The Actors Segawa Kikunojo III as Princess Hatsune (Hatsune Hime) (right), and Ichikawa Monnosuke II as Miyukinosuke Yukinari, in the Play Otokoyama Furisode Genji, Performed at the Kiri Theater in the Eleventh Month, 1785 c. 1785

Katsukawa Shunko created this woodblock print in Japan in 1785. It depicts two actors in character on stage. Woodblock prints like this one were a vital part of the publicity machine for Kabuki theatre. Kabuki was a hugely popular, populist form of theatre in Japan's Edo period, a golden age for Japanese culture. It was also heavily regulated. Certain themes were outlawed, and the actors themselves were subject to strict social controls. But as we see here, those actors became stars, and the woodblock print industry allowed a mass audience to participate in Kabuki culture. The image creates meaning through visual codes: the actor's robes indicate their characters, while the landscape creates a sense of atmosphere. Theatre programs, playbills, and newspaper advertisements are invaluable resources for further understanding the image's cultural context. The meaning of this print is contingent on the social and institutional context of the Kabuki theatre.