Kabuki Theatre!

Near the Yasaka Shrine is Kyoto's Minamiza Kabuki Theatre.  Caitlin really wanted to go see the theatre, so I took her down to take a picture outside of it while everyone else walked through Yasaka Shrine.
In the early Edo period (1600-1868), the Governor-General of Kyoto permitted the operation of seven kabuki playhouses in Kyoto. The Minamiza Theatre was one of them. The other playhouses have all been destroyed by fire or went out of business. For many, the Minamiza symbolizes the birthplace of kabuki. The theatre is of great historical value.
In the beginning women played the female roles in kabuki plays. However, in the early 17th century the Tokugawa Shogunate banned women and turned kabuki into an male-only theatre form.  Since then, men have played the female roles in the plays. 
Caitlin has been very interested in kabuki and wants to attend a play in Tokyo....but since this theatre is considered the birthplace of this form of art, we had to walk over to see it!  Caitlin is in between the cars with her arms up in the air.