Long Review of Singin' in theRain
Written: September 1st, 2008
I'm going to assume that everyone knows the plot of Singin' in the Rain. If you need more info, here's the TakaWiki page for this production:
http://www.takarazuka-revue.info/tiki-index.php?page=Singin+in+the+Rain+(Cosmos+2008)
And here's the Wikipedia page for the original movie:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singin_in_the_rain
So, first of all, you should know that this show and I have History. *g* I *love* musicals (big shock from a Takarazuka fan...) but I've never really liked this one. The movie, the couple times I've seen it, hasn't really interested me.
Second of all, I am a huge Aran Kei fan, and Aran Kei played the lead in this show back in 2003. Even then, I watched it and was like, "Touko's cute and all, but I really don't like this musical..."
So, musical I don't like all that much, starring someone else in "my" star's role. Hmmmm... Sounds risky, doesn't it?
Despite my initial trepidation, I actually settled into watching the first act very happily- I don't "follow" Cosmos Troupe these days, but there are lots of really talented actresses there, plus the staging (pretty much the same as the previous version...) was nice, the action moves along quick, and the songs and dance numbers are interesting. I went into intermission thinking, "Why is it I don't like this play, again?"
But then there was Act II, and the problem with Act II is there's not much left to happen. Act I contains pretty much the *entire* story AND nearly all the fun musical numbers - "Fit as a Fiddle", "All I Do is Dream of You", "Make 'em Laugh", "You are My Lucky Star", "Moses Supposes", "Good Morning", and "Singin' in the Rain" - all in Act I!
Act II? Er, there's a cute song for Lina ("What's Wrong with Me") that's not plot-essential. The plot-vacation that is "Broadway Melody." Then the story's resolution. Then the revue/finale. That's it. My guess is that the real water used for the "Singin' in the Rain" number means they need to have it right before intermission so they can dry the stage off, but I can't help but think there must have been *some* way to get more into Act II. It would have helped if I *liked* the "Broadway Melody" segment - which I know some people do, and they're allowed, but I don't. So for me Act II felt entirely unnecessary: take a couple minutes off one of the Act I group numbers and move the 10 minutes of actual *plot* in Act I there! Boom, a one act play and you can just have a *revue* after intermission!
Enough of that. Good things about the staging: Loved the main characters, loved the sets, loved the silent movies. Loved the use of the stage doors for Don and Lina's entrance, and of the aisle for Kathy fleeing. Loved that they still had a side "lift" even though they weren't at one of their own theaters. :) Liked most of the choreography, though at times it seemed like (just as in the 2003 version) the Takarazuka-style numbers were shoved a little *too* forcefully into the show.
It was so sad that Hizuki Hana's injury prevented her being in this show - she played Kathy in the 2003 version as well, and I really wasn't impressed by her back then, but she's grown to be such an incredible performer over the years, that I was really interested to see how she would perform as Kathy now. Plus, this show put Hanakage Alice in such a difficult position, having to "replace" the top musumeyaku in such sad circumstances, but in a musical she'd always wanted to perform. This is such a happy show, but so much was going on behind the scenes for the performers... Just wanted to get that out of the way before moving on to the usual opinions on the actors. :)
Yamato Yuuga (Don): Our little Tani is all grown up! *sniffle* And yet... still very Tani-like. *g* I liked her Don very much. Tani's style has always had an undercurrent of gentle cheerfullness to it - this makes Don likeable even when he occasionally does things that are a bit sneaky or pushy (like kissing Kathy without permission). Tani's a good dancer and very light on her feet, important for the tap dancing. As everyone seems to delight in making fun of her singing voice, yes, fine, she's not the best singer in the world. Nor is she anywhere near the worst in Takarazuka history. Here, I thought she actually sounded pretty good, and though she did "back off" from tough notes, the advantage was that she mostly stayed in tune, and I thought she sounded quite good. No, she'll never be a crooner like Touko, but isn't that the point of having revival productions? Seeing someone else's take on a role? I liked Tani's Don just as much as Touko's; they each had their own charm.
Hanakage Arisu (Kathy): Was just amazing. Previously, I really wasn't very interested in this character, which seemed rather bland in the 2003 Star Troupe version. Alice has more than "just" the singing and dancing talent to make Kathy believable as an aspiring actress, she has the *acting* skill to give her her smart and quirky personality. Not just her lines but her reaction shots and body lines brought Kathy to life, making it easy to see how Hollywood star Don could unexpectedly find himself smitten by an insignificant chorus girl... Seeing a non-top musumeyaku finally getting a good role like this always brings back to my attention yet *again* how much of their talent we miss seeing...
Ranju Tomu (Cosmo): I saw her many times when she was in Flower Troupe in her younger days, but this was the first time I'd seen her in many years. I hadn't really seen her do comedy before, and she was quite good at it - loved her "Make 'em Laugh" number and her delivery on Cosmo's various one-liners. Good dancer, very likeable on stage. It's good to see that her career is progressing well - I remember back in "the day" some people were concerned that she didn't have a "cute" enough presentation to make it on the "star track." :)
Hokushou Kairi (Lina): Okay, let's get out of the way the usual, "Why can't they just put musumeyaku in the female roles; why do they always have to put an otokoyaku in 'drag', etc, etc," that everyone has heard from me at least 80 times. Micchan played Lina, Don's voice-challenged co-star, and she was cute as can be. There was very little sign of the "in drag" otokoyaku, no unconsciously stomping about the stage taking up too much space (when she did so, it was always *consciously*, for effect). Though she was too tall for a musumeyaku, for the most part she had the delicate air, looking pretty in her party dresses and even in her French court monstrosity for the "talkie" movie. Her horrible Lina voice was very good (er, you know what I mean...) They did at times have her go down into a growly otokoyaku voice when she was angry - which was hilarious the first couple times, but I think was over-used and just became a cheap laugh by the end of the show. That would be my only, teeny-tiny Lina compaint. Other than that, she looked pretty, sounded horrible, and had the same sense of comic-timing that she's shown since her young days in Moon Troupe, and I enjoyed her performance very much. :)
Nanaho Hikaru (Roscoe): To be fair, if *someone* I saw the show with wasn't an Eriko fan, I might not have taken care to pay *particular* attention to her role. ;) Eriko played the director of Don and Lina's "talkie" movie, and was very funny as she struggled to make the movie a success, despite repeated microphone troubles. It's a small role, but she was very funny in it. So maybe even I would have noticed her anyway. :)
Suzuna Seiya (Dora Bailey): Gossip columnist who helps explainthe characters and keep the plot moving. I liked her. :)
Miwa Asahi (Zelda and Dancer S): I've liked her for so long - at least she got something to do in this? Cute as Lina's "BFF" Zelda and then got the female dancing solo in the "Broadway Melody". Yay! :)
(For these last couple, I have to go with the cast list, as I'm not that familiar with Cosmos Troupe these days. Forgive me.)
Oomi Ako (Miss Dinsmore): Was Lina's vocal coach, right? Also was great, and quite funny as she tried relentlessly to teach Lina to speak properly.
Houshou Dai (Diction Coash): In the "Moses Supposes" number, correct? I really enjoyed the coach in this version, as he had so much more - or at least *different* - personality than in the Hoshigumi version.
Nanami Hiroki (Policeman): Ah hah! The look she gave Tani during "Singin' in the Rain"!
Overall, this was a very enjoyable production. Even if you're not a follower of Cosmos Troupe. And even if you don't particularly care for Singin' in the Rain. *g*