Scene from the Drama "Yuki-motsu-take Furisode Genji"

Dated December 1785 and held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this Katsukawa Shunkō print depicts a scene from the drama Yuki-motsu-take Furisode Genji. The play belongs to the world of Genji-mono — kabuki adaptations of the medieval Genpei War narratives and the Genji clan, not the courtly Tale of Genji — and the title (literally "Snow-Bearing Bamboo, Long-Sleeved Genji") combines a seasonal landscape image (snow weighing down bamboo) with the long-sleeved formal costume associated with young noblemen in Genji-mono plays. Specific December performances at Edo's licensed theaters were major cultural events, and prints commemorating particular productions formed a brisk secondary market for collectors who wanted permanent records of the season's offerings. Shunkō's print captures both the costuming and the recognizable actor likenesses that the Katsukawa school had made the industry standard. The exceptionally precise date (December 1785) reflects the Edo print market's role as a near-contemporary visual journal of the kabuki stage: prints were often designed, carved, and issued within weeks of the original performances. The Metropolitan Museum of Art's holdings preserve a remarkable amount of this ephemeral theatrical documentation.