#i saw hikari's original version from 2015.......

[kamuzeros]

omg i forgot the original version of my oc.... they were so cool....

#corrin.txt #i saw hikari's original version from 2015.......

[destination-kalafina]

Favorite Lives Masterpost

Last update: 5/7/17

So I originally had this as a page I created in my descriptions, but I decided to make a master post bc.....

I want to hear about everyone else’s favorite lives!!!!!! ^_^

As we all know, Kalafina’s lives are as good, if not better than many of their studio versions. Because they are AMAZING!!!!

Anyways.... ヽ(　･∀･)ﾉ 

Here are some of my favorite Kalafina performances and why I like them ♡

I included a few FictionJunction ones as well because there are some good WaKei harmonies in them, and they are just quality songs overall.

Please let me know if any of the links don’t work anymore! Sometimes they get taken down from the websiteヾ(｡﹏｡)ﾉﾞ

___________________________________________________________________

Kalafina

“Natsu no Ringo” - Red Moon LIVE 2010 Well first of all, this is like the only Natsu no Ringo live there is (or that I can find) and it makes me sad because I really love this song. Nonetheless, I love this live because Hikaru was given one of Wakana’s solos at 1:33 and slays it in my opinion, but I also love how it contrasts with Wakana’s at 3:22. This one really brings out the metallic-ness of Hikaru’s voice that I love, but hearing Wakana take over at the end makes me feel very relaxed in a way.

“Ongaku” - LIVE 2016 I always love their Ongaku lives because of how pumped they get, but this one is my favorite. I think Keiko looks hot and the WaKei moments at 0:14 and 2:22 kill me >.< Wakana’s solo is also epic on this stage.

“Sprinter” - Red Moon LIVE 2010 There are several Sprinter lives out there on the internet, but I think this is my favorite one of them all. Keiko looks so genuinely happy here I can’t help but almost be moved to tears. They seem very connected to the audience here more than other lives of this song and it just makes me smile very big.

“Hikari no Senritsu” - Consolation Special Final LIVE 2013 Hikari no Senritsu is another one of my favorite Kalafina songs! I’ve seen a few lives of this also but this one is my favorite because I think the balance is perfect and they all sing very on point. Hikaru’s high harmony during the chorus stands out more than other lives I seen, and I love it because that’s not something we get to hear often. They look very beautiful in a simple way as well, and I really like watching them in this.

“Kyrie” - Red Moon LIVE 2010 Kyrie is probably one of my top five favorite Kalafina songs. I love Keiko’s harmonies in this, especially around 1:06, and Hikaru’s emotion in her solo parts. Wakana’s voice also carries very well, and overall this song just gets me very pumped.

“Lacrimosa” and “Magia” - Kitakyushu LIVE 2011 These by no means are their best performance of these songs at all, but that is in fact why I love them so much. Wakana’s voice is very strained here, but that is because she was very sick and had the flu. Yet, she decided to perform anyways and I admire her so much for that. Everyone knows even when I have a minor cold all I want to do is lay in bed and sleep. This shows how dedicated and serious Wakana is about Kalafina. Plus, she doesn’t sound that bad either. I am also impressed by how well Keiko and Hikaru can hold their harmonies even when Wakana is a little off key. These girls are so talented!

“Magia” - LIVE Okay, so this video was my second Kalafina live video, and as soon as I watched the first minute where the girls walk through the audience I knew I had already fallen deep into the abyss of Kajiura land. I remember thinking “Alright, these girls are BADASS.” I also love how Magia brings out the gritty Hikaru voice we don’t always get to hear. She really rocks this song. 

“Neverending” - LIVE 2011 There’s not really any particular reason I like this, but they do a good job. Most of their lives are better than their studio version, in my opinion. Hikaru sounds good here also, not that she ever sounds bad (´∀｀)♡

“Door” - Consolation Special Final LIVE 2013 THIS, my friends, THIS is the video that made me see Keiko in a new light. I wish the studio version had her flawless rifts at the end because I have never had this kind of sensation while listening to music!! I didn’t know the girl could move from her deep contralto to a falsetto so easily, and I was so in awe of it. Additionally, all of the girls’ voices sound very smooth in this live. I wish there was more than this one live of this song that I could find.

“Heavenly Blue” - Anisama LIVE 2014 Heavenly Blue has been and probably always will be my favorite Kalafina song. That being said, I had to find a live worthy of what this song is and this is my favorite performance of it. I think the audience is really cool in this one because they all have glow sticks, and the stage they are on is huge. All of their vocals are pretty on point as well, and I really like the choreography. It is highly probable that this is my most-watched Kalafina live.

“Heavenly Blue” - Studio LIVE This was my first Kalafina live video and the one that got me into them. It’s definitely not one of their best performances of this song sound-wise but this video will always have a special place in my heart.

“Alleluia” - LIVE 2016 Woah, this performance of Alleluia is very moving and gorgeous. The girls hit the nail on the head. When I first watched it, I was like “woah is Keiko doing an a cappella solo of this?” Then when the other two showed up I was like “woah are they all doing an a cappella of this?” Then when the music finally showed I was already in awe so it didn’t really matter. Keiko really carries her solo almost perfectly for stripping the music, and I really love the kimonos and traditional atmosphere of this live. The girls really sang this one with emotion.

“Alleluia” - 日本武道館 LIVE 2015 You have to skip to around 16:30 to find this performance, but it is worth it because this has to be the most perfect Kalafina performance of all time. All of the girls’ voices are flawless here, they look beautiful, and the scenery/backdrop is gorgeous and fitting for an already beautiful song. Not to mention the skinships between Keiko and the other two in this（*’∀’人）♥ They seem in such a state of bliss during this performance and it really is like the angels are singing down to me.

“Blaze” - 日本武道館 Arena LIVE 2016 I believe this was the third live of theirs that I watched and I like this live because this was the one that finally allowed me to distinguish whose voice was whose (#^.^#) I also love their energy and their dresses here.  

FictionJunction

In the Land of Twilight, Under the Moon - LIVE After exploring more their lives more, FictionJunction has quickly grown on me, and some of their performances/covers of songs have quickly become some of my favorite songs of all time. This is one of them. It was the first FictionJunction live that I saw and I was obsessed with it! This performance hits you at full force as soon as it starts and keeps you engaged until the very last second. Honestly, the lyrics make no sense but the song is catchy as hell and the polyphony is absolutely mind blowing. This is also the best live performance of this song in my opinion because the girls are so close to each other and are full of energy.

My Long Forgotten Cloistered Sleep - LIVE The beat to this song, especially the slow march-sounding one at the beginning, really makes me feel some type of way. They actually do pretty well singing this in English, and Wakana does an amazing job carrying the song. The WaKei harmonies are also very nice.

Gaika - LIVE 2014 This is my second favorite WaKei harmony. I think Keiko’s harmonies are very mesmerizing and I love this dark attitude she gives out. She always looks so cute in FictionJunction videos because she seems so tiny compared to giant Kaori. Wakana does a beautiful job as always. This song just really sounds empowering also and it is one of my favorite Kajiura creations.

Kimi ga Ita Monogatari - LIVE 2014 THIS IS MY FAVORITE WAKEI HARMONY OF ALL TIME!!!!!! This song is like, my WaKei theme. And it might very well be my favorite Kajiura creation aside from Heavenly Blue. I don’t know why but this song just really hits me. There’s a longing feeling to it that I think Wakana and Keiko, especially Keiko, carry out very well. Not to mention the *very subtle* WaKei moment from 4:07 - 4:10, and then the big one at 4:22. Their harmony from this point is very beautiful and I could listen to it all day. A secondary note, I love the very little sly glance to the right Keiko does at 5:24 that you can easily miss while Wakana finishes her note. My little fantasizing brain can’t help but think it’s a proud look. Like “Yep. That’s my girl.” AHHHHH I LOVE THEM.

#kalafina #live performance #sooo good #i can watch these all day #i have watched these all day #tell me yours!!! #keiko #wakana #hikaru #fictionjunction

[arishamod]

LisAni Vol. 27.1 Interview with Kubo Yurika

Translation by: ArishaMod (JP > EN)

QCs:  @yujachachacha​ , as part of Team Onibe

Typeset: [Source] by ArishaMod

Scans by: @emitsunosaurus-rex​

Page 1 Quote:

“There were unexpected moments where my voice came out as Hanayo’s. Hanayo existed within me, and I also existed within Hanayo.”

Ribbon Quote:

I noticed that after singing over and over again, I actually felt so much love.

1.  As half a year has passed since “µ's Final Love Live!”, have you had a chance to look back on “Love Live!”?

Shikaco: After the Final Live, there was not a single time when I was properly interviewed about µ's. It really has been a long time since I was able to talk about it thoroughly. The Final Live in 2016 became a turning point in my life. It felt like it just happened 3 days ago, but on the other hand, it also felt like something that happened a really long time ago. When I stood on stage, I thought, “I don’t think I will forget this for the rest of my life”, but despite this I cannot recall some of the small details. However, the moment we were leaving the stage was the one I will always remember. Isn’t it like those really nice dreams where you can’t recall the theme of the dream? That might be the closest feeling.

2. So it was that kind of emotion that got you excited, but what did you do before the start of the live?

Shikaco:  Up until the Final Live, I was the number one person who had  been moving forward without actually experiencing it. As far I was concerned, when compared to my solo activities or other productions, µ’s activities were the most special to me. Personally, it felt like I had entered through a different door when I was in other productions. Therefore, every time before a live I entered this mood of “It’s the Live!”… … Before the Final Live there were events such as fan meetings, “Music Station” and “Red and White Song Battle”. There were an absurd amount of activities up until April, and it was not the time to settle down (laughs). At the time I was thinking, “Why can’t I take it easy!”, but thinking about it now, I feel glad that I  gave it my all for those activities. For someone who concentrated only on what was in front of her, I think that this was very good for me.

3. At that time, you were in a situation where you could not stop, right?

Shikaco: That is why at this point in time where half a year has passed, it is wonderful to be able to receive an interview (laughs). If I had been interviewed as soon as the Final Live ended, I still really would have been unable to express my thoughts. Even if I had those thoughts, putting it into words would have just given the feeling that I was lying, and I could not properly summarize them on social media. Now the history is already this long. If each of us started writing it down, the 9 of us could probably fill up a book or so (laughs).

4. What were your feelings when you saw the audience?

Shikaco:  Every time I would go “Wah!”. Compared to the rehearsals, the sight during the performance was definitely different, but this time I teared up and felt like I was about to cry. It might be because during the Final Live, there were many instances when I had thoughts to reflect upon. Every time, I would think, “I cannot make a mistake here”. But whenever I concentrated on singing, I thought that on Day 2 I would surely be like, “This will be the last time for this song! I will not be able to dance to this song anymore!”. This gave me the sensation of there being was a set of candles, and each flame was getting extinguished one by one. I was composed on Day 1 since I was thinking, “This song will be performed tomorrow, whereas this is the last time for this song!”

5. Which song felt the most emotional?

Shikaco:  Although up until now the song that had been performed the most was “Bokura no LIVE Kimi to no LIFE”, the live version of “Snow Halation” will always be the most memorable song because of that strong moment. However, the rest of us would never get to see that moment when the audience did the color change! Since at that moment, our backs were facing the audience (laughs). “In the end, I did not get to see it!”, was what I thought, and at that moment a bad thought came to mind: “It’s the last time, so at least let me see this moment!”. As there was a lot of impressive choreography, I thought to myself, “I should not do this now!”.

6. Just now, you said that the moment that you left the stage at the end of Final Live was the one you would always remember, so what kind of feelings did you have?

Shikaco: The excitement felt when we were able to hear the audience’s singing voices is roughly the same sensation we felt towards the end. I thought, “Although we, the 9 members, had to memorize so much, the audience memorized it too!”. Immediately after that, I realized that rather than deliberately memorizing the songs to sing with us,they were able to sing due to listening to the songs over and over again, and this is why I really felt that they loved us so much. The sensation of not being able to hear their voices was a stronger feeling than the end of Final Live.

7: What was the situation of the members immediately after the end of Final Live?

Shikaco: We huddled in a circle, and I think we shouted “Waaa”. I really cannot recall.

Q. Could it be that you are keeping it to yourself?

Shikaco: Possibly, as it is something that I would not tell anyone for the rest of my life. It might be something that I want to be able to feel myself. Since we all felt that we wanted it to absolutely be an experience which only involved the 9 of us in that moment, we thought it would be nice if we could keep it a secret (laughs).

Now, I will treasure the moments that are right in front of my eyes.

8. Please tell us about the first time you met Hanayo.

Shikaco: Even though I got to know her personality before the recording of the songs, I was not conscious of Hanayo at first. This was due to me simply thinking, “For this song, I want to present it in the best way” when I sang. After that, there were self-introductions of Hanayo and all the past productions we had made and recorded up until today… …Oh no, even now I do not listen to them as I am embarrassed (laughs). Since 6 years have passed, now I am able to talk about it in this way. At that time, the role I received felt fresh to me - how strange that feeling was! As a matter of fact, I had short hair during the audition, I even voiced Rin-chan and Honoka. I cannot remember what I performed at that time. However, if you asked me to do it again, I would not be able to do the impersonation (of Honoka) in the same way that Emitsun does it (laughs). Around the start of the project, I thought of the various possibilities we had. When the 9 of us each received our roles, the rest of the cast did not think about it too deeply, and the roles became established. I thought of how amazing this was.

 9.  Upon performing as Hanayo, did you get influenced by any part of her? 

Shikaco: From the start, I thought that I did not share similarities with Hanayo’s personality. I thought of Hanayo as a child who lacked confidence whenever I was acting as her, but recently I had the sudden thought, “I am pretty unconfident too, right?”. I was pessimistic towards quite a few things and I would doubt someone when I was praised by them (laughs). I would ponder on why it seemed to be happening, and the reason might be that I lacked self-confidence. I felt that such a basic attribute was what we had in common. It was interesting how Hanayo gave me this chance to become aware of myself, and that there were things about myself then I did not know about.

  10. At any point in time, did you feel that you received a large influx of responses after the lives and TV anime? 

Shikaco:  Basically, µ's one-man-lives happened once a year, and during the 1st, 2nd and 3rd lives, I was thinking, “I want to have more lives!”. However, thinking about it now, I realized that these were the stages that we went through in order to rise. It was around the 4th live that we received a large amount of responses, and there were increasingly more people from other workplaces who I co-starred with who said to me, “It is amazing that you rose up!”. Even for those in the same business, they would not be very aware of other animes. To have a portion of them saying such sincere feelings, it was from around this time onwards that I decided, “I should treasure what I have now, instead of looking at what I had before”

 11. So after a certain point, the phrase “this moment” had become a keyword for the series itself, is that right?

***TL Note: The original word used for the phrase is 今(ima), likely a reference to the line “いまが最高!” (Ima ga saikou!)  from "Bokutachi wa Hitotsu no Hikari"***

 Shikaco: I feel that the style of Yamaguchi Momoe-san is the best.

***TL note: Yamaguchi Momoe is one of the most successful singers in Japanese music, who secured her legacy by retiring at the peak of her career***

Besides, although in the eyes of the public I am young, I am getting older with each passing year. I had reached the part of my life where I am experienced, but I had also reached the part of my life where my body could not follow. Although it would be a pleasure to continuously receive support from everyone, we had thought about the fact that we would gradually not be able to do the performances, and how we ended it was important. Especially since the essential point was to make the choreography in µ's performances identical to the animated PVs, it felt terrifying being unable to do that. With that being the case, while we were still able to put up the best performance, I had always personally felt that I want to end this completely. So when I first received word of the plans for the Final Live, I genuinely felt that it was a great thing.

 12. There were plenty of fan meetings held in 2015 - in any case it was the year that received the most responses. While being in the center of it, what were your views on it?

Shikaco: It is amazing that the fans nominated us for “The Words of the Year Award”. The average person would not understand why those who love “Love Live!” would shout that much about it.  During the fan meeting tour, each of us did a lot more twirling. When I was twirling, I had the thought, “I still have the physical strength to do it!”. Now that I think about it, I felt that it was good that I was able to do it. The distance had shortened between the fellow members, the staff and everyone in the hair and makeup team that had always been with us. Everyone who was a part of the µ's team was great. After going through this, even if we did not say anything, there were things that were communicated between us. All of us were having more and more of this feeling.

Whether it was good or bad, there is nothing more exciting than that.

  Ribbon Quote:

From now on, I don’t think I will ever experience something more exciting than this.

13. Once again, what state is Kubo-san in after 6 years of µ's?

Shikaco: Even though the six years of my twenties were extremely long, when I recalled the times we went through as µ's, including the Final Live, I had firmly decided on the intention that for the rest of my life, I would not want to show this to anyone. No matter what, we did continue for 6 years, but I once seemed to have a moment in which I wanted to run away, thinking, “I might not be cut out for this”. µ's had risen to the top, and such anxiety surfaced from it. However, looking back now, I felt that it was an absolute blessing to be able to shape the future ahead of me during the precious phase of my twenties, and being able to spend it as part of µ's. Whether the past had good significance, I would still cherish it. Although there were plenty of thoughts that could not be put into words, I really did it as µ's. I felt that if I was not part of µ's, my life would be completely different. Whether it is good or bad, what I experience from this point onwards would never again be more exciting than that. While working on other stuff, I would casually recall the moments, such as, “While eating this, were the other members doing something like this?” (laughs) It seems that I would continue to feel like this for the rest of my life - isn’t it strange? The people who share this feeling will soon not be with me… Wait, isn’t this the kind of thing you say to someone you love who has passed away? (laughs) Even though that is the case, it really feels like that.

 14. What are the thoughts that you have towards Hanayo?

Shikaco: I wonder… For Hanayo, I really had the feeling that she was like me. When I was asked, “What do you want to tell her?”, it gave me the feeling that I was being asked what I wanted to say to myself. Immediately after the end of Final Live, I felt like I couldn’t help recalling everything about Hanayo. There were unexpected moments when my voice happened to come out as Hanayo’s, and this has become something amusing (laughs). So, even when no words are spoken, even when there are no new opportunities to perform as her, as long as Hanayo exists within me, it feels like I also exist in her. If there is something to say, it would be, “Best regards to you after this”.

  15. Lastly, please leave a message for all the readers.

Shikaco: So far, there were many times where I have been able to be on stage, but I think this might be the last time that I will be published on “LisAni!” as Kubo Yurika of µ's. This is truly a strange feeling. If there was a large event in 5 or 10 years, it would be interesting if we all gathered together like a school reunion. However, as one would expect, it would be a bit too much if at the time we all appeared wearing the same costumes again (laughs). After the end of Final Live, there were not many chances to talk about µ's, and they even said something to me like, “Kubo-san has already moved to the next step!” (laughs). Of course I thought, “No, not at all! Tell me that at a better time” (laughs). That is why it was really nice to receive such an opportunity. To go through it as Koizumi Hanayo’s Kubo Yurika is the biggest fortune I had. By listening to µ's songs and watching the BD, I would be able to encounter her anytime. The “Love Live!” series will continue, and I think it would be nice if this is how the history will go on. Everyone, please continue to love “Love Live!” after this. Although each person has their own way of expressing their love, I think it would be nice if I could communicate some of my feelings.

-----End of Interview------

#I forgot how many times I cried... #I know I am arishamod and im posting this #but its a special! #Happy Final Live Anniversary guys #µ's #muse #Kubo Yurika #Shikaco #seiyuu #love live! #interview #translations #Arishamod posts

[justfollowmyhansel]

October 14th -- Standing Before You in the Divide Between Matinee and Evening Show

I slept a little deeper into the next morning than I had the night before, still rousing when Miya’s alarm went off, but less excited-anticipation for the First Show that I was going to be able to actually see John perform at. I was still very excited to see the shows, but there’s a certain type of first night jitters, whether you’re performing or watching, that you really only get on Special Occasions. And even if you’re performing for five nights in front of the Queen of England, you get a different sort of feeling on the first performance than you do the following four.

Late the previous night, I had decided that I was going to count the times that I’ve seen John perform that were streamed over the internet as times that I’ve seen John perform live. Both ways felt intimate in terms of actually being there, watching him at the same time that he was performing, and that and only a limited number of people in the venue actually mattered at the time (the performers, myself, my friend), but both ways also felt very detached since in neither instance was I as an audience member actually interacting with the performance. Unless, of course, you count one of the main quotes from Shortbus: “Voyeurism is participation.”

Of course, being in the second row with the possibility of actually touching John’s hand as he walked by or having one of the numerous audience participating pieces directed towards me was fully exhilarating, but those moments were different from the rest of the show moments. As were the moments of feeling like I was being watched by the performers.

For breakfast, I finished the rest of the raisin sandwiches that I had started the previous day and had more tea.

After breakfast, Miya showed me some of the programs and flyers she had gotten for various shows. The focus was mostly on things from RENT as both of us count it as a favourite show and there has been a lot produced that talks about RENT. Yesterday, we had looked through the Hedwig programs for every Japanese production. It was more quickly flipping through and briefly discussing since Miya very generously gifted them to me and we both figured I’d have more time to look at them later. A couple of them had interviews with John that she said she would translate later for me when she had time.

The RENT programs were interesting since this year’s and iirc 2015’s productions featured multiple actors for most of the roles and it depended on when you went as to which combination you saw. This year’s program was one you could rearrange to have the bios and interviews from the cast you had seen up front. Miya had chosen to leave hers in the order it came in not only because she had seen the show multiple times with different configurations, but because she liked it better that way. I thought that made perfect sense. One of the programs had a glossary in the back that talked about what some of the things mentioned in RENT such as Alphabet City, AZT, or ACT Up were/are since those things are more specific to New York/America.

As we flipped through the pages, Miya told me brief antidotes about seeing this cast or that person or who that person was in Japanese media. Or American. Occasionally, she pulled duplicate flyers and small programs from her binder for me as further gifts to go along with the Hedwig programs and magazines she had given me the day before.

We listened to the Hedwig soundtrack two or three times before I had to leave for the show. I left later than we had the day before, this time not intending to spend just the entire day at the Hikarie– just most of it!

Miya walked with me down to the train station, taking me as far as the first gate before heading back to her apartment. Since she wasn’t seeing the matinee with me, she was going to spend some time working on her workstuff for a couple of hours and meet up with me me before the second show.

The day before, I had taken photos on our way to the theatre, trying not to take too many touristy ones and overwhelm the ones I was using to navigate the relatively straight forward, but still largely in another language, way to the venue.

While I was on the train, John started an Instagram live video. The first one he'd ever done. And the Wi-Fi in Japan on the train was so slow I couldn't load it! Hedwig in distress! I posted to my rp blog hoping that someone was still up and could grab it for me. As it turned out; Miya, Risa, and my mother were able to grab the first one he did for me. The other(s) that night... not so much.

Despite semi-panicking and coordinating the taping of JCM’s livestreams across what ended up being two continents and three time zones, I made it to the theatre relatively calmly. Or rather -- as calmly as one can be when going to experience John Cameron Mitchell as Hedwig Hedwig live for the second time.

I had a couple of minutes and I chose to wander back towards one of the counters in the department store that had caught my eye the previous day when Miya and I were doing our walkthroughs of the ShinQ Mall -- the M.A.C counter. 

M.A.C. Cosmetics is a company that had been on my radar from before I got into Hedwig. They were the first major makeup company to feature a drag queen in their marketing (RuPaul with Viva Glam) and one of the first makeup companies to have an open policy of corporate responsibility towards the queer community, not only by uplifting and supporting queer pop cultural movements such as Ru or Hedwig, but by donating the proceeds from Viva Glam to HIV/AIDS charities. While other cosmetic companies have had interesting marketing, their support of my communities, ones that I related to strongly before realizing that I myself belonged to them, was something that made the company much more attractive in my eyes. The fact that their makeup was used to create Hedwig’s unique look from the 2001 movie to the most recent Broadway run (and as I’d later confirm off of JCM’s Instagram, the run in Japan I was in the middle of enjoying,) only served to pique my interest further.

Having highly resisted the urge to splurge on buying up the makeups I’d need to better replicate Hedwig’s look so far, I went over to look at their in person stock of blue lipsticks. I’d wanted a nice blue lipstick for awhile and acquiring two stunning purples late last year only served to intensify this. Unfortunately, the amount of companies that make nice blue lipsticks and glosses at affordable prices is low, but there was no harm in looking right?

Just as a Japanese cover version of The Smith’s hit ‘This Charming Man’ was midway thru playing on ShinQ’s radio, I looked at my phone clock. I was going to be late!!

I wasn’t actually going to be late, but I wanted to make sure that I had more than enough time to get up the two flights of stairs/escalators I needed to pass after entering the official theatre space, find my seat, go to the bathroom, and otherwise be ready to watch the show at the scheduled show time. And after asking an usher to help me find my way to my seat for the evening, I did just those things and was more than prepared for the next show.

It was stunning being able to actually see some of the things that I had ironically been too close to the stage to see properly the night before. I was torn between wanting to be closer to the stage and wanting to stay exactly where I was with my relatively nice vantage point of being able to see the newly designed graphics for The Origin of Love, being able to more clearly see the drawn versions of the mugshots of Hedwig (and Tommy) that grace the tabloids after their collision with that oncoming shortbus, more clearly seeing all of the action, and feeling less like I was being watched at the same time that I was watching the actors on stage.... But I missed being able to see the actor’s expressions, being able to see exactly the gorgeous microthoughts and expressions flitting across Hedwig’s face as she reacts to the action going on around her and implements the driving influences to the show.

I left the theatre with three distinct feelings on that afternoon’s performance -- One, being in the balcony after being in the second row almost didn’t feel like I was still seeing the show performed live and more like I was seeing it streamed over the internet. Two, being that this performance was far less...kinetic and energetic than the previous night’s. And third, that to truly understand a staging of Hedwig, I would have to sit in at least the first balcony at least once so that I could see what was going on around Hedwig as well as what was going on with Hedwig. Much like how the first few dozen hundred times that I watched the movie or the bootlegged performances from Broadway, I was too emotionally close to Hedwig and the storyline to appreciate it in the same way that I was able to once I was able to allow myself to feel a little more consistent empathy for Tommy and Yitzhak as well as the character I myself had related to so deeply from the moment I saw her.

Regardless to any of those feelings, I once again left the theatre absolutely weak in the knees and at the risk of crossing into tmi territory, feeling as though I’d had a very intense orgasm mere moments before.

I was still gathering my thoughts and feelings about what I had just experienced and how it related to the previous night when Miya texted that she was almost to the theatre. And I still hadn’t made my way back down to the level that I needed to try out the blue lipstick I had had my eye on.... And it had been nearly an hour!

Being a very accommodating host, Miya went with me while I picked out the lipstick and had it applied by one of the makeup artists staffed at the counter, helping me translate what I needed to to convey that I wanted to see what it looked like on and then when I had decided I loved it, helping me get the Prep + Prime stick as well as the lippy.

We did a small amount of wandering/shopping before heading up to the sushi bar again for another lunch. Not that I minded -- this was truly the best sushi that I had ever had in my life.

This time, I tried some of the salmon roe in addition to another order of the salmon with avocado.

The roe was much saltier than I had been expecting that day (which, I really should have been expecting because caviar, if nothing else, has a reputation for being extremely salty.)

What I completely spaced on until we were about ready to go was that I still had the blue lipstick on..... I reapplied it in the bathrooms before heading into the third Hedwig show in Japan and the last that I would have a friend next to me to see.

The show that night was electric. Positively alive. John and Ataru were completely on point with their performances and delivered a piece of theatre that was even better than the night before’s. As an audience member, I was more reactive than I had been the night before, having spend most of Friday smiling at the performers. The audience was even more incredible than the actual opening performance. (Because while for the audience and the performers, it may be the second round of Hedwig, it’s always Hedwig’s opening night.)

I left the show feeling a stronger pull towards wanting to be at the movie premiere on Thursday than I had since arriving. I knew it was still unlikely that I’d get a chance to meet John, though after seeing him perform that particular goal seemed less daunting, but I wanted to go. Perhaps he’d perform like he had at Cannes or do an extended intro to the film or something..... Perhaps, I’d have the chance to be almost as close (or closer!) than I was to him on Friday. Regardless, leaving without seeing the film was feeling more and more like I would be leaving the trip uncompleted. I tried mentioning this to Miya, but my wording was too vague.

After the show, we went back to her apartment, stopping off again at the 7/11 where I bought a shrimp scampi as neither one of us wanted to go through the hassle of going to a restaurant and then going home. For dessert, I had picked out a creation that was coffee jelly suspended in a milky/creamy…sauce for lack of a better word. It was one of the best coffee things I’d had in my life.

Miya microwaved the food for me, helped me to curate that day’s new digital creations (mostly photos), and then as we were going through Twitter together on her iPad, she reminded me of the website that she had found shortly after John’s dates in Japan had been announced so that people in Japan could order merchandise from this year’s Korean productions of Hedwig. She offered to order some things for me and have them delivered to her address since the website didn’t mention international shipping outside of Asia. Plus, if anything went wrong along the way, it’d be easier for Miya to troubleshoot it than for me to since my Japanese was still in the very, very early learning stages.

With Miya’s help, I picked out a list of things that I wanted and sent it to her over Twitter, tabulating the relative cost in the spiral notebook that I had brought with me.

#travel diary #travel diary japan #japan day 4