Despite its popularity, the ruling shogunate held unfavorable views of kabuki performances. The crowd at a kabuki performance often mixed different social classes, and the social peacocking of the merchant classes, who controlled much of Japan's economy at the time, were perceived to have entrenched upon the standing of the samurai classes, both in appearance and often wealth. In an effort to clamp down on kabuki's popularity, women's kabuki, known as , was banned in 1629 for being too erotic. Following this ban, young boys began performing in , which was also soon banned. Kabuki switched to adult male actors, called , in the mid-1600s. Adult male actors, however, continued to play both female and male characters, and kabuki retained its popularity, remaining a key aspect of the Edo period urban lifestyle.