Kabuki actor Matsumoto Kôshirô VII in “Kagekiyo”, c. 1910, a kabuki first performed in Osaka in 1732. “Kagekiyo” was one of the Kabuki 18 — a collection of 18 plays of the Ichikawa Danjûrô line of actors — selected by Ichikawa Ebizô V in 1840 as the most representative plays in aragoto (rough style) kabuki.

“Matsumoto Kôshirô VII (1870-1949) is now remembered for his authentic rendition of kabuki classics. However, in his youth, he was interested in Western culture and learned English, Western dance and the violin.

“Worthy of special mention is his experiments with Western make-up, which he learned from Making Up (Witmark & Sons 1905), a stage make-up manual by American actor James Young. Kôshirô had photographs of his wearing Western make-up taken and published them in Japanese theater magazine Engei Gahô serially, under the title of ‘hensô’. Literally meaning ‘to change one’s looks’, ‘hensô’ can imply more than changing one’s appearance by putting on make-up.

“… Kôshirô’s photos have not been fully appreciated because his experiments with Western make-up were considered an amateurish hobby. However, considering the influences his study had on shingeki actors — he taught Western make-up methods at Tokyo Haiyu Yôseijo, a training facility for shingeki actors — it is necessary to cast a new light on Kôshirô, who is usually understood as a superb Meiji-era kabuki actor endowed with a beautiful body suitable for kabuki classics.

“Certainly, he was a pioneer in modernizing kabuki acting as well as a mediator between kabuki and modern Japanese theater.”

– Matsumoto Koushiro VII’s Study of “Hensô”, by Ayaka Murashima, Comparative Theatre Review, January 2011