| Underneath the imposition of democratic ideology during the Occupation years, Japanese society underwent enormous changes that impacted almost every facet of the community, from individuals to institutions, the education and economic systems, and the notion of the public sphere. In many ways, theatre for young audiences in postwar Japan is the manifestation of the project of democratization that began in the aftermath of the explosion experienced around the world. From promoting the democratic ideology imposed by the United States after the war to becoming a tool of grass roots movements and community groups, the evolution and growth of the field of theatre for children and young people in postwar Japan presents evidence of both democracy's success and its problems. This dissertation examines the major movements in the field of theatre for children and young people in postwar Japan, and argues that as youth increasingly became seen as the future of the nation and the direct target of democratization efforts, the realm of theatre for children and young people in Japan became a space of negotiation, transmission, and transformation of these democratic values. The field was shaped by artists' responses to the historical and material circumstances of the postwar period, and the shifting and challenged notions of youth and childhood left in the war's wake. |
