"Elephant," by Minoru Betsuyaku, is a postwar classic of Japanese drama.
One of the very few Japanese plays written about the aftermath of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, it has been performed many times in this country since its premier nearly 50 years ago.
The New National Theater in Tokyo has just staged a new production, and I will return to that later. But first, more about the brilliant play itself.