Two school kids recently performed together with grown-up professionals in Kyoto. They are Kageaki Yamanaka and Susumu Kawamoto, who study with the Kanze school of noh actors. There is a clear division of labor in noh, and the Kanze school is one of five for shite actors, who perform the leading parts and sing the chorus. There are also several schools, respectively, for the waki (supporting) and kyogen (comic) actors, as well as for each of the musical instruments: taiko (floor drum), otsuzumi (large hand-held drum), kotsuzumi (small hand-held drum), and fue (flute).

The Kanze school traces its origins back to Kan'ami and Zeami, who founded noh in the fourteenth century. It's the largest group of noh actors among the five shite schools and is known for its grace and refinement.

Kageaki always bows to his teacher before practice.

Kageaki is eight years old and is a third grader. Both his father and grandfather are active noh professionals, and he lives with his father, mother, and younger sister in Osaka.

Susumu takes lessons from Mr. Kazuyuki Inoue, a professional actor living in Kyoto. He's a fourth grader and is nine years old. He lives with his father, who works at a publishing company, mother, and six-year-old sister, Aya. They are all big fans of noh and study with Mr. Inoue; Susumu and Aya have been performing since they were three years old.

Susumu and Aya Kawamoto practice with Mr. Inoue.

Kageaki's father and Susumu's teacher belong to a group of actors within the Kanze school headed by Rokuro Umewaka, who performs frequently in foreign countries. At first Mr. Inoue wanted to become an actor of modern theater. He took up noh singing to improve his voice. He eventually became a fan of noh and decided to pursue it as a professional.