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masahiSummary:
Der Zigeuner Baron - Based on Johann Strauss II's operetta of the same name, the story follows Sterk Barinkay, son of a Baron who is nudged into reclaiming his land by the Empress. The local Pig farmer, who is trying to find Barinkay's father's long-lost treasure is unimpressed, and to ensure he will still get a share of the booty, he tries to persuade Barinkay to marry one of his daughter. All would be well if one of the daughters wasn't in love with a servant, and Barinkay didn't run into that fleet of local gypsies...
Rhapsodic Moon - A "rhapsodic" dancing and singing revue, whose backdrop is the mysterious beauty of the moon and the energy generated from its radiance. The stars of the Moon Troupe display their diverse charms as they weave together fantastic music with passionate dancing. (This summary taken from the official website)
I saw Tsukigumi perform Elisabeth last year, and I was very curious about how different the troupe would be with Kiriyan at the helm instead of Asako, and with a Top Musumeyaku. And oh, it could not have been more different.
Asako's Tsukigumi was beautiful, but it was beauty in decay. Kiriyan's is brilliant and beautiful, so much energy and life and delight. It's like watching a fireworks display - so much colour, radiance and excitement. I was so delighted by the change. I loved them last year, but this year, almost entirely the same troupe, but so completely different in energy.
The Gypsy Baron was a wonderful showcase of all of Tsukigumi's talent, starting with a pair dance to end all pairdances to the overture. Kiriyan and Marimo are beautiful together - they match in energy, style, look and charisma. They work. I like all the current top star pairings, but just for charisma and style, Kiriyan/Marimo really work best.
This show was to let Kiriyan have some fun in a role, after Yukariko and Pimpernel. Both shows have fun stuff in them, but they also bring the angst to the party. Baron was totally about having fun, even when signing up unexpectedly to join the army.
Kiriyan is wonderful when it comes to comedy and her Barinkay was brilliantly laddish and irreverant. This is a boy who takes nothing seriously, and she made me laugh so much when she arrived in her home town, and got bored. While her official Escort (more like a chaperone, since Barinkay's such a troublemaker) was making the formal introductions, Barinkay was off playing with one of the pig statues, wiggling his fingers in its nose and dressing it up in his hat, and generally amusing himself.
However, prize for winning my attention totally goes to Asumi Rio. I'd never really paid her much heed before, but now, I can see why she's getting so much of the promotion. She was playing Ottakar, the family servant of Zsupan, the Pig Farmer. He's a sweet, good-natured character, who is thoroughly in love Zsupan's youngest daughter. Her comic timing is lovely, and she had such a great dynamic with Ayahoshi Rion, who was playing Arsene, the girl Ottakar is in love with.
What really surprised me about her was the voice. I knew she could sing, but then the voice just kept getting bigger and bigger. I even had to write to her to go "OMG I LOVED OTTAKAR!". Plus the double-act of Ottakar/Arsene was just brilliant, especially since it's clear that Arsene totally wears the trousers in the relationship.
Back to the story, though, Barinkay wanders off to explore his new town and runs into Saffi, a gypsy girl, played by Aono Yuki. I saw Marimo in Legend last year and she was nifty, but what really impressed me this time was her voice. She didn't have huge amounts of singing in Legend, but as Top Star, they let her blow the roof off.
Strauss' music is perfect for her and Kiriyan. Actually, it's great for the whole troupe. It's lively, fun and joyful music, and with the voices they currently have collected in Tsukigumi, the choruswork is more than stellar.
The gypsy gang are clearly loving every moment of being gypsies, and Kiriyan gets to have Crazy Dance-Off fun, the likes of which I haven't seen since Seal of Roses. I missed seeing Kiriyan dance so much. She's wonderful at it. Actually, this whole show has reminded me exactly why Hoshi and Tsuki are and always have been my favourite troupes.
The whole story continues down the line of Barinkay meets gypsies, Barinkay likes gypsies, gypsies join forces with Barinkay and find treasure, Barinkay is tricked into joining the army by pig farmer and Morie's Homonay, Barinkay and Gypsies and everyone join the army, everyone comes home, finds their signficant other and has a happy ending.
This, though, doesn't express the sheer brilliance of the ensemble routines. The gypsy-dancing is good enough, but they have the recruitment song led by Morie and her legion, which is fantastic, and one of my favourite numbers in the whole show - the musumeyaku number. The women who have been left behind from the village lament the loss of their men to the army, then the scene flips, and the gypsy women in the same situation take the same lament and give it a gypsy twist. The vocal work was incredible.
And the music. The music was wonderful. They took a good piece of music, tweaked it to their needs and adjusted the story slightly, and it was quite simply brilliant. I want this show on DVD. I really, really do.
Other-character-wise, people of note:
Aoki Izumi as Homonay - even just for her first scene, I was giggling. Barinkay shows up, all swagger and cockiness and Homonay is utterly horrified by this uncouth ruffian leaning on him and being such a fool. By the end of the show, he's loosened up so much that he's Barinkay's partner in crime.
Mihou Aya as Czipra - was wonderful. She had some lovely vocal work to do, but what really stood out was when she danced. She was so graceful and elegant and utterly effortless in her dancing.
Ryuu Masaki as Pali - this character was wedged in, and to be honest, was completely unnecessary, as the tension between him and Barinkay lasted all of a song and a half. And a failed dance-off. But Masaki took a bland role and made it full of stampy-footed rar. Plus, here's a guy as swaggering and cocky as Barinkay. In the finale, when they show up at Maria Theresa's palace, Pali causes outrage by deciding that the throne is clearly the seat for him.
Kiryuu Sonoka as Tobol - I love it when Sonoka gets to show off her dance moves and she definitely did as Tobol :) Plus, generally she and the other gypsies were having far too much fun with the dancing and the singing and the great costumes :D
Seijou Kaito as Istvan - The charmingly inept servant :) Magee didn't have a huge amount to do, but her face-pulling and expressions behind Zsupan's back cracked me up.
The revue itself didn't exactly dazzle me first time, but second time around, I enjoyed it a lot more. It is a good revue, and the girls are all given plenty to do with solos for Masaki, Mirio and even Sonoka. There are toe-tapping parts, as well as mini-stories featuring Mirio as what I can only assume is some kind of demonic-type Djinn inna Death wig. One of my favourite routines, though, is the swing-ish number, which has multiple pairs dancing all over the place.
The main thing I noticed about this show, though, is the fact that unlike last year, the upperclassmen are really being shown off. And the Musumeyaku. Kiriyan's been in Tsuki long enough to know how to make it sparkle and she really does. Morie and Sonoka are given plenty to do, while Masaki and Mirio as joint nibante definitely shine. Marimo leading the girls was just a joy to see :)
Really, the change in Tsuki from last year to this is simply Kiriyan's direction for the troupe. Asako was a wonderful performer, but her style was very different. Kiriyan knows the troupe, knows their strengths and weaknesses, and is more than willing to use them all to their best advantage, and it makes for a wonderful show and a wonderful troupe. I can't wait to see what they do next.
Der Zigeuner Baron - Based on Johann Strauss II's operetta of the same name, the story follows Sterk Barinkay, son of a Baron who is nudged into reclaiming his land by the Empress. The local Pig farmer, who is trying to find Barinkay's father's long-lost treasure is unimpressed, and to ensure he will still get a share of the booty, he tries to persuade Barinkay to marry one of his daughter. All would be well if one of the daughters wasn't in love with a servant, and Barinkay didn't run into that fleet of local gypsies...
Rhapsodic Moon - A "rhapsodic" dancing and singing revue, whose backdrop is the mysterious beauty of the moon and the energy generated from its radiance. The stars of the Moon Troupe display their diverse charms as they weave together fantastic music with passionate dancing. (This summary taken from the official website)
I saw Tsukigumi perform Elisabeth last year, and I was very curious about how different the troupe would be with Kiriyan at the helm instead of Asako, and with a Top Musumeyaku. And oh, it could not have been more different.
Asako's Tsukigumi was beautiful, but it was beauty in decay. Kiriyan's is brilliant and beautiful, so much energy and life and delight. It's like watching a fireworks display - so much colour, radiance and excitement. I was so delighted by the change. I loved them last year, but this year, almost entirely the same troupe, but so completely different in energy.
The Gypsy Baron was a wonderful showcase of all of Tsukigumi's talent, starting with a pair dance to end all pairdances to the overture. Kiriyan and Marimo are beautiful together - they match in energy, style, look and charisma. They work. I like all the current top star pairings, but just for charisma and style, Kiriyan/Marimo really work best.
This show was to let Kiriyan have some fun in a role, after Yukariko and Pimpernel. Both shows have fun stuff in them, but they also bring the angst to the party. Baron was totally about having fun, even when signing up unexpectedly to join the army.
Kiriyan is wonderful when it comes to comedy and her Barinkay was brilliantly laddish and irreverant. This is a boy who takes nothing seriously, and she made me laugh so much when she arrived in her home town, and got bored. While her official Escort (more like a chaperone, since Barinkay's such a troublemaker) was making the formal introductions, Barinkay was off playing with one of the pig statues, wiggling his fingers in its nose and dressing it up in his hat, and generally amusing himself.
However, prize for winning my attention totally goes to Asumi Rio. I'd never really paid her much heed before, but now, I can see why she's getting so much of the promotion. She was playing Ottakar, the family servant of Zsupan, the Pig Farmer. He's a sweet, good-natured character, who is thoroughly in love Zsupan's youngest daughter. Her comic timing is lovely, and she had such a great dynamic with Ayahoshi Rion, who was playing Arsene, the girl Ottakar is in love with.
What really surprised me about her was the voice. I knew she could sing, but then the voice just kept getting bigger and bigger. I even had to write to her to go "OMG I LOVED OTTAKAR!". Plus the double-act of Ottakar/Arsene was just brilliant, especially since it's clear that Arsene totally wears the trousers in the relationship.
Back to the story, though, Barinkay wanders off to explore his new town and runs into Saffi, a gypsy girl, played by Aono Yuki. I saw Marimo in Legend last year and she was nifty, but what really impressed me this time was her voice. She didn't have huge amounts of singing in Legend, but as Top Star, they let her blow the roof off.
Strauss' music is perfect for her and Kiriyan. Actually, it's great for the whole troupe. It's lively, fun and joyful music, and with the voices they currently have collected in Tsukigumi, the choruswork is more than stellar.
The gypsy gang are clearly loving every moment of being gypsies, and Kiriyan gets to have Crazy Dance-Off fun, the likes of which I haven't seen since Seal of Roses. I missed seeing Kiriyan dance so much. She's wonderful at it. Actually, this whole show has reminded me exactly why Hoshi and Tsuki are and always have been my favourite troupes.
The whole story continues down the line of Barinkay meets gypsies, Barinkay likes gypsies, gypsies join forces with Barinkay and find treasure, Barinkay is tricked into joining the army by pig farmer and Morie's Homonay, Barinkay and Gypsies and everyone join the army, everyone comes home, finds their signficant other and has a happy ending.
This, though, doesn't express the sheer brilliance of the ensemble routines. The gypsy-dancing is good enough, but they have the recruitment song led by Morie and her legion, which is fantastic, and one of my favourite numbers in the whole show - the musumeyaku number. The women who have been left behind from the village lament the loss of their men to the army, then the scene flips, and the gypsy women in the same situation take the same lament and give it a gypsy twist. The vocal work was incredible.
And the music. The music was wonderful. They took a good piece of music, tweaked it to their needs and adjusted the story slightly, and it was quite simply brilliant. I want this show on DVD. I really, really do.
Other-character-wise, people of note:
Aoki Izumi as Homonay - even just for her first scene, I was giggling. Barinkay shows up, all swagger and cockiness and Homonay is utterly horrified by this uncouth ruffian leaning on him and being such a fool. By the end of the show, he's loosened up so much that he's Barinkay's partner in crime.
Mihou Aya as Czipra - was wonderful. She had some lovely vocal work to do, but what really stood out was when she danced. She was so graceful and elegant and utterly effortless in her dancing.
Ryuu Masaki as Pali - this character was wedged in, and to be honest, was completely unnecessary, as the tension between him and Barinkay lasted all of a song and a half. And a failed dance-off. But Masaki took a bland role and made it full of stampy-footed rar. Plus, here's a guy as swaggering and cocky as Barinkay. In the finale, when they show up at Maria Theresa's palace, Pali causes outrage by deciding that the throne is clearly the seat for him.
Kiryuu Sonoka as Tobol - I love it when Sonoka gets to show off her dance moves and she definitely did as Tobol :) Plus, generally she and the other gypsies were having far too much fun with the dancing and the singing and the great costumes :D
Seijou Kaito as Istvan - The charmingly inept servant :) Magee didn't have a huge amount to do, but her face-pulling and expressions behind Zsupan's back cracked me up.
The revue itself didn't exactly dazzle me first time, but second time around, I enjoyed it a lot more. It is a good revue, and the girls are all given plenty to do with solos for Masaki, Mirio and even Sonoka. There are toe-tapping parts, as well as mini-stories featuring Mirio as what I can only assume is some kind of demonic-type Djinn inna Death wig. One of my favourite routines, though, is the swing-ish number, which has multiple pairs dancing all over the place.
The main thing I noticed about this show, though, is the fact that unlike last year, the upperclassmen are really being shown off. And the Musumeyaku. Kiriyan's been in Tsuki long enough to know how to make it sparkle and she really does. Morie and Sonoka are given plenty to do, while Masaki and Mirio as joint nibante definitely shine. Marimo leading the girls was just a joy to see :)
Really, the change in Tsuki from last year to this is simply Kiriyan's direction for the troupe. Asako was a wonderful performer, but her style was very different. Kiriyan knows the troupe, knows their strengths and weaknesses, and is more than willing to use them all to their best advantage, and it makes for a wonderful show and a wonderful troupe. I can't wait to see what they do next.
