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sailorspazz · 1 year

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Real 10 Dance Roundtable event report

For the past several years, each time a volume of 10 Dance has been released in Japan (and sometimes in between), there have been events held under the name "Real 10 Dance", which typically feature performances primarily of men dancing together. Volume 6's edition in 2021 was exclusively online, while 2022 brought the return of the live version of the event (though it also was streamed online a couple of months later). When this year's event was announced for February 5th, 2023 in conjunction with Volume 7's release a couple of weeks earlier, it was billed as more of a roundtable discussion rather than centering around dancing, with the biggest reveal being that Inouesatoh herself would be there to discuss the series and answer questions. This seemed like an extremely rare opportunity to get inside information about the series, so I decided to make a trip to Japan to see it. Click below to read my report on the event! (Note: definitely tread carefully if you're not caught up on all of volume 7, as there are big spoilers in here, as well as talk about what is planned for the near future!)

The event was divided into two separate two-hour sessions, which each featured entirely different content (save for the opening and closing numbers, which were the same for each). Only certain segments allowed for picture taking, so the images shared here will be limited (as should probably be expected, none were allowed during Inouesatoh's segments, though she was wearing a face mask and sunglasses, so it was difficult to see exactly what she looked like anyway. At first I thought the sunglasses were for anonymity, but after the event she made some tweets about health issues she has such fibromyalgia and light sensitivity). The dancers featured in both sessions were ones who have participated in previous Real 10 Dance events, and included the three series consultants Ai Shimoda, Kouichi Nishio, and Yukiko Kamiwaki, plus Jun Motoike, Takashi Takagi, Choma Sekine, Kiyomi Takashima, Miri Murano, and Yuuya Miyakawa.

Upon entry, audience members were given a program and a postcard featuring the image of the Shinyas from Volume 7's special edition booklet cover.

The hall was set up with things like advertisements for the series, reproductions of pages (which included scenes requested by attendees during the ticket buying process), and dance equipment and costumes to look at before the event started.

The volume 7 booklet included the image seen on the left here with correction notes for the coloring of the cover image, but I was amused by the right image which includes anatomy notes such as how a dancer's butt differs from a normal man's.

I attended in a custom shirt I made with an iron-on transfer.

First up in the program was an opening number by the Latin specialists, dancing a cha-cha to Dirty Work by Austin Mahone. They started out in male-female pairs, then broke apart so the men could have their chance to dance together and thrill the largely fujoshi audience.

Motoike then hosted a segment where he provided a rundown of the different types of Standard and Latin dances. The other pros were lined up to be selected to demonstrate different ones, but the catch was that none of them knew what they were dancing until Motoike paired them up. The selections varied between opposite-sex and same-sex pairings, as well as different combinations of Standard and Latin pros being mixed together (sorry for the blurry picture, it was difficult to get good shots while they were moving, but here both the female duo and male duo include one Standard and one Latin pro).

Motoike also requested for some of the Latin pros to switch between cha-cha and rumba while dancing to the same music piece. Once the segment wrapped up, Takagi asked if Motoike was going to dance at all, and asked him to perform a solo waltz to cha-cha music.

There was a short audience participation segment to try out some aspects of ballroom dance movement. This included performing the rise and fall of a waltz to the count, and the basic steps of a cha-cha (done on a very small scale, as they had us doing them from the narrow rows where our seats were rather than the central floor).

Then came the main draw of the A session: the in-depth manga discussion! This segment featured Kodansha editor T-naka, Inoue's longtime friend and series collaborator simply known by the nickname of Teacher, and of course Inouesatoh herself. The segment was moderated by dance consultant for the series (and total fujoshi) Ai Shimoda. I will try my best to summarize the most interesting bits from this discussion, though it was definitely a lot to take in, and sometimes freely flowed between topics rather than being a strict singular answer to each question (also sorry if I misattribute who said which exact quotes, as sometimes different combinations of the guests spoke on the same subjects back and forth. Inouesatoh wrote in a tweet after the event that Teacher acted as her "Japanese translator", since she was typically able to voice her thoughts better than she could herself.)

Upon her introduction, we found out that Teacher has known Inouesatoh since they were both students in the same manga appreciation group. In the early part of the series, she sometimes helped with background art, though currently is mainly involved in helping with the story. During the talk segment, Inoue credited her with helping to achieve balance between the different story elements.

The birthdays listed in the calendar were thought up by Teacher. At first she thought about having the two Shinyas be Scorpios, but then didn't feel that fit well for Suzuki. But she did feel like Sagittarius fit well for him, and since the two signs are adjacent she instead made their birthdays one day apart but with those two different signs. T-naka was surprised to see their birthdays, as Suzuki's is the same as his and Sugiki's is on his anniversary. Shimoda joked that we were learning an awful lot of personal information about T-naka.

Teacher also shared the back-and-forth exchange that occurred when Inouesatoh revealed a certain controversial plot point that she wanted to include:

Inouesatoh: So I'm thinking of having Suzuki and Norman have sex.

Teacher: What? Really?

Inoue: Really.

Teacher: Really??

Inoue: Really.

(I've personally wondered if she's had it planned for a long time, but from this exchange, even if she may have personally known it was coming, those closest to her were not aware of it until Norman returned to the story.)

It was mentioned in the chapter notes that the sex scene was originally a bit longer, and during this talk it was revealed that T-naka was the one who requested for it to be cut down. He was thinking that the fans might have a hard time dealing with it (citing he was thinking of the poor "maidens' hearts"), and someone (either Shimoda or Teacher?) chimed in and agreed that it was difficult to accept seeing a sex scene between these two when the main couple hasn't even had sex yet (umm, yeah, it definitely was! Thank you T-naka for saving us from enduring a longer scene lol).

There was an interesting discussion about how when the series began, the Shinyas were intended to be a switch couple. Though this plan had been approved, apparently she later got feedback that BL fans do not really like for couples to switch, so being in a BL magazine she felt like she should change her plans. (I personally love to see switching, and maybe that's why I got hooked on the series so early since I probably sensed that intention!). She did not specify if moving out of a BL magazine meant she went back to her original plan, or if she decided to stick with whatever choice she made for who should be top and bottom, but it feels like the switching element was talked about more in the past tense, so maybe she's not doing it anymore. There was some related talk about Suzuki's development, and how he especially was created as a character who could take either role; in fact, the line he said to Saichi in chapter 38 when he was talking about how he could've gone along with what Sugiki wanted did carry the implication that he would've even bottomed for him if he had thought their relationship would succeed.

Near the end of the talk, T-naka was going over some details about the volume covers, such as how each features one of the ten different ballroom dances, and how the step patterns on the cover flaps are real ones you can try out yourself. Shimoda took this opportunity to ask something I've wondered: since there are ten different dances to go through, does that mean the series is planned to end at ten volumes? T-naka said this was not necessarily the case, and the exact number of total volumes is not yet decided.

The talk segment finished with the chance for audience members to give their thoughts and ask questions. One was concerned that with the series moving online to Yanmaga if there will be restrictions as far as romantic and sexual content goes. T-naka assured that because it's a website rather than an app that there aren't limits on erotic content. Another commented on how much he loves the costumes in the series, especially the sexy ones Suzuki and Aki have been wearing lately, and that he hopes to see more designs in the future. This led to some talk about costumes, including one of the standard men commenting that it's no longer strictly required for them to wear only the black tux and tails combo, and that he's even competed in suits or pure white tuxes. One audience member wondered about Sugiki and Max, and with the two seeming to become close would they end up having sex like Suzuki and Norman. Inouesatoh clearly and immediately said no to this possibility (to the relief of everyone lol). One woman started off with a shaky voice and saying how nervous she was, nearly on the verge of tears as she spoke, which caused Inoue to get up from the table and walk over to stand in front of the section she was sitting in (I'm sure she meant to be a comfort, but also having her come closer seems even more intimidating!). She said that she doesn't care if they're a switch couple or whatever, just please let the Shinyas get together. Then Inoue joked a little dialogue of, "Hey Sugiki," "Hey Suzuki," "Let's do it," and the audience clapped and cheered (We will approve of literally any justification after this many years lol).

This was followed by a short performance segment, with Takagi and Sekine doing a rumba to Half of Me by Ken Hirai, and Motoike and Nishio performing various standard styles to selections from La La Land (these performances were revivals of ones done at previous years' events, though the only one I had seen before was the rumba that was part of 2021's remote version).

There was a short outro for the dancers to the song It's Always a Good Time by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen. The session ended with the dancers taking pose requests from the audience. I didn't get the best or clearest shots, but if you check the hashtag #リアル10DANCE座談会 on Twitter, you can find a lot of other attendees' pictures.

Heading out of the venue between sessions, I saw that Inouesatoh and Teacher were standing by with fans lining up to talk to them. I knew that the next session was scheduled to start with a chance to chat with them, and feeling like if I didn't get a bit of food I might pass out (I had been extra nervous in the morning, so it was difficult to eat much of anything), I decided to wait until the B session (honestly also didn't feel mentally prepared yet seeing them standing right there!). I headed to a convenience store, scarfed down an onigiri, then spent a bit of time chatting with a couple of other fans I knew from Twitter.

At the start of session B, despite trying to ready myself before, I still hesitated a bit once they said that the guests would be standing by and available to talk briefly one-on-one with attendees. I wanted to go up and say something, but was also feeling extremely anxious at the idea of actually talking to her. But knowing what a rare opportunity this was, I convinced myself that I shouldn't let it slip by, so I joined others who were waiting to speak to her. As I waited in line, I was trying to rehearse what I would say in my head, but also was feeling more and more of a nervous wreck as I got closer to the front. I had also been near the end of the line and they were running low on time, so the allowed time went from about 20 seconds down to 10 seconds. In fact, they nearly cut the time off entirely when there were about two people left in front of me, but Inoue insisted that everyone who was waiting should get their chance to talk to her. So I finally got my turn, and Inoue and Teacher immediately commented on the T-shirt, with Inoue asking "aren't you cold?" (no, actually, I was sweating profusely from anxiety lol). I said I was fine, then froze a bit as I was thrown off from having to deviate from my planned spiel. I started mumbling quietly and she told me to come closer. I said I'd wanted to see this event so badly that I'd come all the way from America (she seemed amazed and touched my hand!), then blurted out something about how the Shinyas' relationship is complicated and heartbreaking but also so deep and I love it, and that I was rooting for their future happiness, then quickly scampered back to my seat.

Before the start of the B session's talk portion, when Inouesatoh was called to the stage, there was a slight delay as she was said to be sitting on one of the dancer's laps backstage. I wondered which one it was, suspecting it might be Takagi as I also would've chosen him. The mystery was answered a week later, when she tweeted a picture showing it was, indeed, Takagi! Though she insisted it wasn't on purpose; he patted his knee and her butt was just drawn to him, as anyone's would be! Once she emerged, she was joined by Teacher and the other two guests for this session: BL manga author Hatoko Machiya, and otaku researcher Taimatsu Yoshimoto.

It has been previously noted that 10 Dance was a work that Inouesatoh had been planning for a very long time, with its first drafts being made even before she started publishing many of her other works (she made some tweets before about how things changed over time, such as how Sugiki was originally going to be a single dad, but then that idea was scrapped and instead used in Kozure Ookami). She kept publishing other short series while having 10 Dance on the backburner, waiting for her draft to be accepted, until finally after finishing Smoker she declared that if she couldn't do 10 Dance next, she was going to quit BL.

Yoshimoto said that he became a fan of Inouesatoh's work from reading Endorphin Machine, and he likes the realistic bodies and muscles that she draws. She made a comment about how BL magazines don't always allow that sort of style, wanting the characters to be thin and hairless and even nippleless sometimes. That sort of style looks strange to her, since she likes to draw bodies that look real. She talked a bit about the work she did in her twenties before becoming a manga author, some of which included designing monster costumes for TV shows (she added in a tweet afterward that she also did work for commercials and promotional videos, so it's possible that people have seen her work without knowing it). This gave her a great sense for how bodies move, and also allowed her to create very masculine and exaggerated designs. At another point she talked about growing up in the 1970s in some sort of shared housing unit where a lot of men lived, which meant that the manga options she had available to read were mostly shounen and porn (to me, her style makes a lot of sense with all of these facts combined together; she's definitely not emulating the flowery shoujo styles that a lot of BL authors grew up on!).

There was some talk between Machiya and Inouesatoh about drawing sex scenes. Inoue said that she likes drawing them, but also doesn't want to feel like it's only happening because it's expected. She doesn't feel it's right for a relationship to progress from one to two then straight to ten simply because publishing in a BL magazine carries the assumption that sex will happen quickly. She went on to note that readers who don't like sex scenes may want to stop reading 10 Dance soon. Shimoda eagerly asked if this means this is something we can expect to see in volume 8, and Inoue said yes!

There was then a 10 Dance trivia game. It was run through a site called ahaslides, and included multiple choice options that participants used their phones to select. There were ten questions total, most worth one point, with the first being a practice question worth zero, and the last two questions worth two points each (possible maximum score of 11). One question was the one that had been mentioned on Twitter beforehand of what is the name of Teacher's cat. Some of the questions had the pros perform specific dance moves, and then the questions were to identify which dance was a cha-cha, and which move was an oversway. There were also manga detail specific questions, like in the volume 7 cover flap comic, what incorrect thing did Suzuki write down when Fusako asked him to write a word. Another was what was the name of Suzuki's friend who got obliterated by Sugiki's eye beams in vol 4's cover flap comic. There was another about the number of kisses that have happened in the series so far, and specified that it meant scenes not panels, and also no fantasies or bonus chapters included.

After eight questions, I had four points total, but then there was some issue with the game and I had to sign back in. This meant that I didn't have an opportunity to answer the ninth question (which I knew and was worth two points), and did answer the tenth question that was also worth two, but apparently having to get back into the game meant my point total was reset, so in the end I only had two, but would've had eight if I'd had my previous four points and the two from the question I wasn't able to answer. The top person had ten points, and second place had nine, so eight would've tied me for third with a few other people. Which didn't get the top prize of an autograph from Inouesatoh, but would've gotten me one of the page reproductions that were displayed in the venue. Definitely disappointing that the game glitch prevented me from getting a prize, since I pride myself on being good at trivia lol.

Lastly was an Emperor's Hold audience participation segment. This time we were all invited to come down to the main floor so we could spread out, and were instructed on how to get into a regular ballroom hold, then make the alterations to turn it into Sugiki's signature hold.

Overall, I'm so glad I went to see this event! It felt overwhelming, but in a good way! It was amazing to hear the author and her team give insight into the series and its creation. One thing I've wondered about is why Inouesatoh stopped publishing in Reijin, and though that specific question was not asked, the answer seemed pretty clear as she talked about the different restrictions and expectations of being in a BL magazine that it just wasn't a good fit for her. She needed the freedom to tell the story she wanted to tell, rather than trying to adhere to certain formulas or standards. And even if I might find some of her ideas shocking (the Norman plot was one she also said probably wouldn't fly in a BL magazine), I am on board for whatever direction she plans to go from here (I mean, that hint about sex scenes coming soon is definitely encouraging! Hopefully it's actually between the Shinyas this time lmao). She tweeted after the event some comments about not wanting to be too heavy on explanations in her stories, so some of the information is more in the background and may require multiple readings to understand (I've definitely found that true with 10 Dance, there are so many background hints scattered around that I've only found when re-reading). I just came away from this event being even more in awe of the series than ever before, and hoping that Inouesatoh and everyone else involved in its creation felt that love and encouragement from the eager attendees. Even if I was a nervous wreck as the (as far as I could tell) sole non-Japanese fan there, I hope I did my job of representing for the overseas fans and letting her know that the admiration for her series spreads all across the globe!

...This already lengthy report isn't over yet! A bonus addition is that after the event I took the chance to go to Ginza and see some of the real life inspirations for locations used in the series!

Mitsukoshi clock tower near the Ginza metro station entrance, seen in shots such as chapter 13's cover.

Model building for Sugiki Dance School.

Sukiyabashi park (quite small in real life, but was the inspiration for the park where the Shinyas go to dance.)

Tokyo Station Hotel, seen in the background of chapter 33 as the Shinyas finish their farewell dance marathon.

Finally, on the way back to my hotel I rode the Marunouchi subway line, and spent the time between the Ginza and Kasumigaseki stations (2 minutes) imagining the epic makeout session that occurred on that train (good thing I was wearing a mask, I'm sure I was blushing hard lol).

#10 dance #10dance

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