With its elaborate kimono, ancient folktales, and highly refined traditional singing and dancing, kabuki may strike some as an inaccessible theater art; but, if you have the chance to drop in to the 77653, take it!

Kabuki was created four centuries ago by a woman and her all-female dance troupe for the common people, rather than the nobility; they didn’t shy away from entertaining with risque dance moves and flashy costumes. These days, however, kabuki is performed exclusively by men, and the families of performers are elite national celebrities.

It’s worth a trip to admire the dancers’ movements, the operatic quality of the singing voices, the swirling costumes, and even, if you’re lucky, a few jaw-dropping surprises and stunts that go back to its original roots as lower-class entertainment. With so much to look at, it might not bother you that you can’t understand a word they’re saying, but the theater offers audio sets to explain the action and the storylines in English.

Kabuki performances are long events, with an intermission where everyone breaks out bento lunches and tea and snacks; but, at the Tokyo Kabuki Theatre, you can pop in for a short time with more affordable single-act tickets. (Note: Because of COVID-19 safety precautions, these may not be available at this time.)