#honorable mention to the takarazuka version

[cethvalier]

im not a rondo defender BUT. the hungarian version is like really awesome and cool

[margridarnauds]

[Musical ask] 1789 😗 (Toho and Takarazuka versions~)

Takarazuka - Actually leaning towards Les Mots Que L’On Ne Dit Pas. It was always my favorite addition to the second season of the French production, and I was really thrilled to see it highlighted so much. It was a really solid first act closer as we got to see how everyone’s arcs are as of that point in the musical. 

I also HAVE to give an honorable mention to Maniaque, because...it did...kind of....determine my fandom activity for the last. Three or so. Years. And that’s honestly impressive. 

Toho - This is actually going to be a shocker, I know, because it’s not what anyone would EXPECT knowing my...strong....preferences, but I actually ADORE La Guerre Pour se Plaire, especially in the D’Espoir cast, because Teppei and Sayaka’s voices went SO WELL together. It was really a cast where you really got the feeling of something tentative, scary, and exciting beginning. 

[eien-no-gakusha]

A Don’s Entourage

Continuation of my discussion of the Don Juan “trilogy” of sister shows.  Please go [here] for analysis of the titular characters.

In addressing the supporting cast, there was a tradeoff between the complexity of Don Giovanni and the rest of the cast in later iterations.  Where the titular character was simplified in later adaptations, the other characters were further developed from mere victims to entire ethical dilemmas.  Unlike Don Giovanni being cleanly split to his essence in his successors, the supporting cast did not reincarnate so smoothly.  Some changed names, some changed roles, some were split, some were combined, and some were made up from thin air.

The True Love

(Ugh, good musumeyaku pictures are so hard to find…at least Yuki was a Top)

These characters were musical only inventions to drive their respective plots.  Maria (Irodori Michiru and Marie-Eve Janvier) is Don Juan’s curse, enchanted by the Ghost to fall in love with him and instigate the duel with her fiancé that will kill him.  Beatrice (Senna Ayase) is Casanova’s destined better half and it is her plight that drives Casanova to action.

Maria is a strong, independent woman who wants to pursue a career over submitting to her own gender roles as wife and mother.  She’s reluctant about marriage and giving up her passion of sculpting, which is more strongly stressed in the Takarazuka version.  Yet due to supernatural intervention of the Ghost she loses all agency and changes completely to brainwashed lover.  (Seriously, what happened to you Maria!?)  Like the other citizens, she adores the Grand Master and is honored to carve his memorial but his ghost just uses her to exact his revenge.  She ends the show heartbroken and her own fate and reputation uncertain having lost her scoundrel lover very publicly to her violent fiancé.

I feel there was a lot of wasted potential with Maria’s character.  She is only used as a plot device and has a very basic and unnaturally written arc.  If it weren’t for the stronger presence of the Ghost in the musical, her emotional journey would not make sense from someone who condemns Don Juan for murder to his lover.  Their romance is also incredibly weak without the bad voodoo.  Takarazuka tries to resolve this by portraying Maria as a woman ahead of her time and changing the order of Raphael’s scenes.  Problem is Don Juan himself doesn’t address why she is different, he’s just smitten at first sight a la Disney.  If it weren’t for the constant references to the curse and the dark tone, the romance of the “special” girl would have fallen apart.  But Maria starts as an interesting character and the romance could have greatly improved with a few small tweaks.  Her independence should have been used to greater effect, being career oriented and therefore not as suspectable to Don Juan’s advances.  This would intrigue him and force him to know her as a person in an extended courtship.  Thus their romance would provide greater contrast to the Don’s usual conquests and make a more impactful tragedy.

Beatrice is also an independent and educated woman keen on making a career in politics and pursuing a fulfilling, adventurous life.  Like Maria, Beatrice is also confronted by societal expectations to make an advantageous marriage and be content in her role.  But she wants to engage in Venice as a politician alongside her uncle the Doge.  However, unlike Maria, she takes a life of her own.  Arguably, she is the true protagonist of Casanova the musical with the titular character supporting her story.  She is important in Casanova’s transition from youth to mature man, transforming him from a swashbuckling lover of many to a man dedicated to one and ready to settle down from his risky adventures.  However, her hero’s journey is the main story.  She starts off as a sheltered girl straight from a convent but after various trials she grows into an affirmative statesman who can lead Venice.  Casanova serves as her mentor and friend throughout her trials and she is rewarded for her responsible sacrifice to rebuild Venice with his sole affection.  I must applaud Senna Ayase’s attention to detail and nuanced acting to bring such a subtle character to life with the material she was given.  Truly a splendid finale performance for her Takarazuka career!

As mentioned earlier, Don Giovanni does not sport stand-out lover as his character is multi-faceted enough to stand on his own.  While his character may suffer in succeeding iterations, that did make room to create more compelling female characters and refresh this tale as old as time.

[pellicano-sanguino]

Now that Kurenai Yuzuru's taidan is drawing closer, I wanted to write something short about some of the roles she's done that I have fond memories of.

These are mostly from Reon's era, since most of my Hoshigumi shows are from that time. I need to see more shows from Kurenai's own top star run.

Mercutio from Romeo&Juliette 2010

This was the first zuka show I saw, and still my favourite show to this day. I could go into all the details about how I love this musical, but now I'm just going to mention the casting. It was perfect. Everyone got a role that fit their acting style perfectly. Kurenai was a natural Mercutio, the best one I've ever seen. She nailed Merkku's immaturity, playfulness and – most importantly in my opinion – his recklessness.

Memorable scenes are Mercutio's song number when he tempts his Montague buddies to go with him to crash the Capulet's party, him and the boys bullying Nurse, confronting Romeo after hearing the news about his wedding (I was quite shocked to see Mercutio threaten Romeo with honor violence, claiming he's going to slit his throat if he won't give up Juliette) and the fight scene followed by Mercutio's death including a final song of ”goodbye friends and PLAGUE ON BOTH YOUR HOUSES!”

I admit, I don't usually care for it when zuka gives a dying character one final song that they sing in weak, slow voice, milking the tragedy for all the drama its worth. It often fails to be sad and just feels cheesy and soap operaish. But I found the song of dying Mercutio very touching, when I saw the scene for the first time I cried real tears. Despite the language barrier, Kurenai managed to reach to me with her voice and her acting and make me shed tears for Mercutio's death.

Sid from Officer and Gentleman

Officer and Gentleman isn't the kind of movie I'd thought would get a zuka adaptation and yet it exists. Zuka is very clearly targeted for women and this movie is more for the male audience. I know it has a romance and is therefore regarded as a love story but in my opinion this flick is more like a coming-of-age story about the character growth the male lead goes through (also, it oozes toxic masculinity, a thing more common in films for men). Anyway, the zuka version is actually a pretty good show. Ouki Kaname totally steals every scene she's in. But today I'm here to talk about Kurenai.

Kurenai is probably best known for her talent in comedy. Sometimes I've heard people say that's the only kind of shows she should do and that always made me sad, because Kurenai isn't a one trick pony trapped to do only one character type. I have been very impressed at her talent in playing sensitive men. Many otokoyaku roles rely on strong and cool male image, but Kurenai sometimes gets roles that let her show emotions, the men she plays are allowed to be vulnerable. Sid is one of these. Sid is young and a bit naive and makes stupid decisions, but when he thinks he's done a mistake, he is ready to take responsibility of it. The scene where he goes to propose Lynette breaks my heart every time. That look on his face when he finds out he's been lied to, it just hits me right in the feels. There is something so naturally charming and lovable in Kurenai that seeing her characters get hurt makes me feel awful. Like, no, don't do this to her!

Karenin from Anna Karenina

I have not read this book, but its one of my mother's favourites, so we watched this show together and she pointed me all the things that she thought zuka had adapted well and the parts that they had changed. She was especially impressed with Kurenai's Karenin. According to my mother, the character of Karenin is often done quite poorly in other adaptations of the book, he is often portrayed as just a onesided, simple man who's a little dumb and doesn't have much depth of character. Much like Sid, Kurenai's Karenin is allowed to show his emotions and not be just a boring, stoic figure who reacts to his wife's affair with mild disinterest. There is kindness in Karenin, it's not always easy to see, but it's there. He lost his own parents and a brother that was dear to him, and because he remembers how horrible it is to be alone and lose your family, he adopts Anna's and Vronsky's child, not wanting her to be left alone.

Antonio from Tale of Coimbra

I have opinions concerning this show. Namely, I think it misses a golden opportunity to put the zuka trope of reunion of lovers in the afterlife to proper use. Big part of the Coimbra legend are the coffins of Pedro and Inez being placed so that when they rise in Doomsday, the first thing they see is each others' faces. And zuka just had to go and twist the story so that Inez doesn't die (and they don't even get a happy ending despite that! Poor Pedro, he just can't win.). Also, very, very disappointed at the lack of Corpse Queen and tearing out assassin-Makaze's heart with a line ”You broke my heart, therefore you have none!”

Ahem. Sorry about the rant. Anyway, Kurenai is in this musical. He plays a guy named Antonio, who is...   umm... I think a pirate or a robber or something along those lines. The group of robbers/pirates gets made into scapegoats for Inez's murder, and Pedro, Pimenta, assassin-Makaze and some soldiers mercilessly slaughter them all. Kurenai's role gets very little stage time, but I wanted to mention this role, because I was very impressed with her stage swordplay skills. I don't know if I should credit the director for this, or if Kurenai did some research of her own, but her legwork is strong and sometimes I can even identify the poses she makes as part of real swordplay moves.

Warrior seeking to fight with Reon, from Takarazuka Floral Dance Scrolls

This is my favourite nihonmono revue. The music, the dancing and the costumes are all great. In one of the numbers Kurenai plays a warrior who doesn't get along with another warrior, played by Reon. I don't know what their beef is about, Kurenai just hates Reon's guts and sends ninjas to ambush him when he's spending time flirting with local ladies. Reon being Reon, he defeats all the ninjas and makes a daring escape with courtesan-Nene. They are heading towards a river, intending to ride a boat to safety, but by the riverside Kurenai confronts them. Holding his sword he opens his arms like inviting Reon for a hug. Come at me bro! And so they fight, doing the samurai slash thing where time freezes after they've struck at each other and then the one who lost slowly falls. The one who falls is Kurenai, and Reon and Nene proceed to their romantic boatride.

This number has left an impression on me, because I think the nihonmono look suits Kurenai really well. She made a very handsome and cool-looking warrior.

Shibata Rihito from Mei-chan's Butler

Takarazuka and shoujo manga have walked hand in hand since the days of BeruBara Boom and even before, inspiring each other. Every now and then zuka does a show based on a manga. This one, unfortunately, is based on a manga I have never read and therefore I had no idea what was going on during most of this musical. But I still found it rather entertaining (the prop work sure was something different, with weird video projections, shadow theater and parachuting puppets). I admit, the many colourful side characters steal the show from Kurenai quite often, being wilder and weirder than her character is. I will have to give special mention to Makaze's evil butler, I love it when Makaze plays villains. But at the end, this is Kurenai's show. She was a very dashing butler.  

Memorable scenes include a weird, artsy, dream-like interpretive dance scene where the shadow theater is put to good use for * symbolism *.

 Because I haven't read the manga, I have no idea what is going on here. My bet is on drugs.

Also among the memorable scenes is the fencing. I still think Kurenai is pretty good with a sword.

I need to come up with name for this trope, where the opponents lock their swords for a while to glare at each other and chat.

Bourguignon from Second Fortuitous Meeting

Many zuka comedies are wasted on me because so many of the jokes are language based and I still don't understand much Japanese. But this one I liked very much. Admittedly, I got to read a translation once, so this time I got the jokes, but even ignoring the spoken jokes, it's just a really fun show. Every character was fantastic, Kurenai's role as a manservant forced to fake being his own master included. Her talent in comedy is very strong, she masters small things like the tone of her voice, the expressions of her face and simple bodylanguage and makes her character absolutely hilarious. I have noticed  that one character pair zuka shows tend to have is pairing a cool and serious master with a sassy, loud, no-filter-between-brains-and-mouth servant, who works as a comedic relief softening the seriousness of their master. In a show like Second Fortuitous Meeting, where everyone is sassy, loud and has no filter between brains and mouth, Kurenai needs to tone her comedy up quite a bit so that Bourguignon will appear even funnier than his master.

Most memorable scene is Bourguignon sitting down in protest like a misbehaving infant when Dorante demands they leave.

This show got a sequel. It was just as fun as the first one, even though this time I had no translation and so had very little clue what was going on. Something involving a pumpkin thief.

Beniko and Reon's father from REON!!

Otokoyaku in drag for comedy reasons is quite a common thing in zuka, and usually I find it as amusing as real men in drag (in other words, not very). But I adore Beniko. The reason why her comedy works is that the joke isn't just putting otokoyaku in drag, Beniko is a carefully designed sketch character. Her costume, her curls that she constantly keeps shoving back over her shoulders, the way she speaks (this has to be some sort of dialect, I swear), she is just incredibly funny. I don't think I can properly explain why I find her so amusing, after all I don't even understand what she says. There's just something about Beniko that always makes me smile.

There was also a number where Reon sang about her family. Makaze and Kurenai played her parents. Makaze made a very charming Japanese beauty in her apron (I usually don't like it when they make her wear dresses, but here she looked so natural it suited her well). She had to bend her knees a little to appear shorter than Kurenai. Kurenai as Reon's father was weird looking, with thick eyebrows that made him look like a comic character. But he was a very sweet father, eagerly making faces and shaking a rattle at baby Reon, and smiling even when the fighting kids accidentally poured a tea kettle on him. I've always felt that Makaze and Kurenai had great chemistry together and seeing them play a married couple was adorable.

Gemini from Etoile de Takarazuka

Again, putting otokoyaku in drag isn't fun if you don't give her character. Well, in this revue Kurenai had to put her skills to the test by switching between two characters several times during the same number. The split-personality Gemini suffered from manic-depressive behavious. 

The female side was happy and giddy and optimistic (”Everybody loves me, I'm so pretty, and so witty, I'm so gay!”)

...and the male half was gloomy and depressed and had no self-esteem (”Nobody loves me, everybody hates me, guess I'll go eat worms...”). 

I have to respect her for managing these quick switches between otokoyaku and onnayaku, cheerful and gloomy, the changing between characters was done smoothly.

Also, I want that dress...   suit...   costume...   thing...   I want that dresssuitcostumething. I would wear it to every dance ball ever.

Frederic de Marmont from Napoleon

This show had a ton of characters, many of them quite colourful ones, and unfortunately Marmont was often left as only the observer of things happening around him (well, the story is being told by him, so it kinda fits). Nevertheless I think Kurenai was very handsome in the uniform, and I think Marmont got some important scenes. He knew Napoleon from the military school and there's a song number where he voices concern for his friend's endless thirst for more victories. In the end, he is the one who decides to surrender Paris, understanding that it's madness to keep fighting and lose more lives when losing the battle can no longer be avoided.

The part I remember Kurenai most in this show is actually from the minirevue. She dances a rather romantic dance with Makaze. I will say it again, these two had great chemistry together.

Philippe from Sun King

I know there are probably only like a handful of fans who like this show besides me, but I loved it. I've always been a sucker for French imported musicals in zuka. This show is another example of good casting, everyone gets a character that no one else would have done as well as they have. Kurenai, being the best there is at comedy, gets the comedic relief character Philippe the gay-tailed pheasant, who also shows to the audience how the royals and nobles lived in a fantasy bubble completely separated from real life. She gets three songs and she sings them well. I haven't mentioned it before now, but I really like Kurenai's voice. It's a very recognisable, charming, unique voice. I also have to show respect at how easily and naturally she wears the gaudiest costumes. This show has some really ridiculous costume designs for the nobles to show how separate they are from common folks, but Kurenai wears hers with pride. I can almost picture her looking at a costume desing and being like ”Wow that is the ugliest thing I've ever seen, when can I try it on?”

Percy Blakeney from Scarlet Pimpernel

When Reon and Nene graduated, my star also left Hoshigumi and I followed her to a new home troupe, so I haven't seen that many Hoshigumi shows after Reon's era. But when I saw that they were going to make Scarlett Pimpernel, I had to get it. I had seen Kurenai perform Percy as a shinko role and I thought she was brilliant even then.

Of course I was going to use screenshots of the fencing scene. What else did you expect?

Once when I was sick and couldn't even read books, just rest, I borrowed some audio books from the library. This is how I was introduced to Scarlet Pimpernel. I liked the audio book a lot, especially the menacing, raspy voice they gave to Chauvelin. I was delighted to discover one of the first stories to use the idea of a masked hero. Men who like Batman are not allowed to make fun of me for liking Scarlet Pimpernel.

Scarlet Pimpernel is such an entertaining story and Percy is such a charming hero, saving innocents and having fun while doing it. I like Kiriya Hiromu's Percy a lot too, but Kurenai's is my favourite. She really gets into the character and makes a very lovely Percy. Having to wear disguises in this show, she once again shows her ability to fit into all deliciously awful outfits (like the suits they wear to the party held by the prince of Wales). But even out of disguises, I've got to admit Percy's got style. I also obviously adored the sword dance in the mini revue. Kurenai's Percy brings a smile to my face whenever he's on screen. This is probably the role I will remember her most from.

I will miss Kurenai terribly. Whatever she decides to do after leaving Takarazuka, I wish her good luck and happiness as thanks for all the times she brought me lauhter, tears and joy.

[zukadiary]

Mugen Musou / Krung Thep ~ Moon Troupe 2019

Over the length of my trip I saw a pretty fair cross section of this show—way back in mid-March pre-Krung Thep changes in Takarazuka; the live viewing of Takarazuka raku with Miya’s sayonara show included; and last week in Tokyo, the first full day of Reiko’s absence with the cast changes in place. 

I solidly did not enjoy Mugen Musou. I love Tamaki’s Tsukigumi, I love Miya Rurika and was so glad I had the opportunity to see her last show, and no one’s treatment in Mugen Musou was able to save it for me. I think perhaps if you read and enjoyed the novel, and also love Tsukigumi, there’s a decent chance that you’ll like this. I did not read the novel, and it felt very much like I had to as a prerequisite. 

There was an awful lot jammed into an hour and a half. The flow of the show bothered me; there were so many scenes, they changed so quickly, and none of them felt very substantial to me. In Saito-sensei’s attempt to cover as much plot as humanly possible, I think he lost the characters; while I understood generally what was going on, I did not immediately get who many of the characters were, how they knew each other, or why many of them were doing what they were doing. 

That provided a poor setup for my biggest gripe: I recognize that I am an American, and I am not necessarily the intended audience, and that this is certainly a big part of Japanese history and culture, but in the year 2019, the whole samurai honor I-must-kill-everyone-just-to-prove-I’m-strongest thing is not very compelling to me. If accompanied by moving character relationships (which, I hear, the novel has in spades), I can definitely give it a pass; but in the absence of onstage character development, that as the standalone force driving the story was simply not interesting or relatable enough to me to be enjoyable.

With a few exceptions—and this probably just goes back to the overall lack of character development—I thought most of the characters were ill fitted to their actresses. I don’t even think anyone did a poor job, everyone really gave it their best effort; my hang up lies entirely with the directorial choices, and I guess the choice of this show in general. I find Tamaki the most charming when she’s fully in wholesome ideal husband mode. I finally watched Elisabeth recently and liked her Tod a lot more than I expected also, so that was a fair out-of-the-box choice for her. The samurai with something to prove for no good reason other than that he’s embarrassed about his dad did not hit me where I want Tamaki to hit me. Otsu is not really presented with much depth; she’s pretty demure, and she spends the whole show waiting around for men to come back to her and gets sad when they break their promises. I was hoping we’d get something that would allow Sakura to show off her strengths a little more in her Grand Theater debut (although she did play the flute for real). I wanted more pining between Otsu and Musashi, but I didn’t really get it, and what there was seemed kind of one-sided on Otsu’s part. Kojiro, too, was one-note; I’m not sure what there was to him other than “the strongest dude” (oh, and he wears a cross, so he’s CHRISTIAN. That’s BACKSTORY). Miya did her damnedest, and she did manage a kind of cold sexy anime boy vibe, but again, especially for her last show, this was just not the kind of character I most enjoy seeing her play, nor did it play to her strengths in my opinion (with truly all the love in my heart for this woman, I have to say she cannot swordplay her way out of a wet paper bag). On my first viewing I thought Ari was the villain, but after the other two I don’t think there even is a villain; Ari seems to be just a stern guy from a dojo (that Musashi passed through when he was weak and thus *had to* defeat in its entirety when he got strong). Again, I don’t really know what his motivation was, and the character didn’t show off any of Ari’s charms, or challenge her in a meaningful way to try something different. Very few other people got roles substantial enough to be worth mentioning. 

I DID enjoy some specific things:

Reiko’s character, Matahachi, was my favorite, and her portrayal was my favorite. Matahachi had personality, and amidst all this very serious samurai glory business��going on, he had sort of his own contrary subplot that I found much more entertaining. He’s a loyal friend to Musashi, but also lazy, kinda dumb, and utterly useless. He runs away from home with Musashi in the beginning, but while Musashi is off on his quest for ultimate strength, Matahachi pretty much gives up, spends a lot of time sleeping in a brothel, has to do manual labor for 5 minutes and gets tired of it, and eventually happens upon a dying man who is trying to carry some sort of scroll of certification to Kojiro. Matahachi is thrilled at his great fortune; he takes the scroll from the dead guy and uses it to steal Kojiro’s identity, attracting hordes of women and scaring away thugs on his “reputation.” His aging parents WALK OUT OF THEIR TINY HOMETOWN with the purpose of finding him and bringing him home, and successfully find him and embarrass him in front of all his swooning admirers. I saw Oda on the first day she took over this role, and I wish I could have seen her after a little more warmup. She didn’t have the charm that endeared me to Reiko’s Matahachi, but she sure can hold her own with the rest of the upperclassmen in terms of acting and stage presence. 

Toki-chan as Akemi, a girl who Sachika’s character took into her brothel and raised, gave me the heart-wrenching yearning I wanted from Musashi and Otsu. In the very first scene after the prologue, Akemi and Musashi are walking and talking (she’s taken a liking to him). Musashi finds a bell on the ground and sticks it into Akemi’s obi. For the remainder of the show, Akemi jingles softly with every appearance and every movement, haunted via sound by the reminder of her unrequited love for Musashi, making all of her longing looks more poignant. 

There’s a scene at the end where Musashi sees a ghost/memory of his father (Shimon). Dad is like WHY DID YOU DO ANY OF THIS? and Musashi doesn’t really have an answer. Same, dad. 

I loved Krung Thep so much the first time I saw it. Then it went through some changes, and I cooled a little on it, but still thought it was really good overall. 

It’s been a 2-act heavy year so far, and Estrellas and Krung Thep (as of me writing this 2 days before Yukigumi shonichi) have been our only revues. I thought that for the most part the music in Krung Thep was beautiful, not really in a jam to the soundtrack way like Estrellas, but in a really nice ambient way; there are a lot of bells and other interesting sounds that we don’t get as frequently. It also has a dazzling gold aesthetic, the kind of spectacle you want as a Takarazuka lover going into a revue.

There were for sure some questionable moments. The boy band number (albeit this time with Sakura at the center of the boys), which, much to my chagrin, seems to have become a revue staple regardless of director, was originally THIS SONG, which I happen to know and love thanks to this Japanese version, so I forgave its presence. This was one of the three numbers that got the axe before filming day, and they replaced it with a synth remix of the Takarazuka classic C’est Magnifique. That rendered it no longer forgivable. The chuuzume was very long and set to Shall we Dance, but like... only the chorus over and over and over and over again with varying flair. It was also turbans doing absolutely nothing to disguise Daisuke’s favorite Latin ruffles, and, if not for the King and I undercurrent, it wouldn’t have fit with the rest of the show whatsoever. A King and I medley maybe would’ve been nice?

Standout numbers:

The first or second number after the prologue (depending on when you think the prologue ends) is a Reiko vs. Ari kickboxing match. It’s hammy and ridiculous and goes on for two whole rounds, which seemed TOO LONG for how awkward it was the first time I saw it... but then when the fight ends, they break into a song about “male friendship” and how they love each other no matter who wins or loses. After that I was stoked, and on subsequent viewings appreciated every detail down to their girlfriends and trainers in the audience.

There’s a beauuuutiful barefoot duet dance between Tamaki and Miya

Mayupon in drag singing in at least 3 octaves flawlessly. There’s an alternate timeline, perhaps a brighter one, where I’m just in Mayupon’s club

Admittedly one of my least favorite revue tropes where there’s a nightclub and a girl and a terrible boyfriend and a new guy who shows up and someone gets jealous and has a gun and the wrong person always dies... but this time Ari is in hotpants

The Grand Hotel numbers in the sayonara show are probably too tough a contender, but the Krung Thep kuroenbi is not only great (messy tailcoats with rolled sleeves, mmmmm) but also almost the best little taidan gift for Miya in the whole thing. I don’t know how they’re going to splice the frames together for the DVD, but it opens with Miya singing a solo, and then she goes down into the floor as the kuroenbi is starting (making it look like she won’t even be in it). The rest of the otokoyaku dance a bit, then Miya comes back up out of the floor dressed to match, and everyone else hits one of those sexy lunges in formation, and then they all turn their heads to look at her in unison. Ugh.

I’m gonna miss Miya!!!!! And I hope Reiko is doing ok.

[zukadiary]

Grand Hotel / Carousel Rondo ~ Moon Troupe 2017

A completely incidental photo that I just happened to take of my television that definitely has nothing to do with my marriage intentions.

SIGH, I am truly upset, frustrated, distressed by how much I love this Tsukigumi. It’s never the right time to sustain relationships with three entire troupes (unless you are QUITE rich), but the very outset of your fave’s top stardom is maybe the worst possible time. Yet here I am, and here they are, in their charming well-balanced glory, with their much-too-talented matriarch, and I am deep in love. I was REALLY hoping All for One would be a one-time thing. 

Grand Hotel was probably objectively some of the best Takarazuka I’ve ever watched. As a Takarazuka fan of course I love when Takarazuka hits you over the head with all their Takarazuka, but it’s also thrilling to see them attempt something so NOT THAT every once in a while. The influence of foreign directors usually makes for a very interesting product. This had a lot of Broadway in it.

It’s so hard to choose, but this could be peak Chapi? Elizaveta may not quite be the intended lynchpin of the story, but Chapi sure was the show stealer. The only thing unbelievable is her supposed age, but her poise, her acting, her lower speaking voice, all were flawless. She’s EN POINTE in a scene and I had a physical reaction to the sight of that in my entire body... but there’s another where she ascends suddenly from behind a couch clad in black lace that may have taken even more of my breath away. There are many things to enjoy about Grand Hotel but it’s honestly worth the price of a Blu-ray for Chapi alone. 

Tamakichi, someone who I fully doubted with all my doubt, has my heart and my rapt attention. I’m glad I saw this after All for One; the Baron feels like an evolution, so it’s all the more impressive when you consider it was actually the Grand Theater debut of a ken-9. She smoldered quietly and irresistibly in a very old Hollywood way, and because she’s young and earnest it’s miraculously believable when her jewel heist turns into OMG I SUDDENLY LOVE YOU. Again I would not call her chemistry with Chapi sizzling and romantic, but it’s so them, especially with Chapi’s maturity and experience so highlighted in her character. I am so excited to continue watching Tamakichi evolve, and simultaneously angry that she’s left me no choice. 

Miya friggin Rurika, here the polar opposite of my problematic confessional fantasy, gave an absolutely unreal performance. Otto is a challenging and not at all glamorous character, but she ate up the opportunity, and it was electrifying to watch. Miya is unquestionably a top star. At this point I'm so enamored with this troupe that I cringe at the thought of spoiling its perfect formula, but if she wants it, she absolutely deserves to fly off somewhere for a top career, even if it’s an abbreviated one. 

Umi was a great Flaemmchen, and based on the digest I’m glad she made it to the full recorded version; I just don’t think it’s the best character choice for Wakaba. Umi made me like Flamm quite a bit more than I did before; the one I saw in last year’s (non-Takarazuka) production was grating. 

Raffaela was my only disappointment, although I’m a bit biased a) because she’d been my favorite Grand Hotel character so I was paying extra close attention, and b) I’d previously seen her played and SLAYED by Juri Sakiho, who set a very very high bar. Ari really tried, but I hate that this was straight rank casting... Raffaela just isn’t a good fit for her, and may never be, even when she’s further honed her acting chops (and that’s fine, casting is a thing). Aasa on the digest was definitely my preference; she threw Chapi some very poignant looks, but I think she could have gone deeper too. Unfortunately a lot of Raffaela’s characterization, including the best song, was cut for time, so perhaps this made meeting my expectations a bit difficult. She came across as a bit weird and creepy, which, to be fair, she is, but she should also be heartbreaking and sympathetic.

Honorable mentions to Toshi for dialing the 男らしさ up to 10000000 and to Mitsuru for being utterly gross.

We got Carousel Rondo on NHK months ago and I’d resisted in DISINTEREST, can you imagine... but as a result it was quite fun to watch the pair of shows fresh together. Carousel Rondo had a bizarre energy but I really liked it. It’s supposed to be a celebration of the anniversary of Mon Paris... anyone know if most/some of the scenes were pulled from Mon Paris? That would make a lot more sense. 

Again, we have Chapi leading and slaying, Tamakichi’s youth betraying her a bit in a way I now find UTTERLY ADORABLE, and Miya ready to take over the world (as I hadn’t until recently watched her in three whole years, I was struck by how fluid and beautiful her dancing has gotten; you couldn’t tell when she was drowning in 75 pounds of denim). The kuroenbi was extremely simple but gorgeous.

Another thing that (reluctantly) struck me was how genius the Aasa-Reiko switch was, now watching almost the same troupe but with the two of them reversed. I suppose I can’t even mourn the loss of Reiko if this rude inconsiderate Tsukigumi isn’t going to let me avert my gaze. 

I waffled about buying this but I’m so glad I did. I know there were copyright issues so I have no idea if they’ll be reprinting or if this is a sellout risk, but if you’re on the fence, go for it; A+ highly recommend.