Kamishibai: “touching” narrative and expressive art

Abstract

Originally, Kamishibai (紙芝居 from the Japanese translated as theatre of paper) was born as an agile and immediate form of entertainment; for its narrative and expressive artistic energy, it is nowadays appreciated as a significant resource in education. My short contribution is intended to provide initial introduction to Kamishibai, opening the doors of this small theatre, making room for new forms of imaginative and creative storytelling, relational and emotional experiences, valuing tactile and sensory experience, as well. Touch and contact can be realised by sharing co-constructed readings about the world and by emotional participation in a new proximity, made up of glances that touch, sounds and voices that recall, gestures and rhythms that attract, images that host. Kamishibai is a simple object, even light to transport; it easily finds its place in indoor as well as outdoor environments, creating frames and places of enchantment; it works thanks to human energy (bodily-emotional-imaginative) that Kamishibai does not consume, but rather regenerates.