Japanese Literary Awards

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Toshiro Suzue

すずえ としろう

Suzue Toshirou

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1963-01-01 （Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture (birthplace) → Kyoto Prefecture (residence / activity base) → Saijo, Ehime Prefecture (moved / current)

Career

Occupations
playwright, theatre director, actor, lighting designer
Active Years
1986-
Affiliations
Kinki University, Faculty of Letters (former assistant professor), Toho Gakuen College of Drama (former associate professor), office Shiroinuma (representative), Gekidan Hachijihan (founder / leader)
Memberships
Japan Playwrights Association, Kyoto Branch (former branch head)
Influenced By
Masatake Matsuda, Hideo Tsuchida

Education

Osaka Prefectural Senri High School
Period: 1979–1981
Year of Graduation: 1981
Country: Japan
High school graduate
Kyoto University, Faculty of Economics
Faculty of Economics / Department of Economics
Degree: 学士
Period: 1981–1985
Year of Graduation: 1985
Country: Japan
Undergraduate graduation
Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University
Graduate School of Agriculture / Major in Agricultural and Forestry Economics
Period: 1985–1987 (中退)
Country: Japan
Left master's program before completion

Awards

Teatro in Cabin Playwriting Prize (4th)
1989
Work: The Segmented Square Fastball
Organization: Teatro in Cabin
Result: winner
Theater Cocoon Playwrights' Award (2nd)
1995
Work: Spilling Fruit
Organization: Theater Cocoon
Result: winner
OMS Playwriting Prize (2nd)
1995
Work: A Friend Came
Organization: OMS
Result: winner
Kishida Kunio Drama Award (40th)
1996
Work: Brushing Back One's Hair
Organization: Kishida Kunio Drama Award Committee
Result: winner
Agency for Cultural Affairs Arts Festival Award (Grand Prize)
2003
Work: Journey to Space, the Cicadas Sing
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Segmented Square Fastball

1989 Play (contemporary drama)

A short play mixing humor and lyricism, depicting subtle fractures in human relationships through everyday fragments.

everyday lifehuman relationshipsmisalignment
Translations
  • Translated into English

Spilling Fruit

1995 Play

A mid-length play on loneliness and solidarity, delving into characters' inner lives through dialogue.

lonelinesssolidarityfamily
Translations
  • Translated into German

A Friend Came

1995 Play

A short play about friendship and memory; the reactions of those around a visitor drive the narrative.

friendshipmemory
Translations
  • Translated into Russian

Brushing Back One's Hair

1996 Play

A work notable for linking bodily gestures and psychology, revealing characters through small everyday movements.

physicalityeveryday life

Journey to Space, the Cicadas Sing

2003 Play

As suggested by its metaphorical title, the play blends the ordinary and extraordinary, weaving nature and seasonal senses into its structure.

naturesense of seasonthe extraordinary
Translations
  • Translated into Indonesian

Bibliography

  • The Segmented Square Fastball
  • Spilling Fruit
  • A Friend Came
  • Brushing Back One's Hair
  • Journey to Space, the Cicadas Sing

Translations of Works

  • Several plays have been translated and staged in English, German, Russian and Indonesian.

Style & Themes

Literary Style
conversation-driven plays that carefully render everyday detailsstagecraft attentive to physicality and gestures
Recurring Motifs
gaps in everyday lifememory and lonelinessnature and seasonality

Legacy

A playwright and director active in Kyoto who contributed to revitalizing local performing arts; his plays have received recognition domestically and abroad.

Academic Societies

  • Japan Playwrights Association

Trivia

  • Since 2017 he moved to Saijo, Ehime Prefecture and continues theatre activities while working as a grape farmer.
  • His plays have been translated into English, German, Russian and Indonesian.