今年9月9日，由坂田藤十郎领衔的日本松竹大歌舞伎近松座一行77人，在杭州剧院进行了一场公演，剧目为《倾城返魂香》和《英执着狮子》。
　　这是日本歌舞伎中的两个传统剧目，76岁的老人坂田藤十郎担任主演。因为歌舞伎是全男班演员，这位老人既能演立役（男角）又能演女形（女角），所以这次杭州观众看到剧中的妩媚女子和勇猛狮子皆为坂田藤十郎所扮。
　　2007年是中日邦交正常化35周年暨“中日文化体育交流年”，这次松竹大歌舞伎近松座的访华演出，由中国人民对外友好协会、中国日本友好协会和日本松竹株式会社共同主办，将在北京、杭州、上海、广州四地巡演。
　　早在两国尚未实现邦交正常化的1955年，日本歌舞伎即首次来华参加中华人民共和国的庆典活动，在北京、上海、广州三地的演出均获得好评。翌年作为歌舞伎访华的答谢，以梅兰芳先生为代表的中国京剧团赴日，在东京歌舞会座等地上演了中国的国粹，1979年为纪念中日和平友好条约的缔结，歌舞伎第二次访华，在北京、杭州、上海三地演出；歌舞伎第三次来中国是2004年，参加了当时在北京举行的“第二届北京国际戏剧节”，演出阵容以坂田藤十郎为首，还包括中村元雀、中村龟鹤等。
　　在坂田藤十郎在中国演出前夕，笔者于西子湖畔就有关演出及日本歌舞伎传统艺术问题对这位有“日本梅兰芳”之称的坂田藤十郎作了一次采访：
　　
　　“坂田藤十郎先生76岁还能演吗？”
　　76岁的坂田毫不含糊地回答“能！”他说，“有基本功，有不懈努力，还有进入角色就会忘记年龄的演员本能”。“50年来，他一直是剧团的台柱子。”坐在一旁的日本松竹株式会社常务董事安孙子正对于他们的“国宝”作补充介绍。显然，老人非常满意这句话。
　　“歌舞伎有危机吗？”
　　“歌舞伎是传统艺术，但它更是现代戏剧。它在日本很红，因为日本老百姓喜欢。我现在虽然年纪大了，但是一个月还是有25天演出日。目前日本歌舞伎全部由松竹公司运作，松竹公司已经有100多年的历史了，它保护着日本的歌舞伎，歌舞伎也为公司带来收益。歌舞伎现在是一种商业行为，但它也是艺术。”坂田对于日本歌舞伎现状的介绍充满着自豪。
　　“50多年前，我就看过梅兰芳先生的表演，在东京，他的表演特别优美，使我一直崇拜他。听说男旦是京剧的传统，而现在男旦的传承面临危机，对此我非常遗憾。我希望将来中国的传统戏曲也能得到发展，我听说杭州的越剧全由女子演出，非常有趣，它和歌舞伎的全男班演出一定有共通之处。”
　　“歌舞伎和宝差不多吧？”
　　“与所有传统艺术一样，歌舞伎也在革新。日本最大的歌舞伎剧院曾于7月上演莎士比亚的《第十二夜》，是请日本最专业的莎士比亚剧导演来导的。这是歌舞伎适应现代社会的一种革新。传统剧目追求表现手法的创新，而创新剧目则力求最大程度保存歌舞伎传统的表现形式，来表现现代内容。”对于革新，坂田这样介绍。
　　有关日本的剧目革新总让人想到宝，可是当坂田听到宝和歌舞伎放在一起提问时，就立刻骄傲地连连摇头，“不不不，大不一样，宝只是音乐剧，是完全商业的，而歌舞伎代表着的是日本的文化。”
　　“这次给杭州带来的歌舞伎表演，是完全传统正宗的，从道具到表演完全传统，绝不会因为迎合观众作改变，因为那是歌舞伎。”
　　“歌舞伎只传家人不传外人吗？”
　　日本歌舞伎基本上以“父传子子传孙”的方式世代传承。松竹株式会社代表安孙子正说，目前日本仅有的300多个歌舞伎演员全部在“近松座”门下。
　　安孙子正说：“上个月，日本有位著名歌舞伎演员的孩子，才2岁就登台了。在日本，歌舞伎演员从8岁至80岁不等。”
　　
　　“要带着考古心态看表演吗？”
　　歌舞伎表演的服装尤其讲究，据说藤十郎先生曾穿戴的一套和服重达15公斤，仅上台前的装扮就要花一个多小时。
　　“我们将带来百分之百、原汁原味的歌舞伎表演。我希望观众不必带着考古心态，只要想着这是一台戏剧表演就可以了。”坂田藤十郎介绍说。
　　(本文摄影苗军)
　　键接1603年歌舞伎于日本江户幕府成立。此前有女性艺人“出云阿国”在北野天满宫（京都市上京区的神社）设舞台，念佛舞蹈，据说这个舞台是歌舞伎的起源。歌舞伎历经400余年，已作为日本独特的传统戏剧艺术扎根，现在被指定为世界文化遗产。
　　
　　Kabuki Shows in Hangzhou
　　By Ning Shengnan
　　
　　By the time you are reading this article, a Japanese troupe will probably have staged two kabuki plays in the Hangzhou Grand Theater. The event is scheduled for September 9 in the capital city of eastern China coastal Zhejiang Province. The Shochiku Grand Kabuki Chikamatsuza headed by Sakata Tojuro will be staging "Keiseihaugonko" and "Hanabusa Shuchakujishi".
　　The year 2007 marks the thirty-fifth year of the normalization of diplomatic ties between China and Japan. It is also the year designed to hold more exchange programs in culture and sports between the two neighboring countries. The event is sponsored by Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, China-Japan Friendship Association and Shochiku Co Ltd. On its tour to China, the troupe will also visit Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
　　The 76-year-old Sakata Tojuro is a living legend of the 400-year-old Japanese drama. Some Chinese believe that he is Japan's Mei Lanfang, China's Peking Opera master in the early 20th century. As the 77-member kabuki troupe will stage all-men performances, Sakata Tojuro will be acting several roles in performances: he will be a beautiful girl in a play and then a powerful lion in the later part of the play.
　　
　　In an interview, Sakata Tojuro talks about himself, about Kabuki, about Peking Opera.
　　He says that he can still play the different roles as his performances are all rooted in the solid training he had received decades before and had been improving since then. As an actor, he has the instinct to forget the issue of age when he becomes someone else on the stage. He has been the leading man of the troupe for the past five decades.
　　Sakata Tojuro watched the Peking Opera performances by Master Mei Lanfang more than 50 years ago in Tokyo. He admired Mei very much. He was sorry to hear that the all-men tradition of Peking Opera is already gone. He hopes Chinese traditional operas will come back and develop again. He is interested to see the all-women Yueju opera performances in Hangzhou. Sakata Tojuro believes that there must be something the all-women Yueju opera performances and the all-men Kabuki performances have in common.
　　Sakata Tojuro observes that kabuki, like all other traditional arts, is dedicated to innovation for survival and growth. He says that Japan's biggest Kabuki troupe staged Shakespeare's The Twelfth Night in July, 2007. It was directed by the best director of Shakespeare plays in Japan. That event shows how kabuki is bringing innovations into the old tradition.
　　Sakata Tojuro hates to compare kabuki with takarazuka, another traditional performance in Japan. Takarazuka is a kind of Japanese musical and it has been commercialized whereas kabuki represents the essence of Japanese culture. The two plays to be staged in Hangzhou are authentic kabuki: props and acting are purely traditional. Kabuki never changes itself to cater to audiences.
　　Kabuki is a family tradition. It always goes from father to son and has been this way for the past 400 years. Now Japan has about 300 kabuki artists and they all belong to the Chikamatsuza.
　　Sakata Tojuro's suggestion to audience for a better appreciation of Japan's age-old drama tradition: Kabuki is not an antique that needs to be examined from an archaeologist perspective. It is a drama and you can enjoy it.
　　(Translated by David)