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Franz Liszt and Marie d’Agoult (circa 1832)

#years of pilgrimage #yuzuka rei #hoshikaze madoka

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So if Takarasiennes really have to buy all the clothes for their shootings by themselfes…

does that mean Tom has a really weird taste in clothes sometimes?

I mean

And the weirdest thing is she always looks good no matter what she’s wearing.

#todoroki yu #yea LOL #q

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Even mom loves Todoroki now.

#todoroki yu #q

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I’m being a bit of a hypocrite posting screenshots from a skystage clip I’m not supposed to have, but anyway. Todoroki’s treasures:

“Hello everyone. This is Todoroki Yuu. The rainy season is finally here. In the streets, wonderful parasols, kasa, umbrella [in English], isn’t it? are spinning so prettily they won’t lose to the hydrangea flowers, but everyone how are you spending your time? 

This time I’m going to talk on the theme of takaramono [treasures]. To me, takaramono is… Takarazuka, isn’t it. After all, I was born and raised in Kumamoto, and when I was old enough to be aware of the world around me I found out about Takarazuka, and I was accepted, and luckily I was able to join. And I feel that I was shaped as a person here. Takarazuka is really a marvelous place, one of a kind in the world. And it’s a precious treasure of a place where I can chase dreams together with all of you who are forever, forever chasing after dreams. 

Another thing I’ve been thinking of as a takaramono, in the sense of something I value, is smiles. After all people who can’t hold in their smiles are very attractive (this is regardless of whether they’re men or women). And somehow… they make the people they meet happy, that’s what I think. The truth is I didn’t use to be very good at smiling. When I was an underclassman, I was asked by an upperclassman, ‘Why don’t you force a smile out?’ ‘Because I don’t want to smile,’ of all things. Really… What could I have been thinking? I remember giving an answer like that. [and then she introduces some sort of picture?? or something?? and I can’t catch what it actually is no matter how many times I listen.] ‘Why is Sun-san always smiling like that?’ ‘Because if you’re smiling fun things will happen.’ It’s true, I think, that it’s good if you can smile even in sad times. When you’re working and it’s unpleasant smiling can be difficult, but it’s good if you can wake up in the morning like, ‘this is the start of a new day!’ and start with a smile, so I try to keep that in mind. 

In addition, in my Takarazuka life –well, it’s become considerably lengthy [laughs]– but if I were to name a takaramono within that, it’s lots of people. When I joined I was able to stand on the same stage as Daichi Mao-san, who’d recommended Takarazuka to me –even to someone like me. Then Daichi-san graduated, and after that I met many people, and was parted from them, and of course there were times when I was misunderstood, when I laughed, got angry, cried… I was connected with all sorts of people. Now it’s mostly my juniors, and there are times when I talk with everyone here –everyone on the crew. And of course there are also interactions with fans. Among them, there are really all kinds of 'types.’ I myself have grown up from meeting with those people even a little, and I’ve learned all kinds of things. Still, there are things I look back and reflect on. However, I want to live a life with no regrets… As you’d expect, talking with people who are my 'sempai of life’ teaches me a lot, and in my conversations with younger people… let’s see, I can feel the energy that comes from the dreams they have for the futures ahead of them. 

This year, to our great joy, Takarazuka reached its hundredth anniversary. I think this too is thanks to the support of a great number of people, and shows that the love and passion we Takarasiennes have for Takarazuka has been transmitted. So I think this thing called 'people’ is really a miracle, and alone… I couldn’t live on my own. I feel that it’s the protection and support of lots of people that lets me live. So my treasure within my Takarazuka life is… people! Right. Well, this is the last time for this feature. Everyone, I’m looking forward to the day when I can meet you. Thank you very much for every month up until now.”

#todoroki yu #q

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In love with Yuu… Todoroki Yuu =) Tom you are in my heart)))

#todoroki yu #q

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Todoroki Yuu

she’s amazing, I love your voice, interpretation >….<

#todoroki yu #q

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Since I saw a couple people doing a meme where they’ll reply to asks with just ‘yes’ or ‘no’ (or rather, because as mintfrosting said, “I could have posted literally anything and you would have responded with that”) here’s the Todoroki version.

You have been mistaken for a man. (Yes)

You don’t own any skirts. (No)*

You prefer tailcoats to tuxedos. (Yes)

You’ll wait for someone at a meeting point for more than 10 minutes. (Yes)**

You prefer airplanes to shinkansen. (Yes)

You have written a love letter. (No)

*I don’t know whether she meant “No, I don’t own skirts” or “No, that’s not true, I do own skirts.” In any case, it is obvious that she does own skirts.

**But elsewhere she’s said that she’s only willing to wait ten minutes, and after fifteen she goes home. 

#todoroki yu #interview #q

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As for lady!Tom, I’ll just repost this princess…

#todoroki yu #interview #q

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COPIED FROM EIKO-SAN TO FIX THE FORMAT

[ My rough translation of Tsukikage Hitomi’s questions to Todoroki Yuu from 2000 ]

TH: What do you look for when you choose your clothes?

TY: I put a lot of weight on the quality of the materials, and I also try to choose a design that’s as simple as possible. As for colors, whatever I do I tend to end up with a lot of white, black, and beige.

TH: What’s the source of your energy on stage?

TY: To gather strength, you should eat foods that have a lot of nutrients, and make sure to get enough sleep. In order to avoid getting injured or sick, I think it’s important to have a kind of balance, so I’m careful to let my body rest after moving it a lot. Personally, I think ten hours of sleep a night is ideal, but in reality I often sleep more than that.

TH: If you were an onnayaku, what kind of roles would you like to try playing?

TY: When I first saw Takarazuka, I realized I only had eyes for otokoyaku, and from then on I always wanted to be an otokoyaku, so I’ve never once thought I’d like to play an onnayaku role. Because of that, I don’t know what roles I’d like to play if I were an onnayaku.

TH: Is there any food you’ve never eaten, but hate anyway?

TY: There’s a food I’ve hated since I ate it. Tororo konbu. It’s kind of gross, isn’t it. Generally I’ll go ahead and eat anything. But if I eat it and hate it, sorry but I’m not going to eat it a second time. So anyway, I’ll try anything and because of that there’s probably no food I hate without having eaten it.

TH: Are there any countries you’d like to try seeing?

TY: Lately, even though I travel abroad, I don’t get to go anywhere but the places that have been decided for me, so there are lots of countries I’d like to try going to. For example, Egypt or the North Pole or the heart of the Amazon. But, I’m the type who always makes plans myself, and books the hotel and airplane tickets myself, so I feel kind of uneasy about going to new places. Because of that, even though there are a lot of countries I’d like to try seeing, unfortunately in reality I probably can’t go.

#todoroki yu #interview

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#everyday i wonder what goes on in her mind when shes clothes shopping #thank goodness shes hot #q #todoroki yu

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Now in gif form. 

#todoroki yu #still cant believe this is A Thing lmao #q

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Takarazuka Revue's Todoroki Yuu in rehearsal for Meet Again / Nova Bossa Nova, 1999.

#todoroki yu #q

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Arch of Triumph (2000) TV commercial making-of

#arch of triumph #todoroki yu #AAAAAAAA #q

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Ryuu Masaki as Hamlet and Itsumine Aki as Gertrude.

(Hamlet!! stage photo, 2010)

#hamlet #ryuu masaki

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Hi, folks! <3

My name's Moon (she/her, age 21+) and I fell in love with Takarazuka Revue starting with Seramyu as my gateway in September 2020. Currently, my faves are Todoroki Yu, Yuzuka Rei, Minami Maito, and siennes of 2014-2019 Hanagumi. On my blog you'll find I usually reblog Zuka related stuff for archival, or post my translations (reviews, articles, etc.) under #moon.post.

Know that if you are homophobic, transphobic, or otherwise discriminatory you will be blocked.

My twitter is here, though mostly in Korean (트위터에선 주로 한국어로 소통 합니당~)!

Nice to meet you! :)

#moon.post

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My Review of The Great Gatsby (Tsukigumi, 2022)!

Translation:

I accidentally missed the first 30 minutes of the play like an idiot because I took an ill-timed nap, but thanks to having read the novel in high school I caught up quickly. It was rather strange to see the "great American novel" that represents the vanity and hidden misery of 1920s America as a "Zuka-fied" shoujo manga-esque tale.

In the novel, Gatsby's love for Daisy makes him a laughingstock and unfortunate hero. The fact that the "pure and kind" Daisy Buchanon he is pining for doesn't really exist is meant to be a parallel to the American man chasing the glorified "American Dream". However, in the play Gatsby's love is played straight as a tragedy. I think this became possible through the character of Daisy becoming "A passive heroine fit for Takarazuka's worldview."

In a Takarazuka play, the heroine (not always, but) often does not have the complex morality and desires like the hero, but fits a certain character type instead. In the play, Daisy says that she is "acting" the part of a pretty but empty shell after being wounded by Gatsby's love in her youth, establishing her goodness as a heroine to the audience. But in the book Daisy is truly a rather nasty person, and Gatsby's the one who plays her up as his pure, tragic heroine for his sake.

Furthermore, the narrator character of Nick became colorless in this play as he became a one-dimensional "good guy" rather than a hypocritical man who looks down on others and presents his bystander stance as moral purity. All in all, Tsukigumi's "The Great Gatsby" felt as strange to me as Soragumi's "Sherlock Holmes" did, with the similar parallel of the simplification of a complex female character (Daisy Buchanon and Irene Adler) and the adapted heroism of our anti-hero (Jay Gatsby and Sherlock Holmes).

That said, I still enjoyed the play. Tsukishiro Kanato's charm made it a fine time (In particular the waltz scene where Gatsby runs a hand down Daisy's waist- that one action had a longing and erotic feel to it that stands out boldly in my mind). And one thing I didn't expect- The miracle of the character Tom Buchanon going from a foolish rich Ivy-Leauge boy stereotype to an incredibly attractive shoujo manga-esque villain in the play! Of course, this was all possible due to Hozuki An's acting. Hozuki An's villainess roles have a strong image of a meticulous poisonous spider. But her villain roles have the attractiveness of someone who eschews subtletly and gets what he wants through cold hard power. The keyword here would be "coldness" in that her interpretation of this character makes the otherwise one dimensional play interesting through contrast with Gatsby and Daisy's warmth in love.

In conclusion, I didn't particularly enjoy the novel The Great Gatsby but because the Takarazuka play pulled any hint of irony from the story and presented it as a romantic tale, I was quite confused at first. (Particularly telling is the scene with Gatsby's library- in the novel, the books are all fake signaling Gatsby's bluff, but in the play they are all real.) But because the novel is so short and not exceptionally striking, perhaps it was a better idea after all for Takarazuka Revue to present the story as an unironic drama that emphasizes the results of events rather than emotion, for a whole 3-hour play.

#moon.post #takarazuka #tsukigumi #tsukishiro kanato #journaling #diary

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I've decided to start translating my diary entries pertaining to Takarazuka :) They will usually be reviews, but this one is a tribute to my 3-Year Zukaversary!

Translation (of text in center of page):

I found out about Takarazuka Revue in 2020, after falling head over heels for Yamato Yuuga in Seramyu- Petit Etranger. On one hand, Takarazuka is a part of a major corporation so you can count on it to always be incredibly ornate and high quality. On the other hand, I also find myself disappointed along with the actresses when they face a limit to their freedom of artistry because of the need to follow this major corporation's image. But Takarazuka's stage which shows an infinite number of worlds where it is natural that the population is fully composed of women who love, hate, and forgive each other... is an enactment of my most ideal world i never knew I'd wanted. Even if they're just acting, even if the characters themselves are male, it's these actresses who are the ones who always give me the strength to go on creating and living. My most ideal world, the shining efforts of fellow female artists, an admiration for rose scented sincerity that's seen as embarrassing in modern times... Takarazuka has, is, and will always make these wishes of mine come true. They say you can never predict the future, but I know I will always be thankful for the actresses of Takarazuka Revue and the encounters I've made with others through our love of this world.

#takarazuka #diary #journaling #moon.post