Street theatre is a form of theatrical performance and presentation in outdoor public spaces without a specific paying audience. These spaces can be anywhere, including shopping centres , car parks , recreational reserves, college or university campus and street corners. They are especially seen in outdoor spaces where there are large numbers of people. The actors who perform street theatre range from buskers to organised theatre companies or groups that want to experiment with performance spaces, or to promote their mainstream work. It was a source of providing information to people when there were no sources of providing information like television, radio etc. Nowadays, street play is used to convey a message to the crowd watching it. Street play is considered to be the rawest form of acting, because one does not have a microphone or loud speakers.
42-525: Kamishibai ( 紙芝居 , "paper play") is a form of Japanese street theater and storytelling that was popular during the Great Depression of the 1930s and the postwar period in Japan until the advent of television during the mid-20th century. Kamishibai were performed by a kamishibaiya (" kamishibai narrator") who travelled to street corners with sets of illustrated boards that they placed in
84-803: A kamishibai based on the story of one of the many children, Sadako Sasaki , who suffered as a result of the atomic bomb raid on Hiroshima in 1945. In May 2010, she was a delegate at a Meeting of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons at the United Nations in New York, where she performed to promote a world in harmony and free of nuclear arms. A number of manga and anime have been produced that borrow from or call back to kamishibai tropes and presentation. These include Shōjo Tsubaki , an ero guro manga by Suehiro Maruo based around
126-450: A coat of lacquer to give it shine and protect it from the elements. A mix of "trashy pop culture" and fine artistry, kamishibai blended the traditional linear style of Japanese painting with the heavy chiaroscuro of Western painting, contrasting light and dark to give the figures depth and dynamism. There were a variety of popular stories and themes in kamishibai , which are now seen in contemporary manga and anime, including one of
168-472: A crowd. Street theatre should be distinguished from other more formal outdoor theatrical performances, such as performances in a park or garden, where there is a discrete space set aside (or roped off) and a ticketed audience. In some cases, street theatre performers have to get a licence or specific permission through local or state governments in order to perform. Many performers travel internationally to certain locations of note. Street theatre
210-439: A great job opportunity for many people. The early postwar period was particularly hard on the citizens of Japan who wanted to rebuild their lives in a rapidly changing environment. Comics became popular in newspapers and magazines, depicting scenes of everyday life injected with humour. A strong publishing industry emerged from the demand for comics, but outside of this industry, the desire for cheap entertainment further stimulated
252-476: A miniature stage-like device and narrated the story by changing each image. Kamishibai has its earliest origins in Japanese Buddhist temples , where Buddhist monks from the 8th century onward used emakimono ("picture scrolls") as pictorial aids for recounting their history of the monasteries, an early combination of picture and text to convey a story. The exact origins of kamishibai during
294-404: A performance. The kyogen -kata usually plays the hyoshigi at the start of comedic plays. It can be used to attract the attention of the audience by conductors for theater and even athletic and juggling performances. Hyōshigi are also used to stress confusion, and other dramatic moments, in the play. It is also often used to signal the starting or the end of parts of festivals, especially in
336-462: A pictorial aid to a story. It can therefore be considered a direct precursor of kamishibai . During the Edo period (1603–1868), visual and performing arts flourished, particularly through the proliferation of ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world"). Etoki once again became popular during the later 18th century as storytellers began to set up on street corners with an unrolled scroll hanging from
378-495: A pole. In the Meiji period (1868–1912), tachi-e ("stand-up pictures"), similar to those in the Edo period, were told by performers who manipulated flat paper cutouts of figures mounted on wooden poles (similar to the shadow puppets of Indonesia and Malaysia). The Zen priest Nishimura is also credited to have used these pictures during sermons to entertain children. Another form of etoki
420-430: A pre-arranged scenario, looking beautiful or surreal or simply just involving passers by in conversation. They did not seek to trick in a Candid Camera way, but rather invited the audience to pretend along with them. No amount of planning or rehearsal could dictate what would happen. Another example would be Natural Theatre's Pink Suitcase scenario. A number of smartly dressed people carrying bright pink suitcases enter
462-399: A set of streets or buildings. They search for and miss their companions. In their search they get on buses, hail cabs, end up in shop windows, etc. By the time they meet up at a pre-arranged spot with the help of passers-by, perceptions of the area have changed and shopping has ceased for at least a few moments. The humour is universal and this piece has been seen in nearly seventy countries. It
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#1732876563195504-575: A situation close to their original context. Whatever the reason for choosing the street, the street is a place with a different set of possibilities than the conventional theatre space. Sue Gill of Welfare State International argues that a street theatre performance is not a lesser form than an indoor performance, nor is it simply taking what you do on stage and placing it outdoors, but a form with an energy and an integrity of its own. Many companies are politically motivated and use street theatre to combine performance with protest. This has occurred through
546-403: A small fee. The creation of these boards was similar to that of an American comic book company, with each person separately doing the colouring of a panel. The principal illustrator would make pencil sketches that were then done over with thick brushes of India ink. Watercolour paint was then applied to delineate the background and foreground, an opaque tempera paint was then added on top and lastly
588-500: A variety of entertainment, many kamishibai artists and narrators lost their work, with the former turning to drawing gekiga , bringing new talent and narrative to this growing genre. Although this Japanese art form has largely disappeared, its significance and contributions have allowed kamishibai to be attributed as an origin for manga. As part of the Toyota Production System , kamishibai boards are used as
630-466: A visual control for performing audits within a manufacturing process. A series of cards are placed on a board and selected at random or according to schedule by supervisors and managers of the area. This ensures safety and cleanliness of the workplace is maintained and that quality checks are being performed. As of 2013, kamishibai storytelling was being conducted as part of an ongoing campaign to promote world peace. Maki Saji (a Buddhist nun ) created
672-434: A voluntary basis. The nature of this type of performance is temporary, generally lasting only a few hours, and is considered much more accessible and easier to participate in than in a gallery or a museum , as those who might not have ever been to a theatre or museum can participate in interactive street theatre. Some interactive art installations allow visitors to walk in, on, and around them, or allow them to play with
714-410: Is a simple Japanese musical instrument , consisting of two pieces of hardwood or bamboo often connected by a thin ornamental rope. The clappers are played together or on the floor to create a cracking sound. Sometimes they are struck slowly at first, then faster and faster. Hyōshigi are used in traditional Japanese theaters , such as Kabuki and Bunraku theater, to announce the beginning of
756-438: Is arguably the oldest form of theatre in existence: most mainstream entertainment mediums can be traced back to origins in street performing, including religious passion plays and many other forms. More recently performers who, a hundred years ago, would have made their living working in variety theatres , music halls and in vaudeville , now often perform professionally in the many well-known street performance areas throughout
798-466: Is that they can cause side effects such as cancer , which is false. The public play was placed in the city plazas and also outside of hospitals and clinics where people are possibly going to receive information regarding parent planning and contraceptives. The significance of this play was that it promoted safe sex information that protects against unwanted pregnancies or sexually transmitted diseases that can be caused by unprotected sex. It educated
840-429: Is usually performed by four or five actors, but has been done with twenty-five. Interactive street theatre is a combination of two separate art forms, street theatre and interactive art . Unlike other interactive art, the presentation of interactive street theatre is outside in a public place and most of the time at festivals . The audience of interactive street theatre consists of passers-by who stop to participate on
882-594: The Gutenberg method of moveable type . It was much easier to employ woodblock printing to depict the complex characters of the Japanese language. Such use was often related to propaganda . The popularity of kamishibai declined at the end of the Allied Occupation and the introduction of television, known originally as denki kamishibai ("electric kamishibai ") in 1953. With television bringing larger access to
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#1732876563195924-539: The guerrilla theatre of San Francisco Mime Troupe , The Living Theatre , the carnivalesque parades of Bread and Puppet Theatre , and the work of Ashesh Malla and the Sarwanam Theatre Group of Nepal . A character-based street theatre which developed in the 1960s and 1970s was developed by groups like Lumiere and Son, John Bull Puncture Repair Kit, Exploded Eye and Natural Theatre Company. The performances were unannounced and featured characters who acted out
966-686: The 20th century are unknown, appearing "like the wind on a street corner" in the Shitamachi section of Tokyo around 1930. It is believed, however, that kamishibai has deep roots in Japan's etoki ("pictorial storytelling") art history, which can be traced back to the 12th-century emaki scrolls, such as the Chōjū giga ("Frolicking Critters"), attributed to the priest Toba Sōjō (1053–1140). The scroll depicts anthropomorphised animal caricatures that satirise society during this period but has no text, making it
1008-447: The audience about risks, and how to avoid them with safer behaviours they could do to prevent contracting the virus. It also educated the viewers on different, and much safer behaviours to use in order to stop transmitting the virus to others. This awareness could work to increase the knowledge of the virus, and educate the public on methods to decrease the transmutation of the disease. Hy%C5%8Dshigi The hyōshigi ( 拍子木 )
1050-503: The children as a fee for the show, which was their main source of income. They would then unfold a butai , a miniature wooden proscenium which held the illustrated boards for the narrator to change as he narrated (and provided sound effects for) the unscripted story. True artists only used hand-painted original art, not the mass-produced kind found in schools or for other communication purposes. Kamishibai kashimoto (dealers) were sought to commission and rent artwork to narrators for
1092-430: The demand for kamishibai . Five million children and adults were entertained across Japan daily during the postwar period. The gaito kamishibaiya ("street-corner kamishibai storyteller") parked their bicycle at a familiar intersection and banged their hyōshigi ("clapping sticks") together to announce their presence and create anticipation for the show. When the audience arrived they would sell sweets to
1134-588: The directing of the mikoshi . Hyōshigi is combined with other traditional Japanese instruments in mikagura-uta , or cycle of songs, which is characteristic of the Tenrikyo religion . The clapping instrument was also used in Kamishibai to gather children so that the Kamishibai man could sell candy and entertain them with his story. The wooden percussion instrument was also used by night-watchmen when patrolling
1176-493: The dropping of a coin in a hat by the audience. The logistics of doing street theatre necessitate simple costumes and props , and often there is little or no amplification of sound, with actors depending on their natural vocal and physical ability. This issue with sound has meant that physical theatre , including dance, mime and slapstick , is a very popular genre in an outdoor setting. The performances need to be highly visible, loud and simple to follow in order to attract
1218-564: The establishment of kamishibai . Kamishibai , cartoons, and comics became substantially popular during the Great Depression of the 1930s and after the Japanese surrender to the Allied Forces in August 1945 at the end of the Second World War . This period is known as the " Golden Age " of kamishibai in Japan. Kamishibai produced and narrated over this period give insight into
1260-416: The first illustrated costume superheroes in the world, Ōgon Bat ("Golden Bat") in 1931, superheroes with secret identities like Prince Ganma (whose alter ego was a street urchin) and the popular genre of gekiga or "drama pictures". Many prolific manga artists, like Shigeru Mizuki and Sanpei Shirato , were once kamishibai artists before the medium went out of vogue in 1953. Kamishibai
1302-469: The loaves of bread for explosives. Other artists consider a paying, theatre-going public to be unrepresentative of the public to whom they are trying to communicate, and performing to 'the man on the street' may be considered a more democratic form of dissemination. Some contemporary street theatre practitioners have extensively studied pre-existing street and popular theatre traditions, such as Carnival , commedia dell'arte etc. and wish to present them in
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1344-547: The minds of the people who lived through such a tumultuous period in history. Contrary to the hardships imposed by the Depression, in 1933 there were 2,500 kamishibaiya in Tokyo alone, who performed ten times a day for audiences of up to thirty children, equalling a total of one million children a day. The Depression years were the most prosperous and vibrant for kamishibai : with 1.5 million unemployed in Tokyo in 1930, it provided
1386-485: The object of the installations. Another way interactive theatre is done is that spectators themselves become part of the artwork . There are also types of interactive street theatre where that spectator becomes an active part of the show and works together with the artist to create a magnificent collective art piece. In Peru , interactive street theatre was used to raise awareness of the many misconceptions of family planning and use of contraceptives . The play "Ms. Rumors"
1428-427: The public on misinformation such as condoms being uncomfortable, contraceptives causing abortions , and many other misconceptions that were made up due to lack of knowledge on contraceptives and family planning. In South Africa , interactive street theater was used to raise awareness to health causes such as AIDS or HIV and how certain behaviours promote the increase of the virus. Puppet shows were performed in
1470-571: The street as a means of directly confronting or engaging the public. For example, multimedia artist Caeser Pink and his group of performers known as The Imperial Orgy staged a piece titled Our Daily Bread that brought performers onto the streets of the New York's financial district to ceremoniously lay loaves of Wonder Bread along the sidewalks, each with an advertisement from Satan offering to buy people's souls in exchange for material possessions. The performance caused an uproar when police were called out and bomb-sniffing dogs were brought in to inspect
1512-423: The streets to educate the public of how deadly contracting aids or HIV virus is. The show consisted of the main character having aids and transmitting the disease to others, which ultimately led to the death of the character and the transmission of it to other people as well. Having these performances played in public will raise awareness to the deadly virus, that many people may not have had knowledge of. It educated
1554-518: The titular kamishibai character archetype, and Yamishibai , an anime that uses a kamishibai style to tell myths and urban legends. Additionally, some older works that would later become popular manga or anime, such as GeGeGe no Kitaro , originally started as kamishibai programs. Street theater Sometimes performers are commissioned, especially for street festivals , children's shows or parades , but more often street theatre performers are unpaid or gather some income through
1596-562: The world. Notable performers that began their careers as street theatre performers include Robin Williams , David Bowie , Jewel and Harry Anderson . Street theatre is a way to make traditional theatre accessible for those who may not be able to otherwise attend or afford tickets. The audience typically consists of anyone and everyone who wants to watch and for most performances is free public entertainment. Performance artists with an interest in social activism may choose to stage their work on
1638-710: Was also utilized as a source of communication to the masses, an "evening news" for adults during the Second World War and the Allied Occupation (1945–1953). There are theories about the acceptance of drawing as a means to communicate in Asian nations more so than in Western nations which can be linked to the different printing technologies utilized in each regions histories. In the West, text and image eventually became separated because of
1680-405: Was followed by a forum to discuss any questions the audience had about parent planning, which worked better than private counselling since people would have the support of their peers, and the answers would educate the entire group. The play "Ms. Rumors" focused on the information that is usually misrepresented regarding birth control pills or "the pill". One of the rumours about birth control pills
1722-404: Was performed as a means of promoting a much greater understanding of information regarding contraceptives and planned parenthood . The play told the audience the truth about contraceptives through the character of a pharmacist, which in turn contradicted the false claims that the character Ms.Rumors suggested. The play lasted around four months and was around twenty minutes long. The performance
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1764-547: Was the Japanese-modified stereoscope imported from the Netherlands. Much smaller in size, six engravings of landscapes and everyday scenes would be placed one behind the other on top of the device and lowered when required so that the viewer, who looked at them through a lens, could experience the illusion of space created by this device. The artistic and technological developments of the Edo and Meiji periods can be linked to
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