Repetition is key. Katsumaru, a Geiko of Nagasaki has known this for years. She will forever be a student in her chosen artform, the Hanayagi school of dance. Every month in the second week she takes classes with a teacher of the school but in Nagasaki it is tradition for all Geiko, Tachikata and Jikata of all ranks, to practise together. This makes for a rather fluid performance. Observers of Kyoto’s artisans have noted that Maiko of the same okiya usually dance more in sync than those of different houses, imagine the perfect harmony of Katsumaru und Jikata Kotone’s performance after years of rehearsal.
As with many professional performers, Katsumaru started dancing as a little child, her parents had seen it as an integral part of her education. As she grew older though she felt that her Nihonbuyo classes weren’t a priority anymore, especially after she started working and left Nagasaki for a new employment opportunity. During that time she started flirting with the idea of becoming a Geiko and so she returned, thinking that she would pursue her dream in the city she grew up in, where her parents lived, where she would be connected.
She was 20 now and had to accept that the dancing didn’t come as easily as it did when she was a little girl. Training was grueling and even though she had gotten the chance to train with the other, more senior Geiko of the kagai, she didn’t like it at first: Too much bossing around, critiquing, nagging... But she was very determined, her doubts had to take back seat for the next five years. This was the time it took for her to start enjoying her chosen profession.
The part she loved most about being a Geiko wasn’t the dancing, Nihonbuyo was just the packaging, what she really was selling was her skills as mediator and salesperson. For the duration of an ozashiki her patrons could count on her savvy as diplomatic intermediary and lighthearted entertainer, her reputation made her a very popular choice for business men and managers of big companies looking for a discrete setting for their deals. Katsumaru still is a chameleon, adapting to the wishes of her patrons, this was her strategy from the start.
Even though she has carved out a niche for herself, nobody could ever say Katsumaru isn’t an accomplished Geiko. Even though she sees herself as a student of Hanayagi, she is a dedicated dancer that captures the essence of elite chic, the simple elegance of decades of Nihonbuyo. Her understatement is the key to her success. As is practise and repetition.
Source all photos: annagayoshi on Instagram
