This survey of the main stars in both Rose of Versailles 2001 casts was published in GRAPH in May of 2001. At the time, Star Troupe was performing Oscar and Andre in Tokyo, and Cosmos Troupe was performing Fersen and Marie Antoinette in Takarazuka. Due to length, the two troupes’ responses will be posted separately.

A few notes on their answers, as well as possibly more familiar Japanese titles for the songs mentioned, are included in [italicized brackets].

Rose of Versailles Special Report

The Rose of Versailles 2001 is currently playing to great praise from both East and West.
There must be many readers of the comics who were already entranced by the luxurious and beautiful world displayed on the stage.

Therefore, we here at GRAPH wanted to take a look at things a little differently than from on stage, and make a special report on The Rose of Versailles. Its title: “Berubara Q and A!”

Questionnaire:
1) Which performance of The Rose of Versailles was the first one you saw?
2) Is there a line in The Rose of Versailles that stands out in your memory?
3) Is there a prop in The Rose of Versailles that stands out in your memory?
4) If you were assessing your Rose of Versailles nerd level from 1 to 5, where would you be?
5) What costumes from The Rose of Versailles would you like to wear?
6) What are your favorite songs from The Rose of Versailles?
7) What are your favorite scenes from The Rose of Versailles?
8) If you could play a character besides your own role, which character and which scene?
9) Which character from The Rose of Versailles would you choose to marry?
10) Have you read the original comic?
11) What comics did you like as a child?
12) What manga do you want Takarazuka to adapt?
13) What did you think of the commercial shoot? (Commercial cast members only)
14) What did you think when you saw yourself in costume and makeup as your character?
15) What did you think when you first heard you would be playing your character?
16) What do you think is the main point of your character?

Cosmos Troupe – Fersen and Marie Antoinette (April 6 to May 14, Takarazuka Grand Theatre)

Wao Youka (Fersen)

1) The 1989 Snow Troupe Grand Theatre production I was in at ken-2.
2) “Because Marie Antoinette…is Queen of France!”
3) The sabres.
4) I’m studying currently, so 4 (laughs).
5) The dress Marie Antoinette wears in the prison scene.
6) “Traces of Love” [‘Ai no Omokage’]
7) “Come and See” in the prologue (laughs)
8) I’d like to be in the Bastille scene as a Parisian.
9) Fersen.
10) Yes.
11) “The Rose of Versailles”.
12) I don’t know (laughs).
13) There were times when I couldn’t express myself how I wanted to, but it was a fun experience.
14) “Wo~w, what a beautiful costume!” (laughs)
15) “I’m in trouble, I can’t do this” (laughs).
16) His size (laughs).

Message to GRAPH readers:
From now on we’re working hard to add splendor to our Cosmos Troupe power. Please come to see us.

Hanafusa Mari (Marie Antoinette)

1) My debut performance, the 1991 Moon Troupe Grand Theatre production.
2) “Andre…are you really gone…”
3) The rose shanshans.
4) Around a 3.
5) It has to be the hoopskirt dresses.
6) “If we have love” [‘Ai Areba Koso’]
7) The ‘just this one night’ scene.
8) Of course I want to be Oscar in the ‘Just this one night’ scene.
9) Fersen.
10) I have.
11) “Meg the Witch”
12) “The Sun on the Banks of the Red River.”
13) I was able to see how things really worked outside Takarazuka, so it was so much fun.
14) I thought I didn’t look like Marie Antoinette-san at all.
15) “I can’t do such a famous role!”
16) I’m working hard so that I can have something that lets me say confidently ‘This is my Marie Antoinette’.

Ayaki Nao (Oscar April 28-May 14, Andre April 6-April 27)

1) The 1989 Snow Troupe Grand Theatre production.
2) “Because Marie Antoinette…is Queen of France!”
3) Stephan the doll.
4) Around a 4 maybe.
5) Marie Antoinette’s hoopskirt dresses.
6) “Pilgrim of Love”. [‘Ai no Junrei’]
7) The Bastille.
8) I want to be in the Bastille scene as a Parisian.
9) Andre.
10) Yes.
11) “Doraemon”.
12) They’ve already been adapted for the stage now, but I thought “Torikaebaya Ibun (Yukariko)” or “Asaki Yumemishi” would be good. [Yukariko, adapted from the comic by Kihara Toshie, was first performed by Star Troupe in 1987, and Asaki Yumemishi, adapted from the comic by Yamato Waki, was first performed by Flower Troupe in 2000.]
13) At first I didn’t know what kind of face I should be making.
14) “Round” (laughs).
15) I was really happy. But I also felt 100 times more fear.
16) I’m determined to make both roles spendidly beautiful and ephemeral.

Mizu Natsuki (Oscar, April 6-27, Andre, April 28, May 14)

1) The 1989 Snow Troupe Tokyo performance.
2) “Just for tonight, I want to be Andre Grandier’s wife!”
3) The sabres.
4) Maybe a 4.
5) The Little Noble Boy (laughs).
6) “Traces of Love”. [‘Ai no Omokage’]
7) The Bastille and Oscar’s death scene.
8) The scene just before Marie Antoinette goes to the guillotine, where she stops Fersen with her hand behind her (laughs).
9) Andre.
10) I read it during the Chunichi production before this one.
11) I didn’t read manga much as a kid, so nothing in particular.
12) “Matendou Sonata”. [A fantasy shojo manga by Amagi Sayuri, serialized from 1986-1993, about a trainee demon and trainee angel.]
13) It was kind of a strange feeing. There were so many staffers all over, and I felt ‘So this is what a commercial filming looks like’.
14) If I don’t work hard I won’t be like the manga. I have to make stars fly from my eyes (laughs).
15) I was startled but really happy.
16) My goal is to make both Oscar and Andre seem like they “sprang from the pages of the comic” (laughs).

Ryou Akino (Rosalie)

1) The first Star Troupe Tokyo performance, in 1976.
2) “Because Marie Antoinette…is Queen of France!”
3) Stephan the doll.
4) Around 3.
5) Marie Antoinette’s hoopskirt dresses.
6) “Fragments of Love”. [‘Ai no Omokage’]
7) Fersen and Marie Antoinette’s prison scene.
8) I’d like to be a Parisian in the Bastille scene.
9) I’d like Fersen!
10) Yes.
11) “Doraemon” (laughs).
12) I’d always thought “Asaki Yumemishi” would be nice.
14) I had been really focused on being loyal to the image from the comic, but I couldn’t really tell if I was close or not.
15) The way Rosalie is kind, but also has great mental strength and a big heart, is one of the hardest things for me, so I thought “here I am again with three of my biggest struggles on top of each other”.
16) My ideal is to have a motherly generosity. I hope I can get that point across.