Sparkling TIME is a Kageki talk feature which includes a photoshoot (designed by the participants) and talk between performers, often classmates. Asami’s and Sakuragi’s was published in the March 2017 issue.
Sparkling TIME – Asami Jun and Sakuragi Minato
Sakuragi: When I heard I’d be doing a photoshoot with Aasa (Asami), I was really happy.
Asami: Yeah, me too! When Zun-chan (Sakuragi) and I were thinking about what kind of atmosphere might be nice for our shared photoshoot, we thought something really classy might be good, but…
Sakuragi: Yeah.
Asami: When it comes to the things we have in common, of course it would be when we were roommates in the Music School. Therefore, We ended up thinking that a feeling of relaxing in our room would be nice.
Sakuragi: We were saying it brought back memories of when we were roommates. But unlike our dorm room it’s a fairly chic apartment (laughs).
Asami: With the decorative potted plant.
Sakuragi: I have a decorative potted plant at home right now. It feels nice to have a ‘living thing’ in the house, doesn’t it?
Asami: You don’t have a pet?
Sakuragi: I think cats are cute, but I have allergies, so if I was going to get a pet I might get a dog.
Asami: Oh~, you should get one!
Sakuragi: Why me? You should get one yourself, Aasa (laughs). If you were going to get one, what kind would you want?
Asami: Hmmmm… Right now, I’m really struggling between a black pomeranian, or a mame shiba1.
Sakuragi: Huh!? You’re really going to get one?
Asami: Huh? I’m not. I’m just imagining if I was going to get one.
Sakuragi: (bursts out laughing) So specific! So you do imagine it.
Asami: Imagining it moved the conversation along, right? (laughs)
Both: (laugh)
Sakuragi: Aasa’s exam number was near mine in the entrance exam for the Music School, and since we were coincidentally both from Kanagawa, we would talk a lot ever since then. Therefore, Aasa feels a little special to me among all my classmates.
Asami: Me too. Also, I feel like somehow we each understand each other really well.
Sakuragi: Therefore, when we got to our Upper Student year and it was time to pick who we wanted as roommates…
Asami: I was naturally just like ‘Zun-chan, let’s do it’.
Sakuragi: So I said ‘of course’ and then we were roommates.
Asami: Zun-chan would make hotpot and lots of different foods all the time, so everybody would gather our room and it became the ‘party room’.
Sakuragi: We were always having fun.
Asami: When I left the dorm and started living by myself, didn’t you give me a rice cooker? I think it was something you’d been using for ages, or one that you bought when we became roommates or something.
Sakuragi: Yeah.
Asami: I’m still using that rice cooker.
Sakuragi: You’re still using it!? Does it still work?
Asami: It does! It’s still on active duty.
Asami: Ever since we were in the Takarazuka Music School, Zun-chan has always put in so much effort, and also your concentration ability at key times is amazing, so I would wish I would learn from that. When it was right before an exam, you’d always get up really early.
Sakuragi: No, it’s not amazing at all. I was just cramming (laughs).
Asami: You always did what you needed to do properly, and besides that, your focus was amazing, so I feel like you gradually kept levelling up. I don’t have that much focus, so I would always just think ‘I’ve just got to do it’ and always dash frantically to school early in the morning.
Sakuragi: You might say that, but you also put it lots of effort every single day, and you didn’t do anything that was a waste. It’s really amazing that you didn’t lose to yourself, and went to school early every morning to get in that additional practice.
Asami: I felt like I’d done enough just by making it to the building, though.
Sakuragi: No, no, just by having someone like that nearby, it made me think that I had better not slack off either, so I got a lot of encouragement from that. I think we were able to give our best due to that synergy.
Asami: Maybe so.
Sakuragi: And so because when we entered the company, we were assigned to separate troupes, I always want to see your shows. Recently I’ve been seeing you working so hard…
Asami: Now, now, so are you (laughs).
Sakuragi: Since I’ve been watching your shows from the start, I really think you’ve grown a lot, and so I’m struck by the feeling that ‘I mustn’t lose’ too.
Asami: I also always want to see Zun-chan’s shows, and since my debut was with Cosmos Troupe, I’m making it a point to see them. Seeing how Zun-chan levels up with each successive show is really encouraging to me, too. I can really tell how incredible your focus towards your roles is, watching you.
Sakuragi: Wah~, really… (blushing). That’s nice that we can both impact each other that way.
Asami: Right, it is.
Sakuragi: Also, I feel like last year, when we performed together in the Takarazuka Special, and both experienced the struggles of performing a female role, that it made our bonds even stronger.
Asami: For sure. We totally panicked when we first heard that we would be doing female roles (laughs).
Sakuragi: But once we actually had the wigs and costumes on, we all looked surprisingly good, right?
Asami: When it came to the real thing, we were all saying to each other ‘We look so nice~!’
Sakuragi: We were saying things like ‘We’re too cu~te, now what!?’ (laughs) Since in TakaSpe2, we can perform with our classmates in other troupes, we were all able to have fun together in the dressing room, and even though we were really busy, those brief moments were really refreshing.
Asami: Also, this time me and Zun-chan had neighboring dressing tables, so we were always talking about something or other.
Sakuragi: It was so fun! We were able to have the new experience of doing female roles, too.
Asami: That really is going to broaden our horizons as actors. I want to see Zun-chan do more roles where you have facial hair, too. When you had facial hair in Elisabeth, it suited you so well, and I thought it was really amazing to see the cute, laid-back Zun-chan turn into a cool older man.
Sakuragi: I’m glad to have been able to do a large variety of roles, including female roles (laughs). I thought your performance in Grand Hotel was amazing, too. You’re going to change troupes, so although I know it’s going to be a hard time, I’m looking forward to seeing how the effect of that will change you.
Asami: Right now I’m full of doubts about it, and I’m lonely, but I’m sure there are new meetings waiting for me too. And of course my relationship with Zun-chan isn’t ging to change (laughs). I’m going to see Chateau de la Reine, of course.
Sakuragi: It’s totally different from last time—it’s a role of a useless young crybaby.
Asami: I like that kind of Zun-chan too, so I’m looking forward to it! I feel like now, since we’re able to be together to do features like this, I’m seeing even more of Zun-chan than I did when we were junior actresses.
Sakuragi: I definitely think I talk to Aasa the most out of all my classmates in separate troupes. A while back we had a location shoot in Aasa’s home region, Kamakura. It was a really busy time for both of us, but it was so much fun! That’s my ‘best moment’ of 2016.
Asami: Really!? To be honest, since it was my home town, I didn’t really feel like I was being recorded, but I just had all my old memories coming back. I kept feeling nervous because I was wondering if someone I knew might pass by (laughs). I’d be so happy if we could do that kind of trip again.
Sakuragi: Then, next time let’s go to my home region, Yokohama.
Asami: I’m looking forward to Zun-chan showing me around (laughs).
1 – mame shiba, or toy shiba, are a miniaturized version of standard shiba inu. However, they are controversial and not recognized by any breed standards.
2 – ‘TakaSpe’, or Takarazuka Special, is the year-end special performance that generally features members of 4 out of the 5 troupes.