(original : Curtains Musical 2022 Pamphlet)
My Personal Notes & Commentary:
There were flowers bouquets sent over by organizations related to the artists. Yuuka got three just for herself from the NobiRaji Radio, KMax Studio, and Rekomen Radio. Shirota Yu got several, but the one that caught my attention was the one from Square Enix, with the Dragon Quest Slime monster plushie attached to it. I didn't know if he had some work with Square Enix or not before, so it was quite a surprise given that I'm a fan of Square Enix games myself.
(sorry for the blurred photos, since they were taken in a hurry)
"To be performing in a stage play this time together with a list of
distinguished co-stars made me really nervous at the introducion session
on the first day of rehearsal. However, once inside the rehearsal hall I
found everyone there was so lively and they created a warm atmosphere just
like a family, so I was relieved. Each day I spent being a part of this
team is full of happiness. When the offer for the role came, I couldn't
believe that the opportunity to challenging myself in a musical
performance will come. Happiness, surprise, gratitude, nervousness... all
kinds of emotions were flowing through. It has been 2 years since the last
time I got the chance to perform in a stage play for「Hiryuuden 2020」.
Given there are issues such as the coronavirus pandemic, I want to deliver
a dreamlike performance that may make all of you, who come to the theatre while carrying a lot of thoughts, to forget about your daily life issues
for just a moment. By the way, I was trying to predict who the killer is
when I was reading the script for the first time, and I missed it by a
long shot! (www)
Nikki is a cute and pure girl, a little bit of an airhead, who dreams
about performing in Broadway. Shirota-san asked me, "What is Nikki's
main purpose on this stage?". After thinking about it together, I found a
very fitting answer in me. It's a peculiar feeling that somewhere in my
heart I feel that there is something I can relate with Nikki.
Shirota-san presented clearly the direction of how this play is supposed
to be, and I really trust him wholeheartedly as a director and as a
partner (on the stage >_<). "This
is a captain that I want to be", such leadership he has that I can learn
from. In order to put my feeling at ease given that I am a beginner in
musicals, he did very hyped version of「JanKenPon! Acchi Muite Hoi!」,
moving his entire body while doing so for so many times, and I will never
forget about that. I would like to return the favor by giving a lovely
performance as Nikki. Also, I received advice from the music director
Uegaki Satoshi-san and the voice trainer Hiraoka-sensei on how to express
emotions through the dialog lines and the singing parts, so that I became
conscious about having firm vocalization and intonation even during daily
conversations. I put my feelings not to waste a second each and every day. The song that
I like best is 「Show People」. I like the lyrics. Especially, it gives
myself who took the step into this (showbiz) world 7 years ago affirmation and encouragement. After this stage play ended, perhaps humming to this
song moments before showing up to the stage in Sakurazaka46 live performances might lift up my spirit!
Thank you very much for coming to watch the play. I have tried to give
all my efforts to perform this play and making it something memorable in
your hearts. I would be happy if it can make you happy, even for just a
slightest bit. Be careful on your way back home."
Profile : Debuted as part of Keyakizaka46 1st-gen at April 6th, 2016, with the single 「Silent Majority」. Holding the online concert「KEYAKIZAKA46 Live Online, but with YOU!」in July 2020, and in the same performance announcing that through the LAST LIVE in October 2020, Keyakizaka46 will stop its activity and will be rebranded. Afterwards, by October 14th, 2020, Sakurazaka46 has become active. She's continuing her role as the captain of the group in Sakurazaka46. Moreover, due to her experience being part of the equestrian club during her school days, she was also inaugurated as the 「Equestrian Special Ambassador」for Japan's Equestrian Federation. This stage play will be her first to perform in a musical.
I'm really glad that I got to watch the musical live at the theatre on its very first performance. I like musicals in general, but didn't know anything about the Curtains musical itself beforehand (Wikipedia Page). I came partly due to being curious on Yuuka's live singing ability, and also because Shirota Yu is there as the lead role (have been a fan of his singing for quite a while). I'm also glad that I got a very good seat in which I can see the entire stage clearly.
There were flowers bouquets sent over by organizations related to the artists. Yuuka got three just for herself from the NobiRaji Radio, KMax Studio, and Rekomen Radio. Shirota Yu got several, but the one that caught my attention was the one from Square Enix, with the Dragon Quest Slime monster plushie attached to it. I didn't know if he had some work with Square Enix or not before, so it was quite a surprise given that I'm a fan of Square Enix games myself.
So talking about the play itself, to my enjoyment the story is very light-hearted that even if you're not a fan of any of the cast members, you can just purely enjoy the stage play for what it is. Even though the story is about a murder mystery, it is written in a comedic nature and managed to get the audiences giggled a lot. The songs are very catchy and there are about 4 main scores that later on got several kinds of variations. Most of the actors and actress are veterans in musical so it's very great to hear them singing.
For Yuuka herself, frankly for a heroine role she actually didn't get much time to sing solo. But after looking at the list of original scores, there are actually not many songs where Nikki Harris is one of the lead singer in the first place. But then when it was her part to sing, I was like "Whoa, she can sing like that!" She nailed it with the vibrato, and also did the switch between head voice and chest voice smoothly. Also, to what I hear, her pitch control is very nice.
She got quite a lot of lines to deliver, and basically her character is the one that helps Shirota Yu's police inspector character to find all the clues he needs to solve the case in the story, while the love story between them is just the icing on the cake. While she is portraying the character Nikki Harris, somewhat for me it's just like seeing the Sugai Yuuka we know an love. There is also one hop-step-jump dance segment which is very cute.
Shirota Yu himself got such overwhelming presence on the stage. It's clear that the stage is his, but he also knows how to balance it out whenever the act needs to be focused on the other actors/actresses. His lovey-dovey act with Yuuka was soo-freaking-cute, and I'm pretty sure it was an ad-lib when he praised Yuuka's vibrato right on the stage during the play (since Yuuka couldn't answered right away and looked kinda flustered :D).
It is also funny how he put so many inside jokes, such as the fact that he performed in Romeo & Juliet musical last year, or that he is a "myuuwota" (musical otaku) himself. He is also very swift in handling situations on stage. There was a part where an actress tripped over a stage prop that I believe is not intended, but then he took over her hand and say "Are you okay" very naturally just like it was actually the part of the dialog. More than anything, he looks so full of energy and clearly enjoys performing on the stage, and personally that positive energy got into me as well.
If you might get the chance to watch it in the near future (either live, or if they are releasing a DVD/Blu-Ray of the play), just understand that the stage play is adapted to fit the Japanese comedy style. Many jokes are clearly in the form of "boke + tsukkomi", and sometimes added with some "noritsukkomi". The inside jokes are probably hard to get as well if you don't follow much about the actors/actresses. Some jokes are referring to famous quote in Sherlock Holmes or Shakespeare literatures, but in their Japanese translated version that it might be hard to recognize even if you know a lot about the original works. At least I'm glad that they didn't use too much honorrifics or a very stylized way of speech that it was easy to follow the plot and understanding the small details.
This was the second time I watched a stage play in Japan (first one was "3-nen B-gumi Minagawa Sensei", where Nogizaka46's Seimiya Rei was starring in), and both times I really got hooked with the passion in acting/performing that the actors/actresses shown on the stage. It is such a different feeling with watching a movie, because you are actually in the same room with them in the theater and can actually feel the atmosphere they created on the stage. Who knows, perhaps I will be starting a new journey as a stage play otaku... 😂
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