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Chikage Awashima

あわしま ちかげ

Awashima Chikage

Aliases: 中川 慶子 (本名) / 淡路千鳥 (旧芸名)
Pen Names: Awaji Chidori（Stage name used during Takarazuka tenure; later changed to Awashima Chikage.）, Keiko Nakagawa（Birth name.）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1924-02-24 （Tokyo City (Tokyo Prefecture; now Tokyo Metropolis), Japan）
Died
2012-02-16 （Hospital in Meguro, Tokyo, Japan） age 87
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Nihonbashi (family shop) → Omori (family home) → Kichijoji, Musashino (moved during school years) → Meguro, Tokyo (hospital where she died)

Career

Occupations
Actress
Active Years
1939-2012
Affiliations
Takarazuka Revue, Shochiku, Toho, Japan Actors Union
Memberships
Japan Actors Union — Honorary Vice Chair
Influenced By
Tsukioka Yumeji
Influenced
Ogi Chikage, Keiko Awaji, Many later actresses (influenced by her portrayals of postwar women and maternal/comedic roles)

Education

Seikei Girls' High School (Seikei Gakuen)
Period: 1936-1939
Country: Japan
Attended in the late 1930s; family moved to Kichijoji before she advanced to Takarazuka Music and Dance School.
Takarazuka Music and Dance School
Dance & Acting
Period: 1939-1941
Year of Graduation: 1941
Country: Japan
Training school prior to joining the Takarazuka Revue. She later left the company to move to film.

Awards

Blue Ribbon Award — Best Actress
1950
Work: Tenya Wanya (Tenya-Wanya)
Category: 主演女優賞
Organization: Blue Ribbon Awards (Tokyo film journalists)
Result: 受賞
Blue Ribbon Award — Best Actress
1955
Work: Fufu Zenzai
Category: 主演女優賞
Organization: Blue Ribbon Awards (Tokyo film journalists)
Result: 受賞
Kikuchi Kan Prize
1956
Organization: Kikuchi Kan Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Mainichi Film Concours — Best Actress
1959
Work: Hotarubi; Iwashigumo (two films)
Category: 主演女優賞
Organization: Mainichi Film Concours
Result: 受賞
Kikuta Kazuo Theatre Award
1984
Organization: Kikuta Kazuo Theatre Award
Result: 受賞
Medal with Purple Ribbon
1988
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 受章
Order of the Precious Crown, Fourth Class
1995
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 受章
Japan Film Critics Award — Golden Glory
1995
Organization: Japan Film Critics Association
Result: 受賞
Tanaka Kinuyo Award
1998
Organization: Mainichi Film Concours
Result: 受賞
Makino Shozo Award
2004
Organization: Makino Shozo Award Committee
Result: 受賞
NHK Broadcast Culture Award
2005
Organization: NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation)
Result: 受賞
Yamaji Fumiko Film Award — Film Lifetime Achievement
2010
Organization: Yamaji Fumiko Film Award
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Tenya Wanya

1950 Feature film / Comedy

One of her early debut films at Shochiku. A comedic entertainment film in which Awashima's performance was highly regarded, earning her the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actress.

ComedyPostwar popular entertainment
Adaptations
  • [Film] Tenya Wanya / 渋谷実 (1950)

Early Summer

1951 Drama

A film by Yasujirō Ozu focusing on family and generational relationships; Awashima portrays a modern postwar woman in a sensitive ensemble.

FamilyModernization vs. traditionPortrayal of women

Fufu Zenzai

1955 Comedy / Drama

Directed by Shirō Toyoda; co-starring with Hisaya Morishige, Awashima showed maternal and comedic qualities, earning her another Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actress.

MotherhoodComedyHuman relationships
Adaptations
  • [Film] Fufu Zenzai / 豊田四郎 (1955)

Hotarubi

1958 Drama

Directed by Heinosuke Gosho; a drama exploring women's psychology and family conflicts for which Awashima's performance was acclaimed.

Women's psychologyFamilyPostwar society

Iwashi Gumo

1958 Drama

A film by Mikio Naruse; within Naruse's restrained dramatic style, Awashima played a significant role and was noted for her performance.

Human dramaSuffering and conflict

The Friends (Natsu no Niwa)

1994 Drama

Directed by Shinji Somai; one of her later film appearances where Awashima delivered a strong, mature performance.

FriendshipIntergenerational themesLoss and renewal

A Trip with Haru

2010 Drama

Directed by Masahiro Kobayashi; a film depicting elderly characters with care, and one of Awashima's late-career screen appearances.

AgingFamilyLife's journey

Bibliography

  • Tenya Wanya
  • Early Summer
  • An Inlet of Muddy Water (Nigorie)
  • Fufu Zenzai
  • The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums
  • Nihonbashi
  • Hotarubi
  • Iwashi Gumo
  • Leaving This Child Behind
  • The Friends (Natsu no Niwa)
  • A Trip with Haru
  • The Flavor of Green Tea over Rice
  • School of Freedom
  • Early Summer

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Naturalistic, restrained actingMaternal warmth in performanceSkilled comedic timing
Recurring Motifs
Motherhood and familyPostwar images of womenEveryday humor and pathos

Health

  • Pancreatic cancer
    2011-2012
    Diagnosed in 2011 with pancreatic cancer that progressed to stage IV. Treatment was managed without full disclosure to her; she continued to participate in filming when possible. Died in February 2012.

Legacy

A Takarazuka Revue alumna and one of postwar Japan's leading actresses. As a marquee actress for Shochiku and Toho, she portrayed a wide range of roles, earned numerous awards and honors, and was inducted into the Takarazuka Hall of Fame in 2014. She influenced many subsequent actresses.

Museums

  • Takarazuka Revue Hall of Fame (inductee) Takarazuka Grand Theatre (Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan) Opened in 2014

Academic Societies

  • Japan Actors Union (associated)

Archives

  • NHK Archives (performance records)
  • Japanese Movie Database (JMDb)
  • Kinema Junpo database

In Popular Culture

  • Osamu Tezuka reportedly cited Awashima's performances (including switching between musumeyaku and otokoyaku roles during her Takarazuka years) as part of the inspiration for Princess Sapphire in 'The Rose of Versailles.'
  • Beloved across film, television and stage as a representative actress of postwar Japanese cinema.

Quotes

  • (About Osamu Tezuka) It is said that Awashima's occasional switching between female and male roles in Takarazuka partly inspired the character Sapphire in 'The Rose of Versailles.'
    Source: TBS 'TV Detective Team' ep.47 (remarks attributed to Osamu Tezuka), broadcast January 10, 1988 (1988)

Trivia

  • Nicknamed 'Okeichan' and 'Keichan'.
  • Alumna of Takarazuka Revue (29th class), active as a top musumeyaku (daughter-role) star during her tenure.
  • Her younger brother, Yusaku Nakagawa (Steve Nakagawa), worked as an animator for U.S. studios including Hanna-Barbera and Rankin/Bass.
  • Never married; posthumous Buddhist name: 'Kayuuin Jitoku Kejun Daishi'.
  • Buried at Gokoku-ji temple.
  • Inducted into the inaugural 100 of the Takarazuka Revue Hall of Fame in 2014.