Kanze Zeami (1364-1444), also called Zeami Motokiyo, was a Japanese actor, playwright, and critic. His theoretical works on the art of the No are as justly celebrated as his dramas.

It was the great esthete, statesman, and patron of the fine arts, the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, who discovered Zeami and his father, Kannami, a brilliant No actor. At a command performance of Okina, Kannami appeared before the Shogun and impressed him so favorably that he was at once named knight companion to Yoshimitsu, a considerable distinction. Kannami died in 1384 on tour. Zeami always spoke of his father in the most adulatory and respectful terms as a great actor, playwright, composer, and choreographer, for talent in all these capacities is required in the creation of a No drama.

Zeami first appeared before Shogun Yoshimitsu in a performance at the Imakumano Shrine in 1374. Before he reached his majority at 20, Zeami...