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Hirowatari Tsunetoshi

ひろわたり つねとし

Hirowatari Tsunetoshi

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1926-08-03 （Fukuma (Munakata District), Fukuoka Prefecture (now Fukutsu City), Japan）
Died
2006-09-24 age 80
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Fukuma (now Fukutsu City) — birthplace → Tokyo — moved there and was active → Nerima, Tokyo — based at 'Brecht's Theatre House'

Career

Occupations
playwright, stage director, assistant director, screenwriter
Active Years
1946-2006
Affiliations
Haiyū-za (directing department), Gekidan Sankikai, Toei Studios (assistant director/screenwriter), Tokyo Theatre Ensemble (representative)
Influenced By
Bertolt Brecht, Anton Chekhov, Ango Sakaguchi, Sakae Kubo

Education

Kyushu Imperial University (now Kyushu University)
Faculty of Law and Letters, Department of Aesthetics / Aesthetics
Period: 入学後中退
Country: Japan
Dropped out and moved to Tokyo; participated in student theatre
Waseda University (participated in student theatre)
student theatre
Country: Japan
Participated in student theatre and later joined Haiyū-za's directing section
University of Tokyo (participated in student theatre)
student theatre
Country: Japan
Involved in student theatre activities

Awards

Kishida Kunio Drama Award
1957
Organization: Kishida Kunio Award Committee
Result: winner
Art Encouragement Prize (New Artist)
1969
Work: Kubi (The Neck)
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs
Result: winner
Japan New Theatre Producers Association Award
2004
Organization: Japan New Theatre Producers Association
Result: winner
Kurabayashi Seiichiro Memorial Award
2006
Organization: Kurabayashi Seiichiro Memorial Award Committee
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

All Are Our Children

1954 Play

A play staged as the founding production of Gekidan Sankikai. A human drama depicting conflicts within family and community.

familycommunityresponsibility

Kubi (The Neck)

1969 Play

An allegorical play addressing corporeality, violence, and issues of power.

violencethe bodypower

Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees (stage adaptation)

1990 Play (stage adaptation)

A stage adaptation of Ango Sakaguchi's work. Notable international stagings include New York (1990), Seoul (1991), and London & Ulan-Ude (2000).

desireviolencecivilization vs. wildness
Adaptations
  • [Stage] Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees (New York performance) / 広渡常敏 (1990)
  • [Stage] Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees (Seoul performance) / 広渡常敏 (1991)
  • [Stage] Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees (London performance) / 広渡常敏 (2000)
  • [Stage] Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees (Ulan-Ude performance) / 広渡常敏 (2000)

School of Truth

1994 Play

Written and directed for the troupe's 40th anniversary production; explores collective dynamics and notions of truth.

collectivetrutheducation

Keikoba no Techō — Reports from Brecht's Theatre House

1977 Theatre report / essay

A record and essay collection documenting rehearsals and directorial activities at 'Brecht's Theatre House.'

directorial theoryrehearsal recordsBrechtian theatre

Hiroshima: Night Drums (Play Collection)

2005 Play collection

A recent collection of Hirowatari's plays, including works that deal with war and memory.

warmemoryhumanity

Bibliography

  • Keikoba no Techō: Reports from Brecht's Theatre House. San'ichi Shobō, 1977.
  • Yoru no Sora o Kakeru: Plays by Hirowatari Tsunetoshi. San'ichi Shobō, 1981.
  • To a Naïve World: Brecht's Theatre House — Keikoba no Techō. Kage Shobō, 2003.
  • Hiroshima: Night Drums. Kage Shobō, 2005.
  • Seishun Burai. Kage Shobō, 2006.

Adaptations

  • The Seagull (Chekhov) — Moscow Art Theatre / Taganrog performances (1994)
  • Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees — performances in New York, Seoul, London, and Ulan-Ude

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Directing influenced by Brechtian techniquesExperimental staging with emphasis on physicalityPlays often include allegorical and political expression
Recurring Motifs
violence and ethicsmemory and historyportrayals of ensembles / groups

Legacy

Hirowatari Tsunetoshi was an active postwar Japanese playwright and director. From student theatre roots and experience at Haiyū-za and Toei, he led his troupe and staged works nationally and internationally. Known for bringing Brechtian approaches and experimental staging, he received multiple theatre awards.

Archives

  • National Diet Library (authority file / holdings)
  • Tokyo Theatre Ensemble — official site / archive

Trivia

  • Entered Kyushu Imperial University to study aesthetics but dropped out and moved to Tokyo to join student theatre.
  • Joined Haiyū-za's directing department in 1948 and worked at Toei Studios as an assistant director and scenario writer from 1953 to 1955.
  • Directed the founding production 'All Are Our Children' for Gekidan Sankikai in 1954 and later gained recognition for works such as 'Kubi'.
  • Established 'Brecht's Theatre House' in Nerima in 1977 and published rehearsal notes and reports under the same name.
  • His stage adaptation of 'Under the Full Blooming Cherry Trees' was performed internationally in New York, Seoul, London, and Ulan-Ude.
  • Awards include the Kishida Kunio Drama Award (1957), Art Encouragement Prize (New Artist) (1969), Japan New Theatre Producers Association Award (2004), and Kurabayashi Seiichiro Memorial Award (2006).