I've wanted to see a Takarazuka show for years, no exaggeration there. The idea of getting to play male roles sounded so fun to me, which is what got me hooked on Takarazuka in the first place. When I moved to Japan, there was all this amazing stuff to do, so I got picky with what show(s) I wanted to see. A show actually came to Nagoya, but I didn't see it because it was a plot they've done over and over, and I wasn't a huge fan of any of the performers. Takarazuka has a thing for redoing shows that are really popular. Like Rose of Versailles (Anime), Elizabeth (Austrian version), Romeo & Juliet (French version), Me and My Girl (England), and a ton of others. Honestly I'd love to see any of those except Rose of Versailles. But since traveling down to Takarazuka City or up to Tokyo costs a bunch, like I said, I got picky. Then I found out the Cosmos and Star Top Stars are retiring. Which sucks because after they retire I don't know if I'll be as Gung-Ho about Takarazuka. These two top stars are AMAZING actresses, while at the moment, the other 3 top stars are struggling newbies.
Anywho I had a 3 day weekend coming up, and I decided to ask Ms Mihoko if she wanted to go see Takarazuka with me sometime that weekend. I figured if I couldn't see Takarazuka that weekend, I'd go to Kyoto again, but luckily it all worked out. She was amazingly kind enough to look up the availability and buy the tickets and everything. While I'm a train fanatic now, Ms Mihoko's not a fan of public transportation, so we drove down. I didn't mind in the least, it was 3 hours of gorgeous fall foliage, and a drive through Kyoto anyhow!
I knew the train route to Takarazuka, so I was keeping my eye out for passing certain cities. Kyoto and Osaka were the main ones. I didn't realize that the car route could get to Takarazuka City faster by skipping Osaka. There I was, in the middle of saying something about foliage, "The leaves are definitely brighter and-OH MY GOSH WAIT I KNOW THAT BUILDING! AAAHHH!!!"
The city is actually really pretty, but I was very distracted. I was ecstatic that I was able to not only see one of my favorite top stars perform in their last show, but it the theater company was also celebrating it's 100 year anniversary. And in a land where people are quite conservative and don't do crazy things out of the blue (except take cosplay pictures everywhere), I threw my cares to the wind did some jumping for joy.
….and then I composed myself for a nice photo.
When I'd decided I would go see the play in November, all that mattered was that it fit my schedule, and it was a top star that I liked. So after I got that settled, I went and read through the plot of the show. You know. Because it's in Japanese. And I'm not a fluent speaker just yet. I'm glad I did, because it was a - Holy crap we just had a 5 second earthquake. That scared me half to death. Just shaky rattling, no damage. *ahem* anyway. The plot turned out to be a political drama with a couple of random songs thrown in. Gustav III of Sweden and his struggle to bring his country into an era of peace. And since it's Japan, they added some random bit about a mythic sword hidden in the castle that belonged to the real king. That part seemed random.
It was a really serious play, which surprised me because they usually do comedies, traditional dance, or musicals.
After the political play ended, there was an intermission. BTW here is the theater in Takarazuka City. It's huuuuge. I remember feeling this wowed when I first saw Phantom from some really great orchestra seats.
After the intermission, the 2nd half of the performance was what they call a review, which is like a themed variety show. This show's theme was on birds, and a rising phoenix, referring to the retiring top star's transition out of Takarazuka.
It was quite "Takarazuka", they went all out. The sets were amazing, the costumes had so much detail on them, it was all huge!!!
They had this musical skit in the middle where the top star was trying to steal this golden phoenix statue, and she'd run offstage and change into 4 different characters, trying to find a way to get past the cop guarding the statue. She only had like 10 seconds for each change, it was hilarious.
Like I said…bird themed review. They really went all out. Seeing it live was amazing. However there were times where it felt like watching a performance of Pricilla Queen of the Desert ha ha ha! But like most things in Japan, Takarazuka has pretty strict rules, and maintaining a clean image. Once the girls graduate from the company's school, they have to give their lives to constantly performing 4-6 shows a year until they retire. Some of them stay with the company for 4-5 years, while a lot more stay for 10-15 years.
This is one of the best parts. They do this amazing synchronized dance on this staircase, on incredibly thin stairs.
Anyways, it was amazing to finally see a live show. The atmosphere of a live show was WOW, and I left feeling so happy. I got to check another amazing thing off of my bucket list. Life feels freaking amazing when you don't let fear have a say in your choices :-)
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