Popular Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke was taken to hospital Thursday after his manager found him collapsed along with his parents at their home in Tokyo, with police suspecting he attempted suicide.
The 47-year-old actor's life was not in danger, an investigative source said. But his mother, 75, was confirmed to have died at their home in Tokyo's Meguro Ward, while his 76-year-old father Ichikawa Danshiro, also a Kabuki actor, was confirmed dead after reaching the hospital.
The shocking incident came as a weekly magazine on Thursday reported on Ennosuke's alleged involvement in sexual abuse and power harassment of people including actors and staff involved in his theater collective.
Ennosuke was found in a closet in his semi-basement room along with what was believed to be a suicide note bearing his name at the bottom, the source said.
He was hazy in his responses when initially roused by the manager but was later able to converse, the source said.
His parents were found without physical injuries lying face up in the living room on the second floor, the source said, adding the three lived together.
Meijiza, a famous theater in Tokyo, said it had canceled the Thursday afternoon performance of a Kabuki play featuring Ennosuke in the lead role.
The member of staff in charge of the play said Ennosuke's representatives had informed the theater that he was feeling unwell and unable to perform.
Born in 1975, Ennosuke first took to the stage in 1980 in a performance of "Yoshitsune Sembon Zakura" (Yoshitsune and the thousand cherry trees). He assumed his family's prestigious stage name of Ennosuke as its fourth-generation holder in June 2012 at age 36.
He is famous not only as a Kabuki actor but for his roles in theaters and TV dramas. He acted in and produced a "Super Kabuki" piece based on the popular Japanese manga "One Piece."
Award-winning stage actor Teruyuki Kagawa, who adopted the stage name Ichikawa Chusha as its ninth-generation holder, is his cousin.
Emergency service in Japan: 119
If you are having suicidal thoughts, help is available.
For Japan, call Yorisoi Hotline at 0120279338 (toll-free). Press 2 after the recorded message for consultation in English, Chinese, Korean, Tagalog, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, Nepali, or Indonesian. The service in these languages is also available on Facebook messenger.
For those outside Japan, you can find a list of other resources here.
