Tackey’s power-saving stage show still wows crowd
Johnny’s talent Hideaki Takizawa opened up about his feelings for his new stage show and how he wanted to help victims from the 3/11 disaster, the star said at a press conference in Tokyo on April 12, reports Mainichi Shimbun, Daily Sports Online, and The TV news.
“滝沢歌舞伎 (Takizawa Kabuki)” had started shows at the Nissay Theatre in Tokyo on April 8. With aftershocks still hitting Tokyo, staff members are now on standby in the stage wings to help out in case of an emergency.
“We do a last safety check just before the curtain goes up,” Takizawa said.
It has been reported the show has been modified to run at 80 per cent of its original electricity plans by dimming some stage lights and screens. One of the highlights of the first act has been reported as Takizawa’s fast costume change. The talent has 10 costume changes in the space of 15 minutes, turning into historical Japanese figures including Nobunaga Oda and Shiro Amakusa.
“There are so many tricks to it, even some I don’t know about,” he said.
One character Takizawa plays, Yoshitsune, is a character he has previously played in the 2005 NHK Taiga drama. Parts of Yoshitsune had been shot in areas of Iwate prefecture hit by the 3/11 earthquake.
“A lot of people helped me during the location shoots for the Taiga drama in north-eastern Japan. I am worried. I want to find some time to go and see them again. It’s a huge area but I want to go around everywhere,” he said.
It has been reported the 3/11 disaster had stopped stage show rehearsals for a while, but it did not stop the show from being canceled.
“(When the earthquake struck) we were in the middle of rehearsals, and afterwards rehearsals were canceled for about 10 days. There were days I was worried about how things would turn out, but then I’d realise there were people who were going through much tougher times than me.”
Takizawa continued to talk about how he felt about fans coming to see his show in amidst the current crisis.
“It makes me really thankful to know I have fans like this. My fans have supported me up to now and now I want to be able to support them. (After the first show’s performance) the applause was huge and it wouldn’t stop. At that moment I was so glad to have pushed on and open this show.”
“滝沢歌舞伎 (Takizawa Kabuki)” has a very Japanese history theme to it, and Takizawa had one more message to those affected by the 3/11 disaster.
“There have been disasters in the past. But an amazing Japan is still here. We can overcome this. We will always be with you.”
Takizawa’s stage show will continue performances until May 8.
source: MOMOEDEGWOOD@WORDPRESS