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Kei Hasegawa

はせがわ けい

Hasegawa Kei

Pen Names: Serie Kei（Stage name used during theatre/acting period）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1931-02-20 （Osaka Prefecture, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Osaka Prefecture (birthplace) → Tokyo (based since 1963)

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Poet, Broadcast writer, Lyricist, Actor (former stage name: Serie Kei)
Active Years
1954-
Affiliations
Chubu Nippon Broadcasting Theatre Company (Theatre CBC), 3rd class, Office of Teiro Miki (affiliated as a lyricist)
Influenced By
Kaoru Maruyama, Teirou Miki
Nominations
51st Akutagawa Prize nominee

Education

Nihon University College of Art
Department of Film (left before graduation) / Film Studies
Period: 在学中に中退
Country: Japan
Attended film department but withdrew to join a theatre troupe

Awards

Chubu Japan Poets Prize (Effort Award)
1958
Work: Sumiki to Su to
Organization: Chubu Japan Poets Association (awarding body)
Result: 受賞
Bungeikai Newcomer Prize
1964
Work: The Blue Rite
Organization: Bungeikai (Literary World)
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Sumiki to Su to

1957 Poetry collection

An early poetry collection containing poems about daily life and memory.

memorythe everydaynature

The Blue Rite

1964 Novel / Short fiction

A notable work that won the Bungeikai Newcomer Prize; features experimental prose and interior portraits of youth.

selfritecoming of age

The Star Actor Murder Case

1985 Novel / Mystery

A mystery-style novel set in the world of theatre.

theatrefiction vs realitymystery

The Dog Looking to the Open Sea: The Kukomaru Shipwreck Incident

1985 Non-fiction / Novel

A work centered on a maritime accident, moving between reportage and imagination.

searecorddeath and rebirth

The Tail of the Moonlit Night: The Tale of a Would-Be Poet

1992 Short fiction / Novel

A story about a poet, blending humor and melancholy.

poetidentityhumor

Bridge of Memory

2003 Poetry collection

A late poetry collection focusing on memory and the passage of time.

memorytimereminiscence

Bibliography

  • Sumiki to Su to (poetry), Shoshinsha, 1957
  • The World of Signal People (co-authored), Nihon Sangyo Kyoiku Shuppan, 1968
  • Ao no Gishiki (The Blue Rite), Yukawa Shobō, 1977
  • The Star Actor Murder Case, Yūraku Shuppansha, 1985
  • The Dog Looking to the Open Sea: The Kukomaru Shipwreck Incident, Shueisha, 1985
  • Tokyo Stories: 101 Views of Showa History, Jiji Press, 1988
  • Monuments of Travel Sentiment, Mainichi Shimbunsha, 1991
  • The Tail of the Moonlit Night: The Tale of a Would-Be Poet, Kakūsha, 1992
  • Joan of Arc: The Girl Who Saved France, Kodansha Hinotori Biographies, 1993
  • Kiyoshi Yamashita: The Wandering Painter, Kodansha Hinotori Biographies, 1994
  • Prayer of the Atomic Bomb Dome, Kodansha, 1995
  • Faraway Lantern: The Life and Environment of Poet Kaoru Maruyama, Mokushoku Kobo, 1999
  • Bridge of Memory (poetry), Seidō Kobo, 2003

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Poetic and lyrical proseExperimental narration and interior monologueDialogue influenced by theatrical experience
Recurring Motifs
memorysea and traveltheatre/stageindividual interiority

Legacy

Kei Hasegawa has worked broadly as a poet, novelist and broadcast writer; he is noted for winning the Bungeikai Newcomer Prize in 1964. His theatre background and poetic style mark a steady, if understated, contribution to Japanese literature from the late 20th century into the 21st.

Trivia

  • Used the stage name Serie Kei during his theatre period and worked as an actor.
  • Left Nihon University College of Art's film department to join Theatre CBC.
  • Won the Bungeikai Newcomer Prize for 'The Blue Rite' in 1964 and was a nominee for the 51st Akutagawa Prize.