TRIPLE 4 is a Kageki feature where siennes list their top 3 favorites in 4 different Takarazuka-related categories. Tenju Mitsuki’s was published in the July 2016 issue.
Please note I haven’t seen all the shows she’s referring to here so I was going from her descriptions.
TRIPLE 4: Tenju Mitsuki
Favorite love scenes:
1. Ocean’s 11 – When Benedict gives Tess the ring
2. A Second Fortuitous Meeting – When Durant kisses Sylvia
3. Arc de Triomphe – When Joan dies in Ravic’s arms
In the scene where Benedict pushes Tess, who’s hesitating, to take the ring and then leaves, there’s a kiss scene that is somehow so mature and I really love it (laughs). I was given the opportunity to play Benedict in the shinjin kouen, so I would watch Kurenai-san and Nene-san (Yumesaki Nene) perform that scene every day. Also, I would practice every day until really late with Haruko (Otoha Minori), who played Tess in the shinjin kouen, so it’s a love scene with a lot of memories for me.
In A Second Fortuitous Meeting, there’s a scene where Durant pins Sylvia against a wall and kisses her: I would watch that from the wings every day like ‘Aah!’ (laughs). That love scene went straight to the heart for me!
I loved the scene in Arc de Triomphe where Ravic kisses Joan after she is shot. I thought ‘it’s just so beautiful’. When Ishi-san (Todoroki Yuu), who plays Ravic, strokes the hand Joan is holding out, her hands were soo beautiful…I watched that scene on the DVD over and over.
Favorite ensemble dances:
1. Dear DIAMOND!! – The black tailcoat bolero
2. Angel’s Ladder – Finale dance number
3. Ocean’s 11 – FATE CITY
In Dear DIAMOND!!, in the black tailcoats number, everyone came down the Grand Staircase in a reverse pyramid formation, but during the show’s run it was filmed every day and we would review it afterwards. Therefore, it was a really exciting moment when we all formed up. We would get really caught up in it, like ‘how’s this!’ (laughs). I think Star Troupe is good at group numbers, but especially there I felt like we were really displaying our strength as a troupe, so I loved that scene.
The finale number for Angel’s Ladder started with just a few otokoyaku, then turned into an ensemble number, and then the musumeyaku joined in…I really liked that arrangement. The otokoyaku ensemble number was choreographed as a really Takarazuka-style tailcoat dance, which I found really thrilling, and then as everyone joined in it was a really emotional scene for me.
In Ocean’s 11, for ‘FATE CITY’ we were all wearing tuxedos, and it had a really Star Troupe attitude with lots of glitz, but it was also a really polished, smart otokoyaku dance number. It was the kind of number where as an otokoyaku you think ‘I want to master this dance’ as you’re performing.
Dance numbers that had the deepest effect on me:
1. Love Potion II – ‘Temptation of Love’ number
2. Neo Dandyism! – ‘Parting regrets’ number
3. Drenched in the Amber-Hued Rain – Gigolo number
I feel that Choreographer Kita’s1 choreography has a unique masculine intensity, and in ‘Temptation of Love’ I was able to study that for myself. The ending, where all the otokoyaku line up at the front and blow kisses and wink at the audience, was so fun! I did wonder how it looked from the audience, but at the same time I really went over the top with it (laughs). I suppose that really had a big effect on me as an otokoyaku.
‘Parting regrets’ was all choreographed to illustrate the soundtrack, and the atmosphere was as if it was more than just a physical performance. In any case it was a number I put all my heart and soul into.
In the gigolo scene of Drenched in the Amber-Hued Rain, I realized that the exaggerated choreography really brought out a manly, cool feeling. In the part where all the gigolos line up I would be thinking ‘and who does madame fancy today?’ as I was dancing (laughs).
Plays that made me cry the most:
1. Napoleon: The Man Who Never Sleeps
2. An Officer and a Gentleman
3. Afterglow of Eire
Since my role in Napoleon, Napoleon II, was more of a ‘storyteller’, when I wasn’t on stage myself I would be watching everyone else performing. The part of the story from when Napoleon is overthrown to the death of Josephine made me cry a ton every time! Perhaps my emotions were stronger as Napoleon’s ‘son’, but even as a third party observer it would definitely be really moving. I think during that performance I cried more than I ever have in my life.
In An Officer and a Gentleman the scene where Sid decides to commit suicide would make me terribly sad as I watched from the wings. ‘You’ve suffered so much,’ I would think and cry every time.
I’ve only seen Afterglow of Eire on video recordings, but I can’t watch the end of it without tearing up. The scene where Amami (Yuuki)-san crosses the silver bridge holding Asano (Kayo)-san especially pulled me into the story and I really like it. It was always really moving, like ‘in a story like this even performing naturally while holding her partner seems so cool!!’
1 – Kita Hiroshi, who died in 1999 (Tenju participated in a posthumous restage)