The onnagata actor Sanogawa Ichimatsu III and actor Ichikawa Tomiemon are presented here respectively as the Gion courtesan Onayo and the villain Kanisaka Toma, characters in the play Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga. The mimasu crest of the Ichikawa family of actors can be seen on Tomiemon's sleeve, and the Sanogawa crest appears on Ichimatsu's sleeve over the famous chequered Ichimatsu pattern (recently used in the Tokyo Olympics logo). The Art Institute of Chicago holds an early impression of the portrait.