[Special Feature: 125 Years of Integrated Education] Keiichi Iizumi: Shiki Theatre Company and Keio University Integrated Education

2023/10/06

Under playwright Michio Kato (then an English teacher at Keio Senior High School), young people who were moved and inspired by reading the play "Nayotake" gathered. The group, centered on students from Keio Senior High School and Keio University, included Keita Asari, Takeshi Kusaka, Hikaru Hayashi, and Hisanori Fujimoto. They were devoted to Kato, who preached "poetry and fantasy in theater" and "the emotion and catharsis brought by theater." Exposed to the worldview of Jean Giraudoux and feeling the need for a professional theater company that could be economically independent through acting, they were introduced by Kato to the Gekidan Hakobune group, which consisted of University of Tokyo students and graduates of the Shakujii High School drama club. Then, on July 14, 1953, the Shiki Theatre Company was formed by ten volunteers.

On my first day coming to Yochisha from the Shiki Theatre Company, Headmaster Shigenari Sugiura spoke to me about the philosophy of Keio University and Yochisha. He used the phrase, "Yochisha students should be people of both wisdom and courage." Among those, the concept of "courage" left a deep impression on me.

"When you try to achieve something, there will always be hardships. Without courage, you will falter along the way or immediately start imitating others. Even if your upbringing and ways of thinking are different, there is no point in imitating. Others are others, I am myself; it is enough to go one's own way. To think and act for oneself, one must always possess courage."

It is just as Yukichi Fukuzawa said: "There is no success in life without labor." There is nothing but "courage" that drives one forward without fearing that hardship.

Keita Asari also gave the following words to his actors:

"You have come to an unequal world. The clock of talent is an interesting thing; some people perform in one or two years what takes others ten. Some are slow and take a long time. But strangely enough, if you perform for ten years, everyone generally reaches the same level. A turtle should not panic looking at a rabbit's clock, and a rabbit should not take a nap looking at a turtle's clock. Look at your own clock and make an effort for yourself."

Mr. Asari was someone who spoke of the Keio University philosophy in words for theater people to stir their souls. For me, having performed in the Shiki Theatre Company, I vividly remember feeling that my past experiences and my future teaching at Yochisha were connected when I realized the source of those words lay in Keio University.

Seeing the creative and expressive Yochisha students, I began classes in theatrical creation. The teaching material is the song "Wonderful Friends" from the family musical "The Cat Who Wished to Be a Man," composed by Kunihiko Suzuki, who is also a Keio University alumni. I give the children a sheet of paper with the lyrics and ask them to write a story suitable for the poem, whether it is based on real experience or fantasy. Other teachers who hear this are surprised, saying, "You're making them do something difficult," but in reality, almost all of them write a script with ease. Then, they form groups to perform and sing the stories they created.

I do not provide acting coaching, but I tell them one thing I want them to value: even without props or costumes, I want them to share a single world and exist within the space of that scene. My job as a music teacher is simply to provide accompaniment that fits the script. The children discuss things—"not like that, like this," "I want to do it this way," "how about trying this"—bringing out each other's unique qualities, and sometimes moving works that rival those of adults are born. For example, one child wrote a script with a war theme. It was a story where an enemy soldier helps a wounded soldier, and they both put down their weapons, hold hands, and sing. The children performing are by no means expert actors, but their very hearts believing in the story become a source of charm. Mr. Asari used to say, "It's okay to be bad at it, just do it with all your might. Put a prayer into your words. That is where emotion is born." I was moved to tears by the serious gazes and every single movement of the Yochisha students.

"Those who like machines do sound and lighting. Those who like fashion design costumes, and those who like drawing design the sets. Those who like presenting or being in the spotlight are actors, logical people direct, and those who like taking care of others produce. If people work together toward a single goal, communication is born. People with completely different personalities share a common purpose and achieve something. If music and art became regular subjects in education after the war, shouldn't there be classes to learn theater?"

Many countries have theater as a subject in school education with specialized teachers. Currently, Japan is the only developed country failing to incorporate theater into school education.

In the comprehensive art of theater, everyone can find their own unique role. There is no need to worry about your strengths or weaknesses or comparisons with others. You can let your individuality shine to the fullest and create something as a team.

Looking back at history and recalling the words left behind, I can almost hear the earnest wish of theater people who were Keio University alumni, including Mr. Asari: "Give the joy of theater to the children of Yochisha."