is a Japanese theatre company. Along with the

Mingei Theatre Company The is a Japanese theatre company that stages Shingeki plays. Along with the Haiyuza Theatre Company and Bungakuza it is considered one of the "Big Three" among Shingeki theatre troupes. History Gekidan Mingei, meaning "The People's Art The ...

and the

Haiyuza Theatre Company The is a Japanese theatre company based in Tokyo, Japan. Along with the Mingei Theatre Company and Bungakuza it is considered one of the "Big Three" among Shingeki theatre troupes. Former Members *Eijirō Tōno *Koreya Senda *Eitaro Ozawa ...

it is considered one of the "Big Three" among Shingeki theatre troupes.

History

The company was founded by

Kunio Kishida Kunio Kishida (岸田國士, Kishida Kunio, 2 November 1890 – 5 March 1954) was a Japanese playwright, dramatist, novelist, lecturer, acting coach, theatre critic, translator, and proponent of Shingeki ("New Theatre"/”New Drama"). Kishida sp ...

, Mantarō Kubota and

Bunroku Shishi Bunroku Shishi (a pen name for ''Toyoo Iwata''; b. July 1, 1893, Yokohama; d. Dec. 13, 1969) was a Japanese writer and director of the Bungakuza Theater in Tokyo. In 1922 he traveled to France to study modern French theater, and worked in the ate ...

on September 6, 1937. Its name means "Literature Theatre" On March 25, 1938, the company staged its first public performances with the plays "Magnificent Woman" (''Migoto na Onna''), "Peace at Home" (''Wagaya no Heiwa'') and "Knock" (''Kunokku''). After suffering repression at the hands of the state leading up to and during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Bungakuza reemerged in the early

postwar period In Western usage, the phrase post-war era (or postwar era) usually refers to the time since the end of World War II. More broadly, a post-war period (or postwar period) is the interval immediately following the end of a war. A post-war period c ...

. In the 1950s, many Shingeki theatre troupes were viewed as left-wing or even communist. However, Bungakuza was considered one of the least ideological troupes. Thus many people were surprised when Bungakuza's leaders agreed to stage a tour of Communist China in 1961. Even more controversial was the decision to modify the script of the company's flagship play, "The Life of a Woman" (''Onna no isshō''), to accommodate the ideological demands of their Chinese hosts, which was seen as an abridgment of artistic freedom. This angered many of the younger members of the troupe, and in 1962, right in the middle of the company's New Year's production, 29 members abruptly left the troupe to found their own company, the Cloud Theatre Company (''Gekidan Kumo''). Another controversy arose in 1963. The author

Yukio Mishima , born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was considered fo ...

, who had a long-running affiliation with Bungakuza dating back to the early 1950s, wrote a play for the company called , but star actress and other

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...

-affiliated actors refused to perform it because the protagonist held anti-communist views and had lines criticizing a conspiracy of

world communism World communism, also known as global communism, is the ultimate form of communism which of necessity has a universal or global scope. The long-term goal of world communism is an unlimited worldwide communist society that is classless (lacking ...

. As a result of this ideological conflict, Mishima quit Bungakuza along with around 10 other members. Mishima and those who supported him formed their own troupe, since "Bungakuza" means "literature theatre" this was a way of saying "New Bungakuza" in French. Mishima's new troupe successfully staged ''The Harp of Joy'' in May 1964. Despite these controversies, Bungakuza survived and continued to thrive, and continues to stage plays today, although it has long since dropped the "Shingeki" moniker.

Notable members

;Male actors ;Female actors

Former notable members

* Tsutomu Yamazaki *

Shinobu Terajima is a Japanese actress. Her feature films include '' Akame 48 Waterfalls'' (2003) and '' Vibrator'' (2003). For her role in ''Caterpillar'' (2010), Terajima won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the 60th Berlin Film Festival while her performan ...

Kaori Momoi is a Japanese actress. Life and career Momoi was born in Tokyo, Japan. At the age of 12, she traveled to London to study dance at the Royal Ballet Academy. After 3 years, she returned to Tokyo. She graduated from Japan's Bungakuza School of D ...

Isao Hashizume is a Japanese actor. He also worked as a narrator for documentaries, both on television and film. He trained as an actor at Bungakuza. 週刊現代6月5日号「私の地図」第485回 p84-86 Selected filmography Film Television Awards a ...

Masatoshi Nakamura is a Japanese actor/singer from Onagawa, Miyagi. He graduated from Keio University. Nakamura joined the Bungakuza theater troupe in 1973 and made his television debut in 1974 with "Warera Seishun. Masatoshi made his film debut with "Fureai" in ...

Tappie Shimokawa was a Japanese actor. He attended Musashino Art University, but withdrew before completing his degree. In 1964, he joined Bungakuza Theatre Company but left in 1977. He is well known for his role as Chōsan (Detective Tarō Nozaki) in the det ...

* Hiroki Hasegawa

Deceased members

Ken Mitsuda Ken Mitsuda (29 April 1902 – 28 November 1997) was a Japanese film actor. He appeared in 53 films between 1940 and 1983. Selected filmography * ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' (Grumpy) (voice Japanese version) * ''Lady and the Tramp'' ...

Haruko Sugimura was a Japanese stage and film actress, best known for her appearances in the films of Yasujirō Ozu and Mikio Naruse from the late 1940s to the early 1960s. Biography Sugimura was born in Nishi-ku, Hiroshima. After the death of her parents, ...

Kiwako Taichi was a Japanese film actress. She appeared in 20 films between 1967 and 1985. Biography Kiwako Taichi was born in Tokyo on 2 December 1943. She graduated Shoin Junior and Senior High School and, after training in the Haiyuza Theatre Company ...

Yūsaku Matsuda was a Japanese actor. In Japan, he was best known for roles in action films and a variety of television series in the 1970s as well as a switch to a wider range of roles in the 1980s. His final film appearance was as the villain Sato in Ridley ...

Research establishment alumni

Chō is a Japanese actor and narrator from Kōnosu, Saitama. His former stage name was . He is a graduate of the Nishogakusha University Department of Literature and received training at Bungakuza's research establishment and the Seinenza Theater C ...

Urara Takano , known by her stage name is a Japanese actress, voice actress and narrator from Togane, Chiba. She is currently affiliated with and representative of REMAX. Her most prominent role has been in the '' Sakura Wars'' video game franchise, where s ...

* Katsuhiko Yokomitsu

References

External links

*
Official blog
{{Authority control Japanese voice actor management companies Shinjuku Theatre companies in Japan