This talk featuring Sou Kazuho, who was starring in the 99th Class debut performance, The Rose of Versailles: Fersen, and the top members of the new class, was published in the June 2013 issue of Kageki.
99th Class debut talk: Let’s fly! To that sparkling stage of dreams
(Snow Troupe) Sou Kazuho
(99th class members) Misono Sakura [now in Moon], Suwa Saki [now in Snow], Hanaki Maia [retired, formerly of Cosmos], Kihou Kanata [now in Cosmos], Kozakura Honoka [now in Star]
Sou: Let’s start out by hearing how you felt about the opening day of your debut show. We’ll start with Emitan (Misono).
Misono: I had never felt anything like it before. I was full of joy and nervousness from standing on the stage I had longed for.
Suwa: When I heard the kumichou’s announcement before the curtain opened, I felt like I was going to cry… But the moment the curtain opened and we received all the applause I was so happy and moved.
Hanaki: I was so happy to really be standing on the stage I’d even seen in my dreams, and the audience’s applause was so warm and moving.
Kihou: Unlike in the dress rehearsals, there were so many people in the audience, and I was so moved I started trembling all over.
Kozakura: I couldn’t believe I was actually standing on the stage I’d yearned for forever, and I was so happy.
Sou: You were all nervous but still happy, right? I can still remember how it looked when we went onstage for our debut rockette on the first day, so I’m sure you’ll never forget this for your whole lives. I hope you’ll remember how you felt that day. Next, what do you think of Snow Troupe? Let’s start with Hono (Kozakura) this time.
Kozakura: When I first arrived at the rehearsal room I was so nervous I thought I was going to start shaking, but the Snow Troupe members took us in so warmly, so I was really happy.
Sou: Oh~ I’m glad!
Kihou: When I first got the rehearsal room it was very energetic and cheerful, but the moment the rehearsal actually started everyone was totally focused, and I could really feel the determination to create this show together.
Hanaki: What made me like Takarazuka in the first place was Snow Troupe’s ‘In Search of the Blue Bird’, so..
Sou: Oh!?
Hanaki: I’ve faithfully watched Snow Troupe performances for ages, so when it was decided that we would debut with Snow Troupe I could hardly believe it… I actually saw Sou-san in Lucifer’s Tears…
Sou: As Edmond?
Hanaki: Yes. I still can’t believe I’m able to stand on the same stage as the person I watched and loved so much from the audience back then.
Sou: Oh, gosh, I see~. Thank you very much.
Suwa: When I first got to the rehearsal room I could feel ‘this is the professionalism and passion of senior actresses’ and was really moved… Now that we’re on stage, they look over our makeup and give us advise on our speeches and the rockette; everyone is so warm and it makes me really happy.
Misono: I decided I wanted to be on the Takarazuka stage after seeing Snow Troupe’s ‘Elisabeth’, so…
Sou: The one that Mizu Natsuki-san starred in?
Misono: Yes. So I was so happy.
Sou: When the debut class first came into the rehearsal room, there were so many of you jammed in that you all ended up sitting pressed together behind the senior actresses. You were all craning your necks s every which way to see as much of the rehearsal as you possibly could and I thought it was really cute. Even though we’re senior actresses, we were thinking ‘we can’t let these new girls see something embarrassing their first time watching us rehearse,’ so looking back on it that synergy made the rehearsal really lively, I think. Now that the performance has started, you’ve all steadily improved at your stage makeup, and seeing the changes in just the makeup over this short time made me feel the limitless possibilities for your debuting class, and think about how the rockette will keep levelling up with each new performance after opening day. That had a big impact on me, and I feel like I learned from the youngest debuting students that I have to keep giving my best. So next, what kind of performers do you want to become… You all look so nervous (laughs). We’ll go randomly this time. Reina (Hanaki), you start.
Hanaki: I admired the musumeyaku who would stand beside the otokoyaku and bring out the best in them, so I hope to become a gorgeous and elegant musumeyaku.
Sou: So for example, what kind of roles would you like to try, or what kind of scenes in revues would you like to be in? Do you want to dance on the Grand Stairs holding an archetypical musumeyaku long skirt…
Hanaki: Yes, I want to be the kind of musumeyaku you just described, Sou-san, wearing a long dress and doing skirt ruffling choreography.
Sou: I can understand why you’d long for that. Next, Sakkii (Suwa).
Suwa: I want to be the kind of performer where people in the audience tell me that seeing me on stage cheered them up.
Sou: Do you want to do period costume dramas, or ‘suit shows’, anything like that?
Suwa: I put this down in Otome, but I love tap dance, so I would love to play Don Lockwood in ‘Singin’ in the Rain’.
Sou: Yes, yes! Alright, Yui (Kihou).
Kihou: I love dance and I’ve been studying it for a long time, so I want to be a dancer who can shine even if I’m off in the furthest corner of the stage. Of course I also love singing and acting, so my goal is to become a triple-threat otokoyaku.
Sou: Oh! How promising. What about you, Hono?
Kozakura: When I first saw Takarazuka, I thought it was wonderful how the musumeyaku would stand beside the otokoyaku with such kind and warm smiles, so I want to be a Takarazuka-esque musumeyaku who can decorate the otokoyaku like that.
Sou: Is there anything in particular you want to do?
Kozakura: I want to be in a musumeyaku scene of a Takarazuka revue show.
Sou: I see. Next, Emitan.
Misono: Watching the rehearsals, the senior actresses are all so wonderful, so I want to quickly develop that refined appearance and ‘musumeyaku-ness’.
Sou: So right now you feel ‘I have a long way to go’?
Misono: When I got the rehearsals, I felt ‘my way of life until now hasn’t been beautiful at all’…
Sou: How have you been living, then!? (laughs)
Misono: I felt like I hadn’t been looking after my health or personal environment properly at all, so I want to rebuild myself.
Sou: I see (laughs). So, do you all have questions for me?
Misono: Sou-san, do you have any policies that you haven’t changed since your debut?
Sou: Enjoying being on stage. If I don’t enjoy being on stage then there’s no point to being on stage any more. I’ve kept going this long because I like being on stage. I’m sure all of you will have times when you feel lost and look back on your beginnings wondering if you really want to be on this stage. So I want you to keep going and putting in effort as long as you love the stage.
Suwa: Are there things you focus on as a Takarazuka otokoyaku both on stage and in your personal life?
Sou: On stage, first off my goal is to be an otokoyaku who doesn’t betray the expectations of the fans. I think it’s an otokoyaku’s job to convey to the audience that they’re consciously committed to being an otokoyaku, I hope all of you in the class will think carefully about your respective positions as otokoyaku and onnayaku and be dedicated to being the best you can be.
Hanaki: Sou-san, when you are working on stage what is the most important thing to you?
Sou: First off, it’s looking after myself properly. Though going onstage healthy is maybe the thing you might take most for granted when performing, I think it’s the most important thing for a pro to make sure of.
Kihou: Sou-san, is there any incident during your debut that stands out in your memory?
Sou: We had a foreign choreographer for my debut rockette1. Normally, the debut rockette has an innocent sort of feeling, right? Mine was totally different, and this foreign choreographer was telling us to walk more sexily, like Marilyn Monroe, trying to get sexiness out of us even though we were debuting students (laughs).
Kozakura: What has made you the happiest on stage?
Sou: Though I think I value how much I enjoy being on stage most of all, maybe it’s when I get letters saying they’ve seen that in me and it’s given them energy. I joined Takarazuka because I wanted to be in Takarazuka, and that on top of that there are people who are happy to see me is such a wonderful thing, I think. Also, ever since the start I’ve held small goals for myself as an otokoyaku, things I could see right in front of me. First it was wanting to be in an ensemble dance wearing a black tux, then it was wanting to be miced up for lines in a junior performance, even if it was the tiniest scene… Being able to achieve those things made me amazingly happy, so I hope you all will make goals for yourself and keep pushing forward.
All Ken-1s: Yes!
Sou: Though at first you’ll see your classmates as your rivals, the one opponent you have to fight is you yourself. I think no matter what happens, if you feel like you love the stage you’ll be able to overcome it, and as you overcome obstacles you’ll grow, and I hope you’ll trust in that and put in the effort to overcome without trying to run away. Though I’m sure there will be hard times, it’s all a staircase to growth, so I hope you’ll bear up optimistically and see it as nourishment to become the best version of yourself. You’re debuting as performers in my debut [as Top Star], so that makes us Snow Troupe first-year classmates in a way, so all of you 99th class members are deeply precious to me as my cute little comrades. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of performers you will all turn out to be and supporting you with all my heard. I’m also going to do my best so that you can think ‘I’m glad I debuted with Snow Troupe’, so I hope you’ll support me until the closing performance!
All Ken-1s: Yes! Please look after us!
1 – This appears to be Tony-nominated Broadway director and choreographer Robert Longbottom.