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Koyama Yūshi

こやま ゆうし

Koyama Yūshi

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1906-03-29 （Kasaoka-cho (Imamachi), Fukuyama, Hiroshima, Japan）
Died
1982-06-10 age 76
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Fukuyama, Hiroshima (birthplace) → Tamashima, Okayama (evacuated; now Kurashiki) → Tokyo (moved in 1950)

Career

Occupations
playwright, scriptwriter, radio/drama writer, literary critic
Active Years
1925-1982
Affiliations
Bungakuza (participated as a founding scriptwriter), Japan Mobile Theatre Federation (founder/participant), Gekidan Mingei (company performing his works)
Memberships
Keio Drama Society
Influenced By
Anton Chekhov, Kishida Kunio, Osanai Kaoru (mentor figure)
Nominations
2nd Akutagawa Prize (nominated)

Education

Seishikan Middle School (now Fukuyama Seishikan High School)
Country: Japan
Attended local Seishikan middle school before entering Keio University.
Keio University
Faculty of Law
Degree: 法学士
Period: 1920年代–1931年
Year of Graduation: 1931
Country: Japan
During his studies he became interested in drama and joined the Keio Drama Society.

Awards

Kishida Drama Award
1956
Work: The Two-Person Ball (Futari dake no Butoukai)
Organization: Kishida Kunio Memorial Organization (and related bodies)
Result: 受賞
Mainichi Theatre Award
Work: The Town of Crabs (Kani no Machi)
Organization: Mainichi Newspapers
Result: 受賞
Arts Award (Minister of Education Prize for Art) - Literary Criticism
1968
Category: 文学評論
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs / Ministry of Education
Result: 受賞
Medal with Purple Ribbon
1975
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 受章

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Children of the Seto Inland Sea

1935 play

A play depicting the frustrated youth of the Seto Inland Sea region and the sense of impending war, written with local Bingo dialect. An early signature work that established his reputation as a playwright.

Seto Inland Seayouthshadows of wardialect

The Two-Person Ball (Futari dake no Butoukai)

1956 play

A play portraying people carrying the scars of the atomic bombing. Winner of the Kishida Drama Award.

atomic bombscarlonelinessrecovery

Under the Michelia Tree (Taisanboku no Ki no Shita de)

1962 play

A two-act play dealing with human loneliness and themes resembling original sin. One of Gekidan Mingei's repertory works.

lonelinessoriginal sinhuman drama

Ghosts of Japan (Nihon no Yūrei)

1965 play

A socially conscious play denouncing the poison gas manufacturing on Ōkunoshima. A controversial work confronting the negative legacy of war.

war responsibilitypollutionexposé

Bibliography

  • Children of the Seto Inland Sea (Hakusuisha) 1935
  • The Fishes: Plays (Gloria Socaete) 1940
  • Women Who Shine: Plays (Sekai Bungakusha) 1949
  • The Path Walked by an Actress (with Tamura Akiko, Hakusuisha) 1962
  • Collected Plays of Koyama Yūshi (5 vols., Teatro) 1967-1971
  • An Actress's Life (with Sugimura Haruko, Hakusuisha) 1970
  • The Two-Person Ball (play) 1956
  • Under the Michelia Tree (play) 1962
  • Ghosts of Japan (play) 1965

Style & Themes

Literary Style
lyrical, strongly lyrical styleuse of local Seto Inland Sea dialects for vivid dialoguedialogue with tonal shades influenced by Chekhov
Recurring Motifs
landscapes and rural life of the Seto Inland Seashadows of war and the atomic bombhuman loneliness and recovery

Legacy

A playwright who left an important mark on postwar Japanese theatre with lyrical plays centered on the Seto Inland Sea. Recipient of the Kishida Drama Award and Arts Award, and author of repertory works for Gekidan Mingei.

Archives

  • Fukuyama Literary Museum (holds related materials)

In Popular Culture

  • His play 'Under the Michelia Tree' remains in Gekidan Mingei's repertory and continues to be staged, preserving his presence in contemporary theatre.

Trivia

  • 'Children of the Seto Inland Sea' was announced as a candidate for the 2nd Akutagawa Prize but the selection was later voided because plays were excluded.
  • He became determined to write plays after watching Chekhov's 'Three Sisters' nine days in a row at the Tsukiji Little Theatre.
  • His grave is at Fuji Reien in the section for literary figures.