Japanese Literary Awards

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Masataka Matsuda

まつだ まさたか

Matsuda Masataka

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1962-01-01 （Kitamatsuura District, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Nagasaki Prefecture (birthplace) → Kyoto Prefecture (base) → Tokyo (work)

Career

Occupations
playwright, director, screenwriter, university professor
Active Years
1990-
Affiliations
Japanese Playwrights Association, Marebito-no-Kai, Rikkyo University (Professor), Kyoto University of Art and Design (Visiting Professor)
Memberships
Japanese Playwrights Association

Education

Nagasaki Prefectural Yuukoukan High School
Country: Japan
Ritsumeikan University, Faculty of Letters
Faculty of Letters / Department of Philosophy
Degree: Bachelor of Arts
Country: Japan
Graduated from Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Letters

Awards

OMS Playwriting Prize (Grand Prize)
1993
Work: The House on the Hill
Organization: OMS Playwriting Prize Committee
Result: Winner
Kishida Kunio Drama Award
1994
Work: Sea and Parasol
Organization: Kishida Kunio Drama Award Committee
Result: Winner
OMS Playwriting Prize (Special Prize)
1994
Work: Sea and Parasol
Category: 特別賞
Organization: OMS Playwriting Prize Committee
Result: Winner
Yomiuri Theatre Award (Best Play)
1998
Work: Cape of the Moon
Organization: Yomiuri Theatre Award Committee
Result: Winner
Yomiuri Literary Prize (Drama/Scenario)
1999
Work: On the Summer Sand
Category: 戯曲・シナリオ
Organization: Yomiuri Literary Prize Committee
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Etsuko Kamiya's Youth

play

A stage play portraying youth and memory through a middle-aged woman and those around her. One of his representative works, adapted into film.

memoryfamilycoming of age
Adaptations
  • [film] Etsuko Kamiya's Youth (film adaptation)

Sea and Parasol

1996 play

An ensemble drama arranging delicate human relationships and landscapes. Recipient of the Kishida Kunio Drama Award.

human relationshipsnatureloneliness

The House on the Hill

1993 play

A work depicting human dramas around a small house. Winner of the OMS Playwriting Prize (Grand Prize).

homememoryconflict

Cape of the Moon

1998 play

A stage piece using serene and symbolic imagery. Awarded the Yomiuri Theatre Award for Best Play.

symbolismlandscapesolitude

On the Summer Sand

1999 play

A play weaving fragments of daily life and memory. Winner of the Yomiuri Literary Prize (Drama/Scenario).

memorytimeeveryday life

Bibliography

  • Sea and Parasol (Hakusuisha) 1996
  • Kiramazaka: Masataka Matsuda Plays (Shinya Sōshosha) 2002
  • Etsuko Kamiya's Youth (play)
  • The House on the Hill (play)
  • Cape of the Moon (play)
  • On the Summer Sand (play)

Adaptations

  • Etsuko Kamiya's Youth (film adaptation)
  • Beautiful Summer Kirishima (screenplay contribution)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Contemporary realism blended with symbolic elementsDescriptive, poetic dialogue that evokes audience imagination
Recurring Motifs
memoryfamilysea and landscapeembodiment

Legacy

An important contemporary Japanese playwright and director. Active in training younger artists as a university professor, with influence spanning stage productions abroad and contributions to film screenwriting.

Academic Societies

  • Japanese Playwrights Association

Archives

  • Marebito-no-Kai (company site / archives)

In Popular Culture

  • Known more widely through film adaptations and overseas stagings of his plays

Trivia

  • Founded the theatre company 'Jikuu Gekijou' in 1990, writing and directing productions.
  • Formed the Kyoto-based theatre company 'Marebito-no-Kai' in 2003.
  • Studied in Israel in 2009 as a Cultural Affairs Agency overseas training fellow.
  • Graduated from Ritsumeikan University (Faculty of Letters, Department of Philosophy) and serves as a professor at Rikkyo University.