PHILADELPHIA-- A rare, behind-the-scenes look into the world of the Japanese Kabuki artist will take place on the University of Pennsylvania campus when the show "Onnagata: the Making of a Woman" is staged Sept. 17 at 7 p.m in Houston Hall's Class of '49 Auditorium at 34th and Spruce streets.

Ayako Kano, professor of modern Japanese literature at Penn and author of "Acting like a Woman in Modern Japan: Theater, Gender, and Nationalism," will give a pre-performance lecture.

The tradition of "onnagata," employing male actors to play women's roles, began in 1629 when the Japanese government banned women from the Kabuki stage.

"Onnagata: the Making of a Woman" will feature Tokyo's acclaimed Kabuki actor Onoe Umenosuke "constructing his feminism" through the use of traditional techniques. He'll demonstrate how he transforms himself into a Kabuki "woman" by applying white makeup, black eyeliner, eyebrows and rouge and donning the large, black wig of an onnagata. He will complete his transformation by dressing in elaborate layers of a kimono.

In full costume, he will demonstrate some of the feminized movements, speech and other techniques from the onnagata's performance repertoire. Selected audience members will have an opportunity to participate.

The show is sponsored by Penn's Center for East Asian Studies, in collaboration with The Japan Foundation, Franklin and Marshall College and the University of Delaware. The per-person admission is $5 for Penn students and $10 for members of the general public.

Additional information information is available from the Center for East Asian Studies at 215-573-4203 or ccat.sas.upenn.edu/ceas