I saw someone already mentioned it to you, but yes. Revue is an explicit nuanced critique and love letter to the Takarazuka musical theater. You already established how cut-throat theater school is, but I think it should be made clear that Takarazuka puts that to shame. You talked about the fight for the lead spot and how the show puts it into context of literal battle, but something you may not know is that the term "Top Star" is an actual term in Takarazuka. (1/2)
“(2/2) The Takarazuka Revue has 5 troupes; each one has a top star. They’re, of course, the best actress in each troupe, but here’s the thing: they’re always the lead. Even if a technically worse actress is a much better fit for a lead role, the top star will take it. They’re the only actress featured in marketing and posters, the only one the major public talks about. You go to a Takarazuka performance solely for the top star. And there’s a heaping dropping of biological talent in there.”
“(3/2 oops) To be a top star, you have to be an otokoyaku. Takarazuka being all-female, roughly half or more of the cast will be crossdressing women, called otokoyaku. So to be the top star, you need not only be the best, but you also have to have been gifted with height, a deep (or wide ranged) voice, and a figure that is either masculine or can be disguised by clothing to look masculine. So a shortie will just never be the top star, even if they're butch af. And it sucks.”
Well, shit. And I thought my high school theater experience was rough. No wonder Starlight’s so concerned with breaking that paradigm, any situation where one person is glorified above all their peers to that extent is gonna leave some unnecessary scars behind.
