Theatre Out Of The Shadows

(TOOTS)

c. 630 – c. 570 BC Although only a small amount of her poetry has survived, the ancient Greek poet Sappho has had a posthumous literary reputation. She has become an icon for lyric poets, and is a symbol for homosexual love between women. Sappho stands at the beginning of the lyric tradition in poetry: a tradition so named because Sappho’s compositions were originally accompanied by music, played on the lyre. Because of the homoerotic essence in her poems and because she hailed from the Greek island of Lesbos Sappho is also the reason we talk of ‘lesbian’ relationships between women. Sappho is known to have written some nine volumes of poetry, but very little of her work was preserved. Some have blamed this on the activities of the medieval Church, which sought to suppress works which were pagan and, what’s more, often probably quite sexy.

1572 - ? Okuni was a Japanese actress, dancer and singer who created kabuki theatre in the 14th century. Okuni created not only a longstanding Japanese tradition but also an outrageous new type of performance that gave women a space to perform. Beginning as a priestess, one who was expected to remain reserved, she instead followed the path of an artist. Her art was unconventional. Her signature dance, the Nambusu had originally had been a sacred Buddhist dance. Okuni developed it into her own style, where it took on a provocative tone, fascinating audiences. She further captured attention when she started performing scenes about scandalous topics, such as lovers and prostitutes, in which she often performed masculine roles.

Her work provided an opportunity for the forgotten and unwanted of society to gain a new reputation, all while creating a new art style that has become a cultural landmark of Japan. Okuni continued to perform kabuki with her troupe until her retirement and disappearance sometime around 1610.