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ハワイ大学の学生らが１日、岐阜市学園町のぎふ清流文化プラザで、2日は瑞浪市の芝居小屋「相生座」で「Kabuki」公演を行った。日本人がハワイへ渡って入植したのは約１５０年前。その二世が大学生になり１９２４年、幼少期から親しんできた歌舞伎を英語で演じたのが始まりだという英語の「Kabuki」が今回、初めて日本での“里帰り公演”が実現した。
　演目は「Ｔｈｅ　Ｍａｉｄｅｎ　Ｂｅｎｔｅｎ　ａｎｄ　ｔｈｅ　Ｂａｎｄｉｔｓ　ｏｆ　ｔｈｅ　Ｗｈｉｔｅ　Ｗａｖｅｓ」（弁天娘女男白浪）。呉服店を舞台にした「浜松屋見世先の場」を英語バージョン、そして５人の盗賊が登場する「稲瀬川勢揃いの場」は日本語で披露された。
　この里帰り公演を企画した、美濃歌舞伎博物館相生座館長の小栗幸江さんは「30年前から交流のあるハワイ大学とのコラボが実現して言葉にならない」と語った。同大学演劇舞踊科の大学院生、ジェーン・トレイナーさんは「このハワイ歌舞伎の里帰りに参加できて、光栄で、嬉しいです」と涙で語り、今後は母国カナダに戻り今回の経験をカナダの人たちにも伝えたいと語った。（土谷耕二）

On June 1, students from the University of Hawaii performed "Kabuki" at Gifu Seiryu Bunka Plaza in Gakuencho, Gifu City, and on June 2, at the Aioiza playhouse in Mizunami City. It has been about 150 years since Japanese people emigrated to Hawaii. In 1924, the second generation of these immigrants, who had become university students, began performing Kabuki in English, a tradition they had been familiar with since childhood. This English "Kabuki" has now returned to Japan for its first-ever "homecoming performance."

The performance featured "The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves" (弁天娘女男白浪). The scene "At the Front of the Hamamatsuya Store" was performed in English, while the scene "The Gathering of the Five Thieves at Inasegawa" was performed in Japanese.

Yukie Oguri, director of the Mino Kabuki Museum Aioiza, who organized this homecoming performance, said, "I am speechless that this collaboration with the University of Hawaii, which has been ongoing for 30 years, has come to fruition." Jane Trainer, a graduate student in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Hawaii, tearfully expressed, "I am honored and delighted to participate in this homecoming of Hawaiian Kabuki." She also mentioned her intention to return to her home country of Canada to share this experience with Canadians. (Koji Tsuchiya)