‘Experiencing’ the scars of history: immersive theatres of ‘anti-Japanese resistance’ in Shanghai

This contrapuntal review examines how immersive theatre in China reconstructs and politicises historical ‘scars’ of the ‘Anti-Japanese War of Resistance’ within contemporary memory politics. It asks how memorialising history can be facilitated and utilised through immersion in China. Drawing on a qualitative case study of an immersive theatre production in Shanghai, the analysis combines textual interpretation of the performance with insights from participant experiences and existing literature on trauma and memory. The article identifies three types of ‘scars’ evoked in the performance: emotional (individual trauma and empathy), communal (shared suffering and national unity) and geopolitical (ongoing tensions between China and Japan over historical accountability). Through immersive techniques, such as role-playing, sensory staging and narrative participation, the production enables audiences to ‘re-experience’ wartime conditions, fostering identification with ordinary citizens and guiding participants towards a unified stance of resistance. The article argues that performances serve as a process to help unify collective memory and align it with China’s foreign-policy critiques of unresolved historical tensions. By transforming historical scars into shared emotional experiences, such practices reinforce national cohesion while articulating China’s perspective on unresolved historical conflicts. The findings suggest that immersive theatre operates not only as entertainment but also as an effective pedagogical and political tool. It aligns personal emotional experiences with state-endorsed historical narratives, particularly emphasising sacrifice, unity and the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party’s role in wartime resistance.