#drumtao

“HYOEN2017－BASARA” will be held at Yoyogi National Gymnasium from May 20th to 22nd.

For the collaboration of Kabuki and figure skating for the first time in the world, Somegoro Ichikawa and Emiya Ichikawa from Kabuki and Daisuke Takahashi and Shizuka Arakawa from figure skating will appear as the members of this gorgeous cast. In addition, Team Lab joins the show for visual direction and DRUM TAO for music as well as VOGUE JAPAN as artistic consultant. Gathering their aesthetic senses and creativity, what kind of artistic world will these first class performers show us?

One of the main cast as well as a former World champion, figure skater Daisuke Takahashi had an interview with us. We focused on Hyoen in the first half of the interview and on himself in the latter.

A virtue rewarded and vice punished story with fighting and dancing----

 Q: First of all, have you read the script?

A: Yes, I have received and read it. I will play Yoshitsune Minamoto. Somegoro-san will play Danjo Nikki, a villain against my character. In real Kabuki, these two characters never appear in a same play because they belong to different eras and stories but in this show, the story is set in an imaginary world. The goddess, which will be played by Arakawa-san, connects these different worlds (in the show).

The script is full of difficult Kanji characters and I say “please somebody help me to understand them!” (laugh) but the story itself is easy to understand because it is poetic justice and even though you have no knowledge of Kabuki, you can enjoy it.

Q: Princess Iwanaga (Emiya Ichikawa), Niniginomikoto (Nobunari Oda) and Princess Konohanasakuya (Mai Asada)… Even with those names of characters which are officially announced, surely full of Kanji characters (laugh). Are there any lines in the show?

A: Somegoro-san and Emiya-san have but I don’t because I can’t speak while skating… Basically I’m good at expressing with my movements rather than words. I will try my best (laugh).

Somegoro-san told me to be the way I am now -----

Q: Has the rehearsal already started?

A: We started it finally and Somegoro-san, Arakawa-san and I had discussions on ice the other day. At that time, we only confirmed what we can do on ice like whether we can do certain movements on ice or not and we made offers various movements we can make (on ice to Somegoro-san)…but I heard that Kabuki actors have practices on ice three times a week in the middle of nights.

Q: Three times a week? That’s tough!

A: There is an instructor who teaches Somegoro-san figure skating and I am quite impressed that he has a really strong trunk. We can’t ask him to do because we are so afraid that he might get injured but (by seeing his practices) he might be able to do spins by the time of the show. I think he is really stoic and active.

Q: As mentioned at the press conference, it will be real to do the world fastest Tobi-roppo(one of the famous Kabuki movements), won’t it? What do you think about your own character? Do you do anything to study for the role?

A: Somegoro-san told me to play (the character) the way I am now. (When I heard that) I was relieved that “Yay! That’s good! I don’t have to study the role! I will do my best in action then!(laugh)” Yoshitsune in Kabuki has this image of being chased and running and running away, but in this show, he will be different Yoshitsune, not running away but fighting. I would like to play a powerful Yoshitsune with my own style.  

Q: As Somegoro-san from Korai-ya(one of the famous Kabuki family/house name) playing Danjo Nikki and Emiya-san from Omodaka-ya(another famous Kabuki family/house name) are playing, will you have some wire action(wire fu) at Yoyogi National Gymnasium?

A: Yes, they have some actions like that. Maybe the goddess as well. Please wait and stay tuned!

 Now the first class performers’ aesthetic senses gather!

Q: Now we have a list of big names from each field. Look at this rock steady cast! And it will be on ice and you are just being yourself there… Mr. Takahashi, you must feel really at ease!

A: No, not at all!(laugh) There are a lot of restrictions. In figure skating, I can perform a number freely as I like. But this time, we have a story line (to follow) and we share the ice with other people and I have to make Kabuki-style movements while interacting with others, so it’s completely different from ice shows I have done in the past. In addition, we have Tate (sword battle). This is my first time to perform with a sword, but I will try my best to get close to the Kabuki-style movements as much as possible.

Q: Why do you emphasize the Kabuki-STYLE?

A: Because I think “HYOEN –BASARA-“ is something new, mixture of Japanese Kabuki and Western figure skating, so it might be a Kabuki-style? And Kabuki is a traditional performing art, and with this short time of period for preparation, what we, figure skaters, can do is, I think, not (real) Kabuki but Kabuki-style even though we try our best. For example, there is a movement called “Mie-o-kiru”, right? I expected vaguely that I would have to do it but when actually I was told to do so, I honestly thought that oh, well, just as I thought! It would be cool when only Kabuki professionals do it!(laugh) Of course, I will do my best to get close to Kabuki as much as I can, but I think what I am expected to do is not something Kabukish, but to express “HYOEN –BASARA-“ with figure skating movements. In that sense, though, I still don’t get it perfectly.

Q: What do you mean “you don’t get it”?

A: Somegoro-san has various ideas. I think I haven’t got his imaginary world fully yet when I saw him last time. I feel that I can grasp it in a while. After a few more specific rehearsals, probably I can say “now I see what you mean!” more often. I’m looking forward to serious training.

Japanesque × mode photo shooting

Q: Team Lab for projection mapping and DRUM TAO for Japanese drum music, and moreover, you have VOGUE JAPAN. What kind of support does VOGUE JAPAN supply?

A: Supervising hair making, playbill booklets and main visual art, and we had a photo shooting the other day. I don’t have photos to show you yet but they are really cool!

Q: That’s cool! What about costumes and make-ups?

A: Not fully Kabuki-style, but both Japanese and mode(fashion). The costumes for Kabuki actors are much more bulky and we asked to make the costumes for us much lighter. Not to be caught in edges, we are going to wear the costumes from rehearsals and make sure (that would not happen).I have seen other people’s photos and they are very flashy and strongly appealing. As for make-ups, it is the same image of playbills. And long hair.

Q: What did you say?!

A: Long hair. A pony tail.(laugh) I have this length of my own hair and if you this and that (miming to tie his hair up), you will get a bit different style of pony tail and it looks very stylish. Do you see?

Q: Well, Mr. Takahashi, we have a white board here.

A: I’m not good at drawing but…(shy smile) Here, this part, dot dot dot and dot, and back is long and something like this?

Q: Well described! Thank you! As you said, this if very fashionable Ushiwaka-maru(childhood name for Yoshitsune), very VOGUE JAPAN Yoshitsune. Imagining it now, I can’t wait for the show.

Et pour terminer les vacances dans la bonne humeur, concert de Drum Tao, à l’Alternative Theater, dans le quartier de Ginza.