{"id":237625,"date":"2026-07-21T15:54:35","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T01:54:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=237625"},"modified":"2026-07-29T10:27:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T20:27:35","slug":"honoring-woman-behind-uh-kabuki","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/07\/21\/honoring-woman-behind-uh-kabuki\/","title":{"rendered":"UH<\/abbr> honors woman behind its Kabuki tradition"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
\"Onoe
Onoe Kikunobu (far right) began working with renowned UH<\/abbr> theatre professor Earle Ernst (left) in 1951.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Onoe
Onoe Kikunobu helps prepare a student backstage in 2011<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For generations, audiences have applauded the performers in the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at M\u0101noa’s renowned Kabuki in English productions. Behind the scenes, one woman helped preserve the tradition that made those performances possible.<\/p>\n

Former students, colleagues and friends gathered on July 21 to honor 95-year-old Japanese classical dance master Onoe Kikunobu, whose artistry and teaching helped shape both UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa’s Kabuki in English and Japanese dance traditions for decades.<\/p>\n

The luncheon also recognized two of her longtime prot\u00e9g\u00e9s, Onoe Kikunobukazu (Howard Asao) and Onoe Kikunobuaki (Shirley Miyamoto), whose decades of teaching, performing and mentorship have helped ensure her legacy endures. The celebration also included a proclamation from Gov. Josh Green recognizing Kikunobu and her prot\u00e9g\u00e9s for their lasting contributions to preserving Japanese classical dance in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>.<\/p>\n

Master artist<\/h3>\n
\"actors
A 2024 Kabuki in English performance by UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa students at Kennedy Theatre.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Gertrude Yukie Tsutsumi, professionally known as Onoe Kikunobu, is considered one of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>‘s most accomplished nihon buy\u014d, or Japanese classical dance, artists. She began her training in Honolulu\u2019s Band\u014d School before continuing her studies in Japan with the Onoe School, where she earned a shihan, or master of dance diploma and received the professional name Onoe Kikunobu. Her lifelong dedication to preserving Japanese classical dance earned her recognition as a Living Treasure of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> and a National Heritage Fellow, the nation\u2019s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts, presented by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2015.<\/p>\n

\"Playbill\"
A playbill from a 1981 UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Kabuki in English production.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Her UH<\/abbr> legacy began in 1951, when she worked with legendary theatre professor Earle Ernst on The House of Sugawara, the university’s first postwar Kabuki in English production. Kikunobu helped with choreography and music, served as an interpreter and went on to contribute to nearly every UH<\/abbr> Kabuki in English production through 2010.<\/p>\n

“What she brought was a real, embodied understanding of Japanese dance and kabuki,” said Julie Iezzi, UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa professor of theatre and dance and one of Kikunobu’s former students.<\/p>\n

“There’s no substitute for that. It’s not something you get out of a book. You see it, you feel it, and you learn it by working alongside someone like Sensei.”<\/p>\n

Sensei\u2019s legacy<\/h3>\n

Beginning in 1980, Kikunobu served as a lecturer at UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa, teaching Japanese dance and preparing students for Kabuki in English productions. Though she has since retired from teaching, her influence carries on through the students she inspired.<\/p>\n

\"Makeup
Onoe Kikunobu prepares David Furumoto (left) for a UH<\/abbr> kabuki production<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“She cared so much about passing on the art correctly,” said former student and UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa theatre alumnus David Furumoto, who later taught theatre and directed Kabuki productions at the University of Wisconsin\u2013Madison. “There was meaning behind everything she taught.”<\/p>\n

Kikunobu’s influence extends far beyond Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>. Former students like Furumoto have carried her teachings to classrooms and stages around the world. In 2024, Iezzi led UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa’s popular Kabuki in English production of The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves<\/em> on a tour to Japan<\/a>, demonstrating that the tradition Kikunobu helped build more than seven decades ago continues to thrive.<\/p>\n

\"Group
Former students and colleagues attend the honorary celebration, in the bottom row: Onoe Kikunobuaki, Onoe Kikunobu and UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa Professor Emerita Elizabeth Wichmann-Walczak, accepting the honor on behalf of Onoe Kikunobukazu, who was unable to attend the luncheon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Master Japanese classical dance artist Onoe Kikunobu helped define UH<\/abbr> M\u0101noa\u2019s kabuki legacy, shaping generations of performances for decades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":237651,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[78,1466,130,76,9],"class_list":["post-237625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-dance","tag-manoa-enhancing-student-success","tag-theatre","tag-theatre-and-dance","tag-uh-manoa","entry","has-media"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t