Hakuouki Shinsengumi Enburoku theatrical performance review
Last friday I had the chance to see the theatrical performance of Hakuouki starring Saotome Taichi as Hijikata Toshizou and Kimura Ryo as Chikage Kazama, based on the anime of the same name; Hakuouki Shinsengumi Kitan and Hakuouki Hekketsu-roku. The play itself has an original story, but there are many elements from the anime in it, and many similarities.
Cast list:
Hijikata Toshizou - Saotome Taichi
Yukimura Chizuru - Kurokawa Tomoka
Okita Souji - Kubota Masataka
Toudou Heisuke - Takeda Kouhei
Saitou Hajime - Nakamura Michiya
Harada Sanosuke - Hashimoto Jun
Sannan Keisuke - Kawaoka Daijirou
Nagakura Shinpachi - Nakamura Seijirou
Kondou Isami - Sakamoto Sou
Chikage Kazama - Kimura Ryo
Amagiri Kyuuju - RYO (ORANGE RANGE)
Shiranui Kyo - Isaki Yuusuke
Yukimura Koudou - Kinoshita Houka
Inoue Genzaburou - Sugiyama Hirohiko
Shimada Kai- Hashimoto Nozomu
Saotome Taichi was completely unknown to me until recently. It’s actually a funny story how I found out about him, one of those “in the right place at the right time” sort of occurrences.
I had gone to Osaka to see an alice nine. concert, hung out with a friend living in Osaka on the off days I was there. On the last day I met my friend in Kyoto, we had some dinner at TGI Fridays and she had to head back because she had to work early the following morning. She left from Sanjo Keihan station and I went into the Book Off there to see if they had any of the dvds I was looking for. They didn’t.
I was on my way out when I caught sight of a book on a trolley, likely ready to be put back on the shelf. It caught my eye because it had a kabuki actor on the front, or, what I thought was a kabuki actor. An onnagata. It was a hard cover book with a slip cover and obi, still in very good condition. I was entirely prepared to put it back if it cost too much, because it was a little steep in price new for my current budget. As it turned out, the price at the Book Off was only just barely over 1000 yen. SOLD.
I got my suitcase which I had stashed in a coin locker and headed for the bus. I didn’t really look at the book other than a light glance until I got back to Tokyo and I was unpacking. Curiosity struck, so I looked him up on Google. Saotome Taichi, taishuu engeki actor. Not kabuki, but similar to kabuki only less formal. It seems engeki has filled the spot of kabuki now that it has gained more prestige for being a traditional art form. This piqued my interest and so I looked up videos on youtube and looked up information about his performances. His dancing is beautiful. This was when I came across Hakuouki Shinsengumi Enburoku and I found out he was cast as the main male lead, Hijikata Toshizou.
I had heard about the anime but I had yet to watch it. In order to understand the stage play, which would be entirely in Japanese (without subtitles!), I watched the anime to gain background about the story and characters. I have to say, I am a sucker for historical fiction, and Shinsengumi are one major weakness. I think this goes back to when I watched Rurouni Kenshin years ago. The anime is quite good, and the second season, Hakuouki Hekketsu-roku, is currently airing here now.
I was not sure if I could get a ticket, as the Loppi machine had said all performances were sold out when I went to a Lawson Station in Nagoya. I spoke with one of the hotel staff, a very nice lady who said I should try going to the theatre and buying a ticket the day of the performance, so I decided that was what I would do. I did manage to get a ticket, even though I was in the back, it was worth it. Surprisingly there were several free seats, perhaps because people didn't show or for other reasons. I am not sure.
The plot centers around a girl looking for her father, a doctor who was ordered to go to Kyoto from Edo to work for the Bakufu. When she doesn’t receive letters for a month she decides to go to Kyoto herself, disguised as a boy, to find her lost father. She falls into the hands of the Shinsengumi, who at first threaten to kill her but then find her more useful alive, as they are also searching for her father.
The story is wrought with action and historical events and the character interaction is endearing and emotional. Though it is different from the anime in that scenes are rearranged in order to condense it into a 3 hour performance instead of a 12 episode anime, it captured the essence of the anime and the character relationships.
While I was far back in the theatre and I could see all the action, I could not see the facial expressions. Still, I was riveted to my seat for the duration of the play. I do not speak Japanese fluently, but I am amazed how much I understood and could glean from the actors and the dialog I did understand. I believe they were also speaking in Kansai-ben, which I found fitting, as the setting is Kyoto.
The stage sets were minimal, but anything fancier would have taken away from the action and the characters. The lights set the mood and the actors took it from there. There was nothing to distract one’s eye from the actors themselves, which meant the actors had to be that much more talented to keep your attention. The sword fighting scenes were beautifully choreographed, so much that they looked real. The actors spoke in rough male speech patterns. You could hear the emotion in the actors’ voices in the poignant scenes, and death cries sounded like the actors were truly dying on the stage.
Saotome has got to be, without a doubt, the best actor I have ever seen. (Yes, there is bias in there :P). He may only be 19, but given the fact he was raised in the theatre and bred as an actor since he could walk, he dwarfs most of the actors I have seen in both stage and screen. Saotome’s performance was nothing short of amazing, the costumes were spot on with the anime, and I really liked the haori. They were made from a semi-sheer light fabric, not solid and heavy, so they flowed with the actors’ movements. It was entirely likely they chose a light fabric for that exact reason.
The cast received a standing ovation for their performance, and it was certainly earned, I assure you! They came out on stage three times, and in the last bow Saotome got the fans involved with a clap pattern. It must be something he does at his own shows, and since this is the first time I'd seen him, I was not familiar with it, but it was cute. I will certainly be attending more of his plays in the future.
For some more visuals and interviews with the actors, here are a few clips I found on YouTube.
Cast list:
Hijikata Toshizou - Saotome Taichi
Yukimura Chizuru - Kurokawa Tomoka
Okita Souji - Kubota Masataka
Toudou Heisuke - Takeda Kouhei
Saitou Hajime - Nakamura Michiya
Harada Sanosuke - Hashimoto Jun
Sannan Keisuke - Kawaoka Daijirou
Nagakura Shinpachi - Nakamura Seijirou
Kondou Isami - Sakamoto Sou
Chikage Kazama - Kimura Ryo
Amagiri Kyuuju - RYO (ORANGE RANGE)
Shiranui Kyo - Isaki Yuusuke
Yukimura Koudou - Kinoshita Houka
Inoue Genzaburou - Sugiyama Hirohiko
Shimada Kai- Hashimoto Nozomu
Saotome Taichi was completely unknown to me until recently. It’s actually a funny story how I found out about him, one of those “in the right place at the right time” sort of occurrences.
I had gone to Osaka to see an alice nine. concert, hung out with a friend living in Osaka on the off days I was there. On the last day I met my friend in Kyoto, we had some dinner at TGI Fridays and she had to head back because she had to work early the following morning. She left from Sanjo Keihan station and I went into the Book Off there to see if they had any of the dvds I was looking for. They didn’t.
I was on my way out when I caught sight of a book on a trolley, likely ready to be put back on the shelf. It caught my eye because it had a kabuki actor on the front, or, what I thought was a kabuki actor. An onnagata. It was a hard cover book with a slip cover and obi, still in very good condition. I was entirely prepared to put it back if it cost too much, because it was a little steep in price new for my current budget. As it turned out, the price at the Book Off was only just barely over 1000 yen. SOLD.
I got my suitcase which I had stashed in a coin locker and headed for the bus. I didn’t really look at the book other than a light glance until I got back to Tokyo and I was unpacking. Curiosity struck, so I looked him up on Google. Saotome Taichi, taishuu engeki actor. Not kabuki, but similar to kabuki only less formal. It seems engeki has filled the spot of kabuki now that it has gained more prestige for being a traditional art form. This piqued my interest and so I looked up videos on youtube and looked up information about his performances. His dancing is beautiful. This was when I came across Hakuouki Shinsengumi Enburoku and I found out he was cast as the main male lead, Hijikata Toshizou.
I had heard about the anime but I had yet to watch it. In order to understand the stage play, which would be entirely in Japanese (without subtitles!), I watched the anime to gain background about the story and characters. I have to say, I am a sucker for historical fiction, and Shinsengumi are one major weakness. I think this goes back to when I watched Rurouni Kenshin years ago. The anime is quite good, and the second season, Hakuouki Hekketsu-roku, is currently airing here now.
I was not sure if I could get a ticket, as the Loppi machine had said all performances were sold out when I went to a Lawson Station in Nagoya. I spoke with one of the hotel staff, a very nice lady who said I should try going to the theatre and buying a ticket the day of the performance, so I decided that was what I would do. I did manage to get a ticket, even though I was in the back, it was worth it. Surprisingly there were several free seats, perhaps because people didn't show or for other reasons. I am not sure.
The plot centers around a girl looking for her father, a doctor who was ordered to go to Kyoto from Edo to work for the Bakufu. When she doesn’t receive letters for a month she decides to go to Kyoto herself, disguised as a boy, to find her lost father. She falls into the hands of the Shinsengumi, who at first threaten to kill her but then find her more useful alive, as they are also searching for her father.
The story is wrought with action and historical events and the character interaction is endearing and emotional. Though it is different from the anime in that scenes are rearranged in order to condense it into a 3 hour performance instead of a 12 episode anime, it captured the essence of the anime and the character relationships.
While I was far back in the theatre and I could see all the action, I could not see the facial expressions. Still, I was riveted to my seat for the duration of the play. I do not speak Japanese fluently, but I am amazed how much I understood and could glean from the actors and the dialog I did understand. I believe they were also speaking in Kansai-ben, which I found fitting, as the setting is Kyoto.
The stage sets were minimal, but anything fancier would have taken away from the action and the characters. The lights set the mood and the actors took it from there. There was nothing to distract one’s eye from the actors themselves, which meant the actors had to be that much more talented to keep your attention. The sword fighting scenes were beautifully choreographed, so much that they looked real. The actors spoke in rough male speech patterns. You could hear the emotion in the actors’ voices in the poignant scenes, and death cries sounded like the actors were truly dying on the stage.
Saotome has got to be, without a doubt, the best actor I have ever seen. (Yes, there is bias in there :P). He may only be 19, but given the fact he was raised in the theatre and bred as an actor since he could walk, he dwarfs most of the actors I have seen in both stage and screen. Saotome’s performance was nothing short of amazing, the costumes were spot on with the anime, and I really liked the haori. They were made from a semi-sheer light fabric, not solid and heavy, so they flowed with the actors’ movements. It was entirely likely they chose a light fabric for that exact reason.
The cast received a standing ovation for their performance, and it was certainly earned, I assure you! They came out on stage three times, and in the last bow Saotome got the fans involved with a clap pattern. It must be something he does at his own shows, and since this is the first time I'd seen him, I was not familiar with it, but it was cute. I will certainly be attending more of his plays in the future.
For some more visuals and interviews with the actors, here are a few clips I found on YouTube.
Click to view