Betsuyaku Minoru's Artful Ambiguity

Abstract

Abstract:

Betsuyaku Minoru was a leading luminary of Japan’s ground-breaking angura (underground) theatre movement, his influence extending over 60 years. His signature style, marked by spare staging, absurdist situations and dialogue, abundant humor, and purposeful ambiguity, is reminiscent at times of Samuel Beckett. He builds ambiguity into the structure of his plays, provoking spectators to question the identity of the characters and, ultimately, themselves. Godot Came, taking off from the end of Beckett’s famous piece, is a prime example of his work.