Popular Theatre - Taishuu Engeki

A general term for the theater most popular with the masses, as opposed to high-class and middle-class theater. It is more entertainment-oriented than artistic, and developed in response to the expansion of modern popular society. In Japan, it includes swordplay, female swordplay, light theater, revue, and strip show, but the boundaries are vague and it can also include relatively popular theater such as Shinpa theater, Kabuki, and modern theater. In any case, it is influenced by the emotions of the masses who are the audience, and is easily influenced by the mass media, so it is subject to great ups and downs. Also, from around the 1970s, small theater companies that were previously known as vaudeville theaters and traveling theaters all began to call themselves "popular theater," but these can be said to be popular theater in the narrowest sense because they are closest to the common people in that they have low admission fees and very common content.

[Soya Mukai]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

いわゆる高級演劇や中間演劇に対する、もっとも大衆に親しまれる演劇の総称。芸術性よりは娯楽性が大きな要素になっており、近代大衆社会の拡大に照応して発展した。日本では剣劇、女剣劇、軽演劇、レビュー、ストリップショーの類(たぐい)をさすが、境界はあいまいで、新派(しんぱ)劇、歌舞伎(かぶき)、新劇などのうち比較的大衆向けのものを含めることもある。いずれにしても受け手である大衆の情緒性に左右され、マスコミの影響を受けやすく、栄枯盛衰が甚だしい。また、1970年（昭和45）代あたりから、それまで俗に寄席(よせ)芝居、旅芝居とよばれていた小規模の劇団がこぞって「大衆演劇」を自称するようになったが、これらは入場料も低廉で内容もごく通俗的という点でもっとも庶民に密着した存在であるところから、最狭義の大衆演劇といえよう。

［向井爽也］

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