Ichikawa Sadanji III as Oboshi Yuranosuke in the drama "Kanadehon Chûshingura

Oboshi Yuranosuke leads the forty-seven ronin in Kanadehon Chûshingura, a frequently revived drama in the kabuki repertoire. The role spans the play's dramatic register: the dissolute reveler of Act VII at the Ichiriki teahouse in Gion, where Yuranosuke disguises his vendetta plans behind apparent drunkenness, and the resolute samurai of the climactic raid on Kira's mansion. Ichikawa Sadanji III (1880-1940) was associated with shin-kabuki experiments and engagement with Western theatrical practice, making his Yuranosuke a measured, psychologically internalized interpretation. Ota's print likely shows Sadanji in the formal kamishimo or in the Act VII costume, with attention to facial nuance and quiet hand position. The mokuhanga technique allows fine line work in the actor's features, graduated tone in the textile patterns, and crisp registration of family crests and sword fittings. Within Ota's body of kabuki portraiture the Chûshingura cycle generates many single-actor sheets, and Sadanji's Yuranosuke ranked among the defining productions of the early Showa stage.