Long Review of Ten no Tsuzumi
Written: November 2005
Ten no Tsuzumi (Hand-drum of Heaven)
(A tsuzumi is a kind of Japanese drum, small, with an hourglass shape)
Flower Troupe 2004, Theater Drama City
Starring:
Haruno Sumire: Izu Nijihito
Fuzuki Miyo: Teruha
Ayabuki Mao: The Emperor (Mikado)
Touno Asuka: Izu Ibuki
Misuzu Aki : Tatsuru
Brief Plot Description:
Heian era Japan. A gentleman discovers an abandoned baby and raises the boy as his adopted son, naming him Nijihito ("Rainbow Person") after the rainbow in the sky at the time he was found. The only clue to the boy's origin is a special drum found with him. Nijihito proves to be a drumming prodigy, outshining his best friend Tatsuru. Although young Ibuki is secretly in love with Nijihito, he falls in love with a mysterious woman he sees playing the flute outside one night. That same night, he accidentally sets a series of events into action - unknowingly, he offends the emperor, also playing the flute outside, by refusing to accompany him on the drum. The next day, he discovers that the mysterious woman is none other than his friend Tatsuru's fiancée! But the real trouble begins when the emperor, used to having his own way, becomes obsessed with getting his hands on Nijihito's drum - a drum he is convinced is the magical "Hand-drum of Heaven."
Comments:
I'm impressed by how effectively Takarazuka can express the Heian era on stage. Women weren't even supposed to be directly seen by men who weren't family members. Poetry contests instead of sword fights. Admittedly, a play that's plot revolves around who's a better drummer (and not even of a big tough taiko, but a little wussy tsuzumi) isn't for everyone. But the Takarazuka folks can stage these so beautifully - the costumes! Ah, I love the costumes! Yep, I was getting my Japanese-Major-geek on.
And the plot was easy to follow, which is my major problem when I watch "traditional" plays. I could even keep the names of the characters straight! Plus, stuff actually happened, it moved along. End was a little odd, but it reminded me of actual Heian stuff I've read, so I was fine. Music... Eh... Enjoyable but forgettable. On to the actors:
Haruno Sumire: Kind of a typical Takarazuka lead role. Osa hit all the oh-why-doesn't-anyone-understand-me and oh-why-do-I-love-my-best-friend's-girl high points, but really, nothing is sticking out all that much a couple weeks later. I love the way she sings and she's good at Japanese dance. Her stage presence and everything is wonderful, so I just kind of watch her and don't worry about the character so much.
Fuzuki Miyo: Why, oh why, does my Fuu-chan get no love??? It's not that this was a *bad* role - but it could have been way more interesting. And just when the first act was making me expect significant stage time, they go and ruin it. She's barely in the second act until the end! *teeth-gnashing* *foot-stomping* I wanna see my Fuu-chan!
And... I hate to say this, but... I don't think she's very good at Japanese dance. Her movements seemed a little forced. Maybe just an off day?
Toono Asuka: Ah, yes, the "Sweet Young Girl" Role. Izumi was the variant on this, "Plucky Young Girl": She fusses at the main character, while secretly loving him, so she fusses and then runs off and cries. Bleh! Not that Toono's not good, she was great. Our two female leads do grow some backbone towards the end, but not nearly enough for me.
Ayabuki Mao: It was weird for me to see Ayabuki playing a real actual grown-up emperor! He's all stern, and serious, and has a mean laugh, but.... It's Yumiko! And she's so *cute*! I had to sort of flip on-and-off my mental "Yumiko" goggles the whole time, cause her acting was spot-on, but her face was still... adorable. So, it may just be me resigning these two "visions" that made me feel like the emperor had kind of a spoiled-kid gloss to him. It's actually kind of a tough role, because the character does a lot of things that are bad, but he wasn't really a true villain. Just very used to getting every single little thing his own way.
To sum up: I really enjoyed this, though it couldn't quite break out of the boring-as-heck main character thing that (I felt) "Asaki Yume Mishi" (another Heian era play) did. I grumble a bit about the characters, but it didn't actually bother me that much while watching it. I think that's because this sort of old-fashioned story always uses character "types" and broad-brushstrokes. Oh, and I forgot to mention before - the non-line-dance line-dance substitute was wonderful. I loved it. The whole finale was pretty good, actually.
So, I can see myself watching this again and enjoying it, which with my timeframes these days really tells you something.