Tenkatsu Shokyokusai
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21 May 1886
Tenkatsu Shokyokusai | |
|---|---|
 Tenkatsu Shokyokusai, from a picture postcard. | |
| Born | Katsu Nakai 21 May 1886 Tokyo |
| Died | 11 November 1944 |
| Other names | Madame Tenkatsu |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, magician |
Tenkatsu Shokyokusai (松旭斎 天勝, 21 May 1886 – 11 November 1944), also known as Katsu Kanazawa, was a Japanese wazuma practitioner and actress.
Katsu Nakai was born in Tokyo. After her father's pawn-shop business failed, she worked as an apprentice at a tempura shop belonging to then-famous magician Ten'ichi Shokyokusai (1853-1912), of whom she later became an assistant.[1] From 1901[2] to 1903, they performed on tour in the United States, where teenaged Tenkatsu was described as a "dainty Japanese beauty"[3] and as a geisha.[4] She was sometimes referred to as Tenichi Shokyokusai's wife or widow,[5] or as his stepdaughter, perhaps because of the difference in their ages.[6]
Career
Shokyokusai became a well-known magician in her own right.[5] She headed her own troupe of performers, Tenkatsu Ichiza. The company staged adaptations of Western plays, including Shakespeare's The Tempest and Oscar Wilde's Salome, with herself in the title role.[7][8] "Madame Tenkatsu" toured with her company in the United States in 1924 and 1925,[9][10][6] including shows in Hawaii[11] and at the Hippodrome in New York.[12] She is said to have introduced American jazz to Japan in 1925, when she brought a group of Chicago-based musicians home to tour with her.[13][14]
Shokyokusai appeared in several films, including Tenkatsujo no Hagoromai (Feather Cloak Dance of Miss Tenkatsu, 1906).[15] She was said to have a diamond embedded in one of her teeth.[16]
