Kabuki

About 400 years ago, in the Edo period. Izumo Okuni began to dance in a more popular style in Kyoto. Eventually she started her own dance company. The style of dance was called Kabuki, and Kabuki theater became more the popular entertainment rather than Noh theater. In the beginning, women took all the parts. However as time went on, dancers - who performed along the river banks - also 'sold' their services after the shows, and performances were also sometimes held in brothels. The dances were also highly provocative. For this reason, the emperor forebad women from performing the dances, because it was considered a threat to public morals. Men took both the male and female parts. They still do today.

Statue of Izumo Okuni on the bridge.

Here is the current kabuki theater building: