納涼歌舞伎の歌舞伎座では、夏きものをお召しの方はもちろん、浴衣姿の方もお見かけします。 歌舞伎座に浴衣で来場して良いのかどうかは、昨年もこのコラムで書かせていただきましたが、毎年、議論となるところです。そもそも浴衣が湯上がり着をルーツとする、現代のワードローブで言うならパジャマやバスローブ、Tシャツ＆短パンに近いカテゴリーのアイテムであるという基本を理解した上で、夏のカジュアルな観劇なら許される範囲の“きちんと感”をどこまでプラスできるかが、装いの鍵になるのではないでしょうか。 歌舞伎座にほど近い昭和通り添いにある「GINZA 和貴」さんで、観劇浴衣のコーディネートを提案していただきました。 
紫織庵の綿絽の浴衣は、ニュアンスのあるブルー地で、夏きものに近い感覚で楽しめそう。夏草に蛍の柄も、この季節ならでは。上布の帯は荒木みかさんの手によるもの。手軽な夏の帯やきものは、若手の作家さんの作品に挑戦できるチャンスでもあります。 こちらは、同じく綿絽の団扇柄の浴衣。「団子売」の小道具である団扇を、さりげなく観劇の装いにとり入れるのもお洒落です。グラフィカルなドットの織り柄の帯は、若手の役者さんが活躍する“今”の納涼歌舞伎にぴったりです。 
どちらの浴衣も、歌舞伎座での観劇には下に襦袢を着て衿をつけ、帯はお太鼓、足元は素足に下駄でなく、足袋に草履できちんと格上げをして。大人の浴衣ファッションで夏芝居を涼やかに楽しみたいものです。 GINZA和貴TEL：03-3538-8570https://www.ginza-waki.jp/ Bettyoko’s Kimono Diary
Go to the Theatre in Kimonos Vol. 35
August Noryo Kabuki program
“DANGO URI”（The Dumpling Peddlers）in Part I at Kabukiza Theatre
I went to see Part I of the August Noryo Kabuki program at Kabukiza Theatre.
This August special performance was started by the late Nakamura Kanzaburo and the late Bando Mitsugoro in 1990, when they were in their mid- thirties. The main purpose of this performance was to provide the young kabuki actors a chance to play a difficult role of classical pieces, and the chosen plays were simple and easy enough to understand for beginners. Nowadays, most of the actors are in the next generation, and the plays selected seems to be just for the Kabuki fans. Yet, this three part divided performance is short and cheap making it a perfect stage for people to enjoy during summer vacation.
This year all the plays except TAMAUSAGI ( The Rabbit in the Moon), which was the only performance produced in the Edo era (1603~1867), are plays that were produced after the Meiji era (1868~), so you can enjoy the newer Kabuki style through these performances. Especially DANGO URI (The Dumpling Peddlers), which was the one with the dance piece I was the most eager to see. Ichikawa Ennosuke and Nakamura Kankuro played the roles of the husband and wife. They are one of the best Kabuki dancers today, and their excellent dance performance made me feel honored to be able to live with them in the same era with them.
I saw many ladies in natsu-kimono(summer kimono) or yukata(casual summer kimono) at the theatre. From a kimono dress code viewpoint, it is always arguable whether yukata is suitable for the theatre-going or not. Because yukata is originally the garment which is used after taking a bath, so it was regarded as a pajama with a bathrobe and a set of T- shirt and short pants. Therefore, the key to success in the yukata style for summer casual theater-going is whether we could keep the rules of wearing kimono an absolute minimum. The kimono shop GINZA Waki, located in Showa Street close to the Kabukiza Theatre, suggested the coordination of yukata for theatre-going. Kyoto Kimono shop, Shiorian’s men-ro (breath well cotton) yukata is nuance blue colored and summer glass and fire-fly designed. It is a good match for this season. Jofu（woven linen）-obi(sash for kimono) is woven by Mika Araki. Summer kimono and obi’s are rather affordable, so it is a good chance to pick up the works of young kimono textile artists. The other picture of the yukata is men-ro and has a pattern of fans, which is a prop from the play DANGOURI (The Dumpling Peddlers). It is stylish to wear a kimono with the pattern of a prop from the play. The graphical dots patten sash is the best match for the current performance where the young kabuki actors are playing an active part. Both yukatas require juban (under garment of kimono), otaiko (Japanese drum) style of nots of obi and zori (summer flip-flap for kimono) with tabi (foot cover) instead of geta (wooden flip-flap) on a bare foot. Let’s enjoy summer Kabuki plays in the mature yukata style.
