Originally published in 1968, the year the influential magazine Provoke launched, the book already displays Moriyama's distinctive visual style. At the invitation of Japanese writer Shuji Terayama, Moriyama began photographing members of a travelling theatre troupe, adding images of dancers with dwarfism, strip clubs, street performers, foetuses in formaldehyde containers and other subjects.
 
 
 
Japan, a Photo Theater concludes with detailed information about the making of the photographs and their first appearances in Japanese magazines.