traditionally, a Noh "performance day" lasts all day and...

 play which takes place in the aftermath of the Shishigatani Incident

Shishigatani Incident

The Shishigatani Incident of June 1177 was a failed uprising against the rule of Taira no Kiyomori in Japan. The conspiracy was discovered, and its perpetrators arrested and punished before any part of their plan was put into action.The incident is also known in Japanese as Shishigatani no Inbō ,...

, and focuses upon one of a trio exiled to "Devil's Island" (Kikaigashima, 鬼界島), off the coast of Satsuma province

Satsuma Province

was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Its abbreviation is Sasshū .During the Sengoku Period, Satsuma was a fief of the Shimazu daimyo, who ruled much of southern Kyūshū from their castle at Kagoshima city.In 1871, with the...

, as punishment for a plot against the ruling Taira clan

Taira clan

The was a major Japanese clan of samurai in historical Japan.In reference to Japanese history, along with Minamoto, Taira was a hereditary clan name bestowed by the emperors of the Heian Period to certain ex-members of the imperial family when they became subjects...

. Though two of the three are pardoned, the third, the monk Shunkan

Shunkan

Shunkan was a Japanese monk who, after taking part in the Shishigatani plot to overthrow Taira no Kiyomori, was exiled along with two others to Kikai-ga-shima. His story is featured in the Heike monogatari, and in a number of traditional derivative works, including the Noh play Shunkan and jōruri...

, is left alone on the island.

Plot summary

The imperial consort

Taira no Tokuko

For the asteroid, see 5242 Kenreimonin, later known as , was the last Heike Imperial survivor from the modest vessel carrying the emperor in the great naval battle of Dan-no-ura....

, pregnant with Antoku

Emperor Antoku

Emperor Antoku was the 81st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1180 through 1185. During this time, the imperial family was involved in a bitter struggle between warring clans...

, the future emperor, has fallen ill, and seers have advised Taira no Kiyomori

Taira no Kiyomori

was a general of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.After the death of his father Taira no Tadamori in 1153, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and ambitiously entered the political realm in which he...

, the de facto head of government, to placate the spirits by pardoning and compensating some of his victims. He agrees to pardon Fujiwara no Naritsune

Fujiwara no Naritsune

' was a Japanese courtier of the Heian period who, after plotting against the Taira clan, was exiled along with his father, Fujiwara no Narichika, and a number of other co-conspirators to Kikai-ga-shima...

 and Taira no Yasuyori, but not Shunkan, who is left alone on the island.

The action takes place several years before the final defeat of the Taira and the ascendancy of the Minamoto clan in the Genpei War

Genpei War

The was a conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans during the late-Heian period of Japan. It resulted in the fall of the Taira clan and the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto Yoritomo in 1192....

 of 1180-1185.

The Kita school refers to this play as Kikaigashima. It was traditionally attributed to Zeami, but is now ascribed either to his son-in-law Zenchiku or his son Motomasa. It uses a boat as a prop.

See also

• Heike monogatari - classical epic relating the events on which this and many other works have been derived.
• Atsumori
  Atsumori (play)
  ' is a Japanese Noh play by Zeami Motokiyo which focuses on Taira no Atsumori, a young samurai who was killed in the Genpei War, and his killer, Kumagai Naozane...
  
  - another Noh play set at the same time.