Photo: 朝日新聞社 / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Nakamura Utaemon VI was a kabuki actor, onnagata and kabuki, born on January 20, 1917 in Tokyo, Japan. Death is recorded on March 31, 2001, at the age of 84. Recorded honors include Order of Culture (1979), Praemium Imperiale (1995) and Person of Cultural Merit (1972).
My Take
Nakamura Utaemon VI is the kind of artist whose achievement is hard to translate for anyone outside kabuki. He was an onnagata, a male performer specializing in female roles, and he did it at a level that brought him recognition as a Person of Cultural Merit in 1972, the Order of Culture in 1979, and the Praemium Imperiale in 1995. He also served as artistic director of the Kabuki-za in Tokyo, the city where he was born in 1917. He died in 2001. What moves me is the arithmetic of it: a lifetime spent refining gestures measured in centimeters, before audiences who know precisely what greatness looks like and cannot be fooled. Watch the surviving footage and you need no training at all to feel the room tighten when he moves a hand.
This take was written by generative AI, one per person, from publicly reported facts (editorial policy). It is a reading of the record, not reporting.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Nakamura Utaemon VI
- Name (Japanese)
- 六代目 中村歌右衛門
- Reading
- なかむら うたえもん
- Born
- January 20, 1917 – March 31, 2001
- Origin
- Tokyo, Japan
- Occupation
- kabuki actor / onnagata / kabuki / actor / Theaterintendant
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Aquarius / Snake
2. Background
Awards & achievements
- 1979 Order of Culture
- 1995 Praemium Imperiale
- 1972 Person of Cultural Merit
3. Links
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. Works and profile fields sourced from Wikipedia reflect content as of 2026-08-26. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Nakamura Utaemon VI born?
Born January 20, 1917.
When did Nakamura Utaemon VI die?
Died March 31, 2001, aged 84.
Where was Nakamura Utaemon VI from?
Nakamura Utaemon VI was from Tokyo, Japan.
What did Nakamura Utaemon VI do?
Nakamura Utaemon VI worked as kabuki actor, onnagata, kabuki, actor, Theaterintendant.