The Voice in the Folds of the Assumed Name: The Trajectory of Hachikotei Shunsuke III (Showa 39 - Heisei period)

The Voice in the Folds of the Assumed Name: The Trajectory of Hachikotei Shunsuke III (Showa 39 - Heisei period)

Harusuke Hachimitei III (born February 21, 1947 in Setagaya-ku, Tokyo) is a storyteller who has carefully kept the light of classical rakugo alive from the end of the Showa period to the beginning of the Heisei period. In 1969, he changed his name to Teruzo, and in 1979 he was promoted to Shin-uchi and assumed the name Hachikotei Shunsuke III.

In 1977, he was given the Kabuki stage name "Kajutaro," and as the nom de plume of the Fujima school, he deepened his relationship with the performing arts.

His representative works include "Benshichi Genketsu" and "Matsuda Kaga," and in 1993 he received the Japan Arts Festival Award for "Benshichi Genketsu. He was awarded the Japan Arts Festival Prize for "Benshichi Genkai" in 1993. His debayashi was "kisen" and his crest was "hosowa ni korin no kage tsutsu" (ivy in the shadow of Korin), and his appearance on stage exuded a quiet elegance.

When Shunsuke began performing in the 1960s, Japan was in the midst of a period of rapid economic growth, and the new media of television was permeating the home. Yose culture was in relative decline, but Harusuke dared to stand at the forefront of the new media, adapting to the visual media and playing a role in the reevaluation of orthodox rakugo. While respecting the vertical lineage of master and apprentice, Shunsuke's presence was unique and valuable as a storyteller who immersed himself in the transgressive changes of the times and served as a bridge between the two.

His presence on the stage, which he continues to do even today, has the power to immerse the audience in a story that is etched in the folds of the times and quietly sinks into their ears. He is a rare performer whose soft voice embraces both tradition and innovation.