Harumi Hanayagi (花柳 はるみ, Hanayagi Harumi, 24 February 1896 – 11 October 1962) was a pioneering Japanese film and stage actress.
Harumi Hanayagi | |
---|---|
花柳はるみ | |
Born | |
Died | October 11, 1962 | (aged 66)
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1915–1928 |
In 1915, Hanayagi became a student at the Geijutsuza, the modern theater troupe led by Hōgetsu Shimamura and Sumako Matsui, and made her stage debut.[1] She moved to the Tōjisha troupe in 1917 and appeared with them in a series of films directed by Norimasa Kaeriyama for Tenkatsu, starting with The Glow of Life (released 1919).[1] In an era where female roles on screen were played by male actors (onnagata), Hanayagi was considered "the first billed appearance of a female performer" in Japanese cinema,[2] even though actresses such as Nakamura Kasen had appeared in earlier films or in rensageki, a combination of film and live stage performance.[3][4] After appearing in more films, she focused her career on the stage after 1920, eventually appearing in the Tsukiji Little Theater as well as the proletarian theater of Tomoyoshi Murayama.[1] She retired in 1928 after getting married.[1]