Kanze Kasetsu (観世華雪)
Kasetsu KANZE (November 14, 1884 - January 6, 1959) was a Noh actor, shite-kata (main roles) of Kanze school in the Showa period. The sixth family head of the Tetsunojo KANZE family, and Tetsunojo KANZE, the sixth. He was an expert representing the Kanze school after the war.
In 1884, he was born as the oldest son of Tetsunojo KANZE, the fifth (later Kosetsu KANZE). His original name was Orio. His younger brother was Tetsunojo KANZE, the seventh (Gasetsu KANZE). In 1910, he succeeded his father's stage name, Tetsunojo KANZE, upon his father's retirement. He married Hamako, the second daughter of the first Rokuro UMEWAKA, the 52th. Kasetsu was trained by his father, his father-in-law and his brothers-in-law, namely Manaburo UMEWAKA and the second Rokuro UMEWAKA, the 54th. At the time of foundation of the Umewaka school (a school of noh play) in 1921, he joined it along with his two brothers-in-law, but he went back to join the Kanze school in 1929. When Motoshige KANZE, the 24th, died in 1939, he became the conservator of Motomasa KANZE, the 25th as the patriarch of the school.
His style of performance was gentle, sophisticated and delicate, and was called as one of the three masters of the Kanze school, along with Manaburo UMEWAKA and Kyuzaburo HASHIOKA. In 1947, he let his younger brother Tetsunojo to succeed and retired, and began to use a setsugo (a name including a Chinese character, 雪), Kasetsu (華雪). 1951: Received Award of the Japan Art Academy. 1952: Became a member of the Japan Art Academy.
He died in 1959 at the age of 74. His Kaimyo (posthumous Buddhist name) was Teikanin Kenhonjoho Kasetsu Koji. His grave is located at the Saikai-ji Temple, in Mita, Minato Ward, Tokyo.