Taichi Saotome was the subject of our latest portrait photo shoot, for Marie Claire China, carried out over two days in Shanghai during January. The young Japanese film and theatre actor is a household name in Japan for playing both male and female roles. He was in Shanghai to perform with other Japanese stars at the Oriental Arts Centre.

Soatome developed his talent thanks to his father, who heads the Gekidan Sujaku Theatre troupe, and Saotome grew up touring Japan with the troupe. He is recognised as possessing a natural talent as an onnagata (female impersonator), and trained with the Kabuki Realm Japanese opera company – a performance genre in which the onnagata concept is most-often utilised.