{"id":508,"date":"2019-12-03T19:22:52","date_gmt":"2019-12-03T19:22:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/?p=508"},"modified":"2023-03-15T11:40:14","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T11:40:14","slug":"countering-ageism-and-eugenics-in-theatre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/countering-ageism-and-eugenics-in-theatre\/","title":{"rendered":"Countering Ageism and Eugenics in Theatre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Akiko Tachiki<\/strong>*<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Abstract<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Pressure upon the elderly, that is the \u201cduty-to-die\u201d campaign due to mounting medical expenditures, is rife in ageing countries. Has ageism turned into an offshoot of eugenics, which we thought had been discredited after WWII? The article discusses two 2018 theatre pieces in Japan\u2015the most rapidly ageing country in the world\u2015which raise \u201cNo\u201d to that campaign: A Thought on the Good Death Vibration<\/span> by Sh\u016b Matsui and Nirai Kanai: Watershed of Life<\/span> by the Performance Troupe Taihen. The discussion is aimed at clarifying the background to the new connection between ageism and eugenics, and how this dangerous liaison can be staged.
Keywords:<\/strong> ageism, eugenics, Japanese theatre, Sh\u016b Matsui, Performance Troupe Taihen, Sagamihara stabbings<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cynicism is rampant. Facts are countered by \u201calternative\nfacts.\u201d Politicians encourage tampering with statistics to avoid awkward\nsituations, leaving undesirable facts to neglect or morphing them to sidestep\nthe real problem. As a result, any pursuit of truth is bound to be hindered by information\nblackout. Mass media may claim they always strive to deliver the truth, but the\nquality of their reports is deteriorating because journalists are cowed by\npoliticians and demagogues. This is especially the case in Japan, where some\nright-wing politicians have been known to assert with impunity that state\napproval should be withdrawn from any TV broadcasters who report unwanted facts\nor make problematic comments\u2014unwanted and problematic only in their eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this socio-political climate, it is heartening\nto see some theatre makers creating theatre pieces incisive enough to unveil\nthe truth, however discomforting the picture may be. Let me introduce two 2018\npieces which boldly address the current dangerous drifts in Japan towards the\ngross violation of human rights, especially of the elderly and the disabled.\nBoth manifest a grave sense of unease emanating from the resurgence of\neugenicist thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Institutional Cut Off<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n
\n
\"\"
Director Sh\u016b Matsui. Photo: Performing Arts Network Japan<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A Thought on the Good Death Vibration<\/em> (May 2018),\na co-production of the Kanagawa Arts Theatre (KAAT) and the theatre company\nSample, was written and directed by Sh\u016b Matsui, who runs the company. The play\nis a near-futuristic revamp of the novel Narayama Bushi K\u014d <\/em>(A Thought\non the Ballad of Narayama<\/em>, 1953) by Shichiro Fukazawa. Its 1983 film\nversion by Shohei Imamura won the Palme d\u2019Or at the Cannes Film Festival in the\nfollowing year. Fukazawa\u2019s novel narrates a pre-modern Japanese folklore of\nsenicide; that is, the killing or abandonment of the infirm and\/or elderly who\nare regarded as a burden to the communities struggling at the minimum\nsubsistence level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inspired by this, and driven by his trademark\ndystopic imagination, Matsui examined the value of human life and of living\nhumanely by recasting the narrative in a dystopian sci-fi tale of a Big Brother\nstate, which implements a harsh eugenic policy, including reproduction control\nthrough compulsory match making, genetic experimentations on human bodies and\nthe termination of its members who are over 65 and in the lowest-income band.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
A Thought on the Good Death Vibration<\/em> (May 2018). Photo: Hideto \u039caezwa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

On the stage is a shanty settlement in a\nsmall valley made of rags and scrap wood. The residents there are abandoned by\nthe state as unfit, and those over 65 there must \u201cgo on a voyage\u201d to \u201cend their\nphysical life\u201d under the state decree. The one who falls in that category is\nTsuruo (Jun Togawa), a former pop star who was castrated by the state for\nholding a gig without permission to protest against the government\u2019s ban on\nsongs. Agonising over how to send Tsuruo on the \u201cvoyage,\u201d his daughter, Nurumi\n(Miho Inatsugu), and grandson, Bypass (Shun\u2019ya Itabashi), procrastinate their\ndecision, believing that the state\u2019s surveillance is lax in such a remote\nplace. Then comes Zarame (Aoi Nozu) from the neighbouring settlement, still a\nlow-teen girl but physically \u201cenhanced\u201d by the state to \u201cmate\u201d with Bypass and bear\na child. The child will be taken away, and the compensation the parents receive\nwill be the main source of income for these outcasts. Nonetheless, they enjoy a\nbrief moment of calm, only to be disrupted by the emergence of mysterious\nSasaki, an agent sent by the state to enforce the laws. It turns out that\nSasaki is a love-child of Nurumi. Under the eugenicist policy, those born out\nof state control must be put to death, but Sasaki somehow escaped that fate and\nwas eventually raised by the state. Now a heartless civil servant (marvellously\nplayed by the author\/director Matsui himself), with no family affection, Sasaki\nbrings the news that Zarame\u2019s son from the previous matching was genetically\nexperimented on by the Central Medical Institute \u201cfor the advancement of the\nrace\u201d and achieved \u201chonourable ascension.\u201d Tsuruo and his family decide and\nundecide before they start rowing on a raft into the ocean defying rough\nweather, but family members leave Tsuruo one after another. Alone, he drifts on\nthe sea and is cast ashore on a strange land, where he is revered by the locals\nas a long-awaited god. The audience, however, is left wondering if his journey\nactually happened that way, as they see the rest of his family going about\ntheir lives back in the homeland as if nothing had happened. The detached tone\nof the playwright leaves a bitter aftertaste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the idea of institutionalised sacrifice for the society grossly erodes human rights, such basic values as family, love and even life are put into question. The storyline may be rather convoluted, but the piece captured the anxiety of the rapidly aging Japanese society and struck a chord with the audience. Euthanasia, even if for death with dignity of one\u2019s own choice, is illegal in Japan, but the rapidly increasing national expenses on the elderly care has led the government to urge hospitals to cut cost and improve efficiency, so that the national healthcare service can become sustainable. Consequently, many families of terminal patients are now appalled by some doctors\u2019 attitudes towards death, which raise the suspicion that they are now pressured into facilitating death instead of saving life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am writing this with the still fresh memory of having to part with three, very close ones in the last three years. It is true many doctors stand by their patients to the very end, but, from experience, I know how shocking it can be when the doctor proposes the transfer of the patient to a hospital with a palliative care unit. I cannot blame the speechless family if they began to question the doctor\u2019s main motive. What is it really about, life or the balance sheet?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cGood Death\u201d in the title means good for the state alone. The way the state imposes its will on individuals in the play leads us to suspect that \u201cdue process\u201d may be abused. The Japanese government has issued its guidelines for \u201cthe Decision-Making Process of the End-of-Life Medical Care,\u201d which stipulate minute procedure before achieving consent among the patient and the family, but the sheer fact that such guidelines exist may prompt someone to wrest consents for the termination of treatment from the patient and the family for the public good, that is, saving the national health care system from default. Arguably, mass media is endorsing this sentiment, running an anxiety campaign over the perilous state of national medical care system and, at the same time, showing ways of preparing for one\u2019s death. What next will be called into service to beautify death for this \u201cduty-to-die campaign\u201d in Japan\u2014the traditional samurai spirit of bushido<\/em>? <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
“Eugenics<\/a> is the self-direction of human evolution”: Logo from the Second International Eugenics Congress, 1921. Caption and photo: Wikipedia <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Labelling as Unfit<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Lurking behind is some sort of analogy\nbetween ageism and eugenics. In fact, Japan has recently seen several atrocities\non the weak and handicapped, especially in nursing homes for the handicapped\nand the elderly. In the Sagamihara stabbings in Kanagawa Prefecture (2016),\nnineteen residents of a nursing home for the disabled were killed and\ntwenty-six others injured, thirteen severely. The perpetrator, then 26 years\nold, was a former caregiver of the facility. He reportedly espoused Nazi\nideology and harboured strong eugenic hate regarding the disabled as a waste of\ntax money. He even claimed that people with heavy disability should be euthanised.\nWhile no generalised speculation should be drawn out of this, we should be\nvigilant against the spreading of eugenicist sentiments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a protest against the Sagamihara case and\nits implications, a powerful piece was created by a theatre company of disabled\nperformers. Nirai Kanai: Watershed of Life<\/em> by the Performance Troupe\nTaihen (Za Koenji, Tokyo, November 2018) was inspired by the tragedy in\nSagamihara. Kim Manri, the troupe\u2019s leader,\nwith severe physical paralysis due to poliomyelitis which infected her at the\nage of three, has led the company for 35 years,\nwith the aim to create performances of artistic finesse that only the disabled can\nachieve. Looking back on her life at a care home for the disabled from the age\nof seven to seventeen, Kim feels that the patronising mindset is still\nprevalent among many without disabilities; the mindset which expects a \u201cthank\nyou\u201d from the \u201csocially weak\u201d after every hand of assistance. Just like kabuki,\nTaihen\u2019s performance requires black-robed stagehands, but Kim thinks that their\n\u201cassistance\u201d is only an integral part of the society in which the disabled is\nas entitled to live a full life as the able.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Performance Troupe Taihen, Nirai Kanai: Watershed of Life<\/em> (November 2018). Photo: bozzo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The creation of the piece has very much to do\nwith the sensation Kim had when she visited Iriomote Island in Okinawa, where she\ndecided to launch her own troupe decades ago, when she was in her 30s. She was\nstruck by the contrast between the sense of liberation she experienced in the\nlush mangrove forest and the feelings of entrapment back in her care home. Humbled\nbefore nature, her world view was turned upside down. She realised that the\nhuge forestry and the tiny ants living there both have their own independent\noutlook on the universe. There was no point in comparing the two. From the\nvantage point of a writer of poetic and philosophical depths, Kim looks back\nupon this realisation in the programme notes for Nirai Kanai<\/em>: \u201cBoth are striving\nto live,\/ In the exquisite cycle of life.\u201d This sensation is very much alive in\nher piece, which is a homage to life in the cycle of the universe, where human\nbeings and nature come together as one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is the story of bedridden Abotaka in a hospital ward for children. The eleven scenes trace her dream, in which she eventually attains the sense of liberation through encountering a different world. After the deafening sound at the beginning, the performers in leotards begin the spectacle. A man in a striped apron (Yusuke Koizumi) starts dancing like a bird pecking on a tree, followed by a beautiful solo by a man with a handicap on one leg. In the scene \u201cFairies of the Forest,\u201d two women\u2015one without hands (Ayano Watanabe) and the other only with the torso (Nozomi Mukai)\u2015perform a beautiful duet, with a touching moment when Mukai crawls over the floor on her own and lays herself on the lap of Watanabe. The image of the two being together shoulder to shoulder is full of tenderness. Then, the performance develops into a corps de ballet of nine, each holding a brown root-like object. They jostle against each other like roots vying for more space in the soil, but, gradually, they start to rejoice in the sheer diversity of their physicality\u2015and of their disabilities\u2015until their movements grow into a sanctified harmony against the small shrine in the background, ornamented with rainbow-coloured ribbons. This finale was radiating with the joy and pride of the performers being there on the stage as undeniably present. It was a performance powerful enough to shake the spectators\u2019 heart and mind, and to take them to a new realisation about life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNailed to the earth by the inescapable force\nof gravity,\u201d wrote Kim, \u201cour form of resistance is to embrace. Let us embrace everything\nthat comes from over the ocean, no matter how evil, and turn them all into\ngood.\u201d What goes up must come down, every leap necessitates a fall. Gravity\ndiscriminates no life on earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Meaning of Life<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

There is a parallel between the Sagamihara\nstabbings that victimised the disabled and murder cases that victimised the\nelderly. In the same year, a professional caregiver was arrested for the 2014\nserial killings in a care home for the elderly. Alarmed by the sheer inhumanity\nof the Sagamihara stabbings, Y\u014d Hemmi wrote Moon<\/em>, a novel in which is\ndisclosed the stream of consciousness of the gender-unspecified disabled person\nnamed K\u012b-chan, who feels \u201clike a lump of rice cake on the bed, completely\nunable to move, to see, or to talk.\u201d The horror of the novel culminates when\nthe urge for \u201cpurification through eliminating the unfit\u201d goes out of hand\nwithin Sato-kun, a former caregiver of the home. He goes on a killing spree,\nasking each of the target residents, \u201cCan you speak? You can\u2019t? Do you have a\nheart? A human heart? . . . Let me confirm, are you heartless?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
Yo Hemmi, the author of Moon<\/em>. Photo: Counetrpoint press<\/a> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In one interview, televised by the NHK, Hemmi\npassionately talked about his views defying his own illness, now in a serious\nstage. \u201cThis world, this country has no future,\u201d snaps the novelist. \u201cIt is\nsickening to have to witness the blurring of the line between good and bad,\nwhen nothing is more futile than trying to draw a boundary between the disabled\nand those who are not. We all have disabilities, without exception.\u201d His view\nstrongly resonates with Kim\u2019s pride and dignity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Should we see in the current ageism those old eugenicist horrors revived in a new form? Margaret Morganroth Gullette, a cultural gerontologist, thinks the answer is definitely a \u201cYes\u201d:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Old, frail and disabled people seem to be the collective target of a new eugenics rhetoric. The \u201cduty-to-die campaign\u201d implies that such people are likely to be a \u201cburden,\u201d unworthy of resources. If you are not active, engaged, productive, autonomous, close to the ideal healthy (middle-class) \u201cyouthful\u201d person, you should somehow bow out.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In a more descriptive tone, Kathleen Goley and\nHerbert Hendin detect a trace of eugenicist discourse in the advocation for\neuthanasia in our ageing world under increasing financial pressure:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

The postwar revulsion to the holocaust, and to the role of physicians in implementing it, discredited the euthanasia movement. A significant minority of advocates, however, while not stressing the eugenic aspects of euthanasia, continue to see it as a necessary social remedy for the increasing number of old people, the inadequacy of nursing homes, and the economic cost to families and society of caring for the elderly. (7)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Charmaine Spencer, a lawyer and gerontologist, points out the\ndanger of the ageist discourse internalised within the elderly: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Some older adults express the wish to die. This may reflect a desire for control over their lives, but it may also be a response to an ageist society, people\u2019s concerns about being a \u201cburden,\u201d and to the larger society\u2019s implications that it wishes to be \u201crid\u201d of such \u201cburdens.\u201d Ageism is an undercurrent in ethical discussions in health care about resource allocation, and qualitative and quantitative futility. To date, much of this discussion has been in the context of persons with developmental disabilities, eugenics and children. (42)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

It is only natural that we see the rapid growth of this sort of pressure on the elderly in Japan, the most rapidly aging country in the world. Recognised cases of abuse by nursing home staff have been on a steep rise. According to a survey by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare<\/a>, reported cases of abuse\u2015physical, psychological, economical, or in the form of neglect\u2015rose from 273 in fiscal 2006 (starting in April in Japan) to 1,640 in fiscal 2017, while established cases among them rose from 54 to 408 in the same period.[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Matsui\u2019s A Thought on the Good Death\nVibration<\/em> establishes a parallel between ageism and eugenics. Kim\u2019s Nirai\nKanai<\/em> tackles eugenics head-on by letting the troupe\u2019s physical poetry\nglorify diversity. These two pieces are good examples of how theatre in Japan\n2018 addressed the meaning of life, and thus to counter the gnawing sense of\nunease imposed upon us by rampant political cynicism in this increasingly\nopaque world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One clear thing, though. No one is \u201cunfit\u201d enough to live fully to the very end. The blame should go to the eye of the beholder who draws the line between the fit and the unfit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
Endnote<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

[1]<\/sup><\/a>See also \u201cElderly Abuse a Growing Problem in Aging Japan Society<\/a>,\u201d Apr 11, 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
Bibliography<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Foley, Kathleen, and Herbert Hendin,\neditors. The Case Against Assisted Suicide: For the Right to End-of-Life\nCare<\/em>. The Johns Hopkins UP, 2002. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morganroth Gullette, Margaret. \u201cTaking a Stand against Ageism at All Ages: A Powerful Coalition.\u201d On the Issues Magazine<\/a><\/em>, Fall 2011. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spencer, Charmaine. \u201cAgeism and the Law: Emerging Concepts and Practices in Housing and Health: Advancing Substantive Equality for Older Persons through Law, Policy and Practice<\/a>.\u201d Paper Commissioned by the Law Commission of Ontario<\/a>, Canada, August 2009. <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n\"\"
 \n\n\n\n

*<\/a>Akiko Tachiki<\/strong> is a critic\/journalist for dance and theatre. She also teaches as a university lecturer based in Tokyo. She has been contributing to numerous Japanese media including Dance Magazine<\/em>, Dance Art<\/em> and Theatre Arts<\/em>, as well as several newspapers since the 1980s, including a nationwide newspaper, Yomiuri Shimbun<\/em>. Internationally, she is a correspondent from Japan for tanz<\/em> magazine in Berlin<\/a>, Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Copyright \u00a9<\/strong> 2019 Akiko Tachiki
Critical Stages\/Sc\u00e8nes critiques<\/em> e-ISSN: 2409-7411<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Creative<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This work is licensed under the
Creative Commons Attribution International License CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":512,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[13],"class_list":["post-508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-special-topic","tag-st-front"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/12\/image4-1.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":756,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/a-note-from-the-guest-editors\/","url_meta":{"origin":508,"position":0},"title":"A Note from the Guest Editors","author":"Akiko Tachiki","date":"December 4, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Manabu Noda* and Yun Cheol Kim** The world is ageing\u2212and fast. According to the United Nations, already one in eleven of the world population is over 65, and by 2050 the rate will be one in six. The 65+ age band outnumbered children under five years of age for the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Special Topic"","block_context":{"text":"Special Topic","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/category\/special-topic\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/Manabu_Noda2-140x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":79,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/reminiscence-drama-in-an-ageing-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":508,"position":1},"title":"Reminiscence Drama in an Ageing World","author":"Akiko Tachiki","date":"October 8, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Katerina Kosti* Abstract Today the world\u2019s population is ageing, due to both an ongoing decline in fertility and an accompanying increase in longevity. This poses a myriad of challenges for the elderly, most notably the creative use of leisure time. In this context, drama has the potential to promote a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Special Topic"","block_context":{"text":"Special Topic","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/category\/special-topic\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image3-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image3-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image3-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image3-1.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":91,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/age-on-stage\/","url_meta":{"origin":508,"position":2},"title":"Age on Stage","author":"Akiko Tachiki","date":"October 8, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Nancy Westman* Abstract Age on Stage started in Sweden in 2015, in order to allow mature professional dance artists to carry on their careers for as long as they wish. Charlotta \u00d6fverholm is the woman behind the project. She and Age on Stage are now joining forces, in Sweden as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Special Topic"","block_context":{"text":"Special Topic","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/category\/special-topic\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image1-2.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image1-2.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image1-2.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image1-2.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":225,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/age-and-politics-in-early-american-drama\/","url_meta":{"origin":508,"position":3},"title":"Age and Politics in Early American Drama","author":"Akiko Tachiki","date":"October 21, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Zoe Detsi* Abstract This paper seeks to explore how age as a determining category of identity was represented on the American stage in the years following the American Revolution. By bringing early American drama\u2014a field largely neglected in itself\u2014into the discussion of performance and age studies, this paper examines age\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Special Topic"","block_context":{"text":"Special Topic","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/category\/special-topic\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image2-8.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image2-8.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image2-8.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/image2-8.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":534,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/theatre-at-the-crossroads-trends-and-challenges-of-georgian-theatre-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":508,"position":4},"title":"Theatre at the Crossroads: Trends and Challenges of Georgian Theatre Today","author":"Akiko Tachiki","date":"December 3, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Natalia Tvaltchrelidze* Abstract The paper overviews recent tendencies in the theatre life in Georgia. In particular, it presents the latest statistical data and audience research on theatre; it discusses theatre festival life in Georgia and the latest trends in the productions of young directors in the country.Keywords: Georgia, theatre, festivals,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "National Reports"","block_context":{"text":"National Reports","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/category\/national-reports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/12\/image5-3.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/12\/image5-3.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/12\/image5-3.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/12\/image5-3.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":145,"url":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/american-theatre-now-an-interview-with-carlos-morton\/","url_meta":{"origin":508,"position":5},"title":"American Theatre Now: Interview with Carlos Morton","author":"Akiko Tachiki","date":"December 4, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Aikaterini Delikonstantinidou* Prolific throughout his career as playwright, which spans well over four decades, Carlos Morton draws material for his theatre work from his many travels across continents. His family\u2019s immigrant background and his experience of living throughout the United States and Latin America inspired early on a deep\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Interviews"","block_context":{"text":"Interviews","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/category\/interviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2019\/10\/Photo-8.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1238,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508\/revisions\/1238"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/20\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}