Nakamura Utaemon III

Nakamura Utaemon III (中村歌右衛門 (3代目), 1778–1838) was a Japanese kabuki performer. He was a prominent member of a family of kabuki actors from the Keihanshin region.

Nakamura Utaemon was a stage name with significant cultural and historical connotations.

Life and career

Utaemon III was the natural son of Nakamura Utaemon I. In 1782, his father presented the name Utaemon II to a favored apprentice; but the name was later retrieved (or abandoned) in 1790. Then the name was bestowed on his son, who kept it and later passed it on to his son who became Utaemon IV. In the conservative Kabuki world, stage names are passed from father to son in formal system which converts the kabuki stage name into a mark of accomplishment.

Lineage of Utaemon stage names

• Nakamura Utaemon I (1714–1791)
• Nakamura Utaemon II (1752-1798)
• Nakamura Utaemon III (1778–1838)
• Nakamura Utaemon IV (1798–1852)
• Nakamura Utaemon V (1865–1940)
• Nakamura Utaemon VI (1917–2001)

In a long career, he acted in many kabuki plays, including the role of Seno-o no Tarō in the September 1824 production of Heike Nyōgo-ga-shima at Osaka Sumi-za.

Selected works

In a statistical overview derived from writings by and about Nakamura Utaemon VI, OCLC/WorldCat encompasses roughly 10+ works in 10+ publications in 1 language and 30+ library holdings.

• 1936 — - (會色さくら, Eshiki sakura) OCLC 037048749