Okay, so this is the first whole Takarazuka performance I've watched ('performance watched' as in watched from laptop/comp/etc) and last night I watched it for second time. And yes, without subs. I used summary from TakaWiki and even with my almost non-existant Japanese skills, I could follow the play quite easily.
First of all I want to say that I really adore Asa (Sena Jun)and she is one of my favourite siennes', just behind Osa (Haruno Sumire). I remember that first time I saw her running around as Bill from Me and My Girl I was quite amazed. She had so much energy and I couldn't stop myself from smiling widely when I watched her acting. Plus I think she's one of the cutest siennes', and heck, even her Death/Der Tod from this year (2009) seems cute to me. Yes, "angsting creepy stalker whose ego is bigger than him" Death. Maybe my sense of cuteness can sometimes be little...Strange.
Asa is otokoyaku ("male part player"), but she has twice played leading female roles. Scarlett O'Hara in Gone With the Wind (Flower Troupe, 2002) and Elisabeth in, well, Elisabeth (Moon Trupe, 2005).
That right, my second favourite otokoyaku played the lead female role in the first Takarazuka performance I've seen from start to finish.
Ugh.
Yes? No?
I don't know.
I don't really like the idea of otokoyaku playing female roles, especially Elisabeth.
First; Musumeyaku has been taught to play female roles. Yes, they're female, but that doesn't mean that they can sit around almost the whole second year at TMS, while little soon-to-be-otokoyakus work their asses off. Nope. I bet they have to learn those "typical musumeyaku things", most of all, the gracefulness. And that's what Asa is missing as Sissy. Okay, she's good as younger Elisabeth, at same way as young otokoyakus are sometimes way too cute. Excitement and energy more than one person can hadle combined with still little stiff and square movements.
Second, and the most important reason; Elisabeth is probably one of the best roles that musumeyaku can get. It's far from stereotypical musumeyaku role, where audience maybe only vaguely remembers couple of musumeyakus. It's the role where musumeyaku can say "Hey look, I'm here too, I'm not non-existing". I bet it's quite challenging to potray character who starts as young tomboy (or as tomboy as they could be back then) and ends up as Empress of Austro-Hungary. Sissy is also quite strong and indepent female character, she even couple of times told Death to fuck off (well, not literally using those words...) and yes, that needs some large dosage of strong will.
In short, I just don't like that such a different and challening character is taken off from musumeyakus.
Saeko (Ayaki Nao) was ok-ish Death. There was something very feminine at her Death. Something very....soft, at least compared to Osa's Death. But Saeko had such a lovely "Oh yes, I am hot" expression at some scenes. Some of the songs are too low for her, but at some songs she adds nice touch of color livenes. Still she has little boyish voice.
Kiriyan (Kiriya Hiromu) is lovely as Luigi. She makes Luigi such a wicked lunatic. Oh, and first paparazzi.
Oh, Yuuhi <3 Yuuhi as Rudolph is just wondeful. She is current top star at Cosmos and I can totally understand why. She is probably my favourite current sienne (I'm not counting Asa as she's graduation at end of this year, in mere week ;__; ). Rudolph is my second favourite character just after Death and Yuuhi does her job here well.
And Hiromi (Ayana Oto) as young Rudolph is one of the cutest thing ever. Of course there's these "sisterly love" jokes 'cause Hiromi is younger sister of Saeko and they have one nice scene.
Though I really don't like that Asa is playing Elisabeth, I have to say she adds some strenght to character. Plus I really enjoy this play.
Though I don't know what happens when I see Flower Troupe's version of this. (Osa as Death and Yumiko as Rudolph. Yay)
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