{"id":531,"date":"2026-07-20T13:51:49","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:51:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/?p=531"},"modified":"2026-07-20T13:51:50","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:51:50","slug":"oshidori-fusuma-koi-no-mutsugoto-explained","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/oshidori-fusuma-koi-no-mutsugoto-explained\/","title":{"rendered":"Oshidori Fusuma Koi no Mutsugoto Explained\uff5cA Love Triangle That Turns Into a Ghost Story"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Oshidori Fusuma Koi no Mutsugoto<\/em> \u2014 commonly known simply as <em>Oshidori<\/em> \u2014 is a tokiwazu dance drama where a human love triangle gives way, halfway through, to a haunting tale of grief and vengeance from the spirit world. Built in two distinct halves, it moves from a lively, realistic dance to something genuinely otherworldly.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Synopsis<\/h2>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Sumo Scene: A Human Rivalry in Love<\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kawazu Sabur\u014d and Matano Gor\u014d both fall for the same courtesan, Kisegawa. To settle things, the two men agree to a sumo match, with Kisegawa serving as referee. The scene unfolds as a dance built around forty-eight classical sumo techniques, with all three characters narrating the origins of sumo through rhythmic, sung dance. Kawazu Sabur\u014d wins the match and departs together with Kisegawa \u2014 leaving the defeated Matano Gor\u014d consumed by deep jealousy and resentment.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Mandarin Duck Scene: Love and Vengeance Beyond the Grave<\/h3>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Unable to let go of his feelings, Matano Gor\u014d recalls an old legend: drinking the blood of a male mandarin duck (<em>oshidori<\/em>) is said to induce madness. He uses this to plot against Kawazu Sabur\u014d, and the story suddenly shifts into fantastical territory as Kawazu Sabur\u014d loses his life.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Grieving the loss of her mate, the female mandarin duck&#8217;s spirit possesses Kisegawa, while the male duck&#8217;s spirit takes hold of Kawazu Sabur\u014d \u2014 reuniting the two souls as a pair once more. The mandarin duck spirits then turn on Matano Gor\u014d, the man responsible for it all, tormenting him before finally vanishing from the stage.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"adsense-block\" style=\"margin:2em 0;text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-9605472874778813\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-9605472874778813\" data-ad-slot=\"9431907817\" data-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script>(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Characters<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Kawazu Sabur\u014d Suketai<\/strong> \u2014 a warrior remembered as the father of the Soga brothers from the famous Soga revenge cycle, and a celebrated sumo wrestler credited with inventing the &#8220;kawazu-gake&#8221; technique. He&#8217;s romantically involved with Kisegawa.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Matano Gor\u014d Kagehisa<\/strong> \u2014 Kawazu Sabur\u014d&#8217;s friend, who also falls for Kisegawa. His jealousy sets the story&#8217;s tragedy in motion.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Kisegawa<\/strong> \u2014 a courtesan involved with Kawazu Sabur\u014d, who serves as referee for the sumo match and stands at the center of the romantic rivalry.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"adsense-block\" style=\"margin:2em 0;text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-9605472874778813\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-9605472874778813\" data-ad-slot=\"9431907817\" data-ad-format=\"auto\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script>(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Highlights<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The piece&#8217;s core appeal lies in its sudden shift from a human romantic entanglement into the spirit world. The first half, the &#8220;Sumo Scene,&#8221; is lively and grounded in realistic dance; the second half, the &#8220;Mandarin Duck Scene,&#8221; turns fantastical and deeply melancholy with the arrival of the ducks&#8217; spirits. Particular highlights include the inventive staging that turns classical sumo forms into dance, the light rhythmic narration of the sumo origin story, the dramatic turn from human drama into the supernatural, and the beautiful, sorrowful reunion of the mandarin duck spirits.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s a distinctive piece that channels a tragedy born of love and jealousy through both dance and the spirit world.<\/p>\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-postLink\"><div class=\"p-blogCard -internal\" data-type=\"type1\" data-onclick=\"clickLink\"><div class=\"p-blogCard__inner\"><span class=\"p-blogCard__caption\">\u3042\u308f\u305b\u3066\u8aad\u307f\u305f\u3044<\/span><div class=\"p-blogCard__body\"><a class=\"p-blogCard__title\" href=\"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/kabuki-buyou-dance-beginners-guide\/\">What Is Kabuki Buy\u014d (Dance)? A Beginner&#8217;s Guide to Kabuki&#8217;s Dance Tradition<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-postLink\"><div class=\"p-blogCard -internal\" data-type=\"type1\" data-onclick=\"clickLink\"><div class=\"p-blogCard__inner\"><span class=\"p-blogCard__caption\">\u3042\u308f\u305b\u3066\u8aad\u307f\u305f\u3044<\/span><div class=\"p-blogCard__body\"><a class=\"p-blogCard__title\" href=\"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/what-is-mie-in-kabuki\/\">What Is Mie in Kabuki? Meaning, Types, and How to Watch For It<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n\n\n<dl class=\"swell-block-faq\" data-q=\"col-text\" data-a=\"col-text\">\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-faq__item\">\n<dt class=\"faq_q\">Why is this piece commonly called &#8220;Oshidori&#8221;?<\/dt>\n<dd class=\"faq_a\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;Oshidori&#8221; means mandarin duck, referring to the pair of duck spirits whose tragic love and reunion form the emotional core of the piece&#8217;s second half.<\/p>\n\n<\/dd>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-faq__item\">\n<dt class=\"faq_q\">How is the piece structured?<\/dt>\n<dd class=\"faq_a\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s built in two parts: the &#8220;Sumo Scene,&#8221; a lively, realistic dance depicting a human love rivalry, followed by the &#8220;Mandarin Duck Scene,&#8221; a fantastical, sorrowful dance depicting the spirits of the ducks after tragedy strikes.<\/p>\n\n<\/dd>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"swell-block-faq__item\">\n<dt class=\"faq_q\">Is Kawazu Sabur\u014d connected to other famous kabuki stories?<\/dt>\n<dd class=\"faq_a\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yes \u2014 he&#8217;s remembered as the father of the Soga brothers, whose quest for revenge is the subject of numerous other beloved kabuki plays in the &#8220;Soga-mono&#8221; tradition.<\/p>\n\n<\/dd>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/dl>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@id\":\"#FAQContents\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Why is this piece commonly called \\\"Oshidori\\\"?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"<p>\\\"Oshidori\\\" means mandarin duck, referring to the pair of duck spirits whose tragic love and reunion form the emotional core of the piece's second half.<\\\/p>\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How is the piece structured?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"<p>It's built in two parts: the \\\"Sumo Scene,\\\" a lively, realistic dance depicting a human love rivalry, followed by the \\\"Mandarin Duck Scene,\\\" a fantastical, sorrowful dance depicting the spirits of the ducks after tragedy strikes.<\\\/p>\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Is Kawazu Sabur\u014d connected to other famous kabuki stories?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"<p>Yes \u2014 he's remembered as the father of the Soga brothers, whose quest for revenge is the subject of numerous other beloved kabuki plays in the \\\"Soga-mono\\\" tradition.<\\\/p>\"}}]}<\/script>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Summary<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Oshidori Fusuma Koi no Mutsugoto<\/em> takes a simple human love triangle and transforms it, halfway through, into a haunting tale of loss and reunion in the spirit world. Its blend of lively sumo-inspired dance and quiet, sorrowful beauty makes it a genuinely distinctive entry in kabuki&#8217;s dance repertoire.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"p-blogParts post_content\" data-partsID=\"597\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\ud83c\udfad Want to See Kabuki Live?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;re planning a trip to Tokyo, Kabuki-za is one of the most memorable ways to experience Japanese culture firsthand. 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Enjoy a performance of this traditional and dynamic Japanese art form, complete with English or simpli&#8230;<\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This section may contain affiliate links. Booking through them costs you nothing extra and helps support this site.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A human love rivalry over sumo suddenly turns into a haunting tale of mandarin duck spirits and vengeance \u2014 the story behind this distinctive kabuki dance drama.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"swell_btn_cv_data":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-plays-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=531"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":606,"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531\/revisions\/606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kabukiguide.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}