The actor Sawamura Sojuro III as Oboshi Yuranosuke in the play "Edo no Hana Ako no Shiogama," performed at the Kiri Theater in the fourth month, 1796

Utagawa Toyokuni I portrays the celebrated kabuki actor Sawamura Sojuro III in the role of Oboshi Yuranosuke in the play Edo no Hana Ako no Shiogama, performed at the Kiri Theater in the fourth month of 1796. Yuranosuke, the leader of the loyal retainers in the Chushingura cycle, is one of the most demanding tachiyaku roles in the Edo kabuki repertoire, calling for patience, dignity, and strategic concealment of grief. Sawamura Sojuro III, a leading male-role specialist, brought all these qualities to the Kiri-za production, and Toyokuni's print fixes that interpretation in collectible woodblock form. As a hallmark Edo [ukiyo-e](/glossary/ukiyo-e) [yakusha-e](/glossary/yakusha-e) by Utagawa Toyokuni I, the design relies on strong contour lines, balanced patterned color, and an individualized face that lets contemporary viewers recognize the star at a glance. The Art Institute of Chicago preserves the impression, whose precise keyline drawing and saturated palette typify the high production values of late-eighteenth-century Edo print publishing. The sheet also functions as historical documentation, recording a specific production at a named theater in a specific month and year, a level of precision few other media of the period could provide. For students of Edo theater, the Utagawa school, or the long visual life of Chushingura, this Utagawa Toyokuni print provides an essential reference point that ties celebrity, narrative, and woodblock craft together.