kabuki stage device for changing backdrops
Archaic kabuki term. A rotating axle mechanism used to flip or change the painted backdrop during a performance. Compare 田楽豆腐, the grilled tofu dish whose flipping motion inspired the name.
See also: 田楽豆腐
In Edo-period kabuki, they quickly changed the backdrop using the dengaku-gaeshi device.
turning something over like dengaku tofu
Refers to flipping or turning an object in the same way one flips skewered dengaku tofu to cook both sides evenly. Often used figuratively or in descriptions of manual actions.
When grilling fish, turn it over like dengaku tofu to cook both sides nicely.
From 田楽 (dengaku, a type of grilled tofu) + 返し (turning over). The name comes from the way dengaku tofu is flipped during cooking, which was metaphorically extended to a kabuki stage mechanism and to any similar turning action.