Some Thoughts on the Little Theatre Movement in Kansai

Abstract

What could be regarded as the little theater movement in Kansai emerged as the consequence of the Orange Theater Festival, which started in 1982 and lasted for five years. Therefore it started two decades after that in Tokyo. However, one can find some shoots which grew up to be the little theatre movement already in the 1960s and 70s in the Kansai theatre world. They had unique characteristics, different from those in Tokyo. This paper explores the conditions and characteristics of the little theater movement in Kanasai from the 1960s to 90s, based on what I had witnessed myself.