Berubara stage production by Takarazuka


It is very difficult to find information about the Takarazuka Theater for a non-Japanese, thus everything presented here (save for my description of the show) has been provided by my Japanese friends (see thanks).
 

The Takarazuka Theater has existed since the beginning of the 20th century, performing famous foregin (Romeo and Julliet) and Japanese (Berusaiyu no Bara) stories. It is a crew of all-female actors, which means that all male roles are acted by women. The Takarazuka rarely leave their home stage, but have been preforming twice in Europe so far. The adaptations include singing and dancing.


Takarazuka has perfomed Berusaiyu no Bara in two seasons:1974 and 1989 (television series). It is said that it was this play that helped the group to revive its popularity.

There is little to ba said about the story of this play: it has suffered several changes and is of course very shortened.
The episode with the Black Knight is pushed to the background and ends with a fight between Oscar, André and Bernard in which Oscar hurts Bernards hand, but then lets him go.
André's eyes gets hurt in a fight with several men, that obey Mme Polignac.
Oscar wan't to punish Mme Polignac, but Rosalie comes to save her mother and we see a happy reunion of a mother with her child.
Girodel's proposal takes place on the excercise place of Oscar's troop, with Oscar's father and André witnessing it.
André is shot on a bridge, while Oscar is held back by Fersen and can not help him.
Oscar dies at the taking of Bastille with the famous sentence: 'Furansu Banzai!' on her lips.
After their deaths, they both 'ressurect' again: André coming to take Oscar with him in a white carriage.

What bothered myself most is that André is the leading part in this performance (in one of them it was Fersen), and is always dressd in an uniform as if he was Oscar's equal.
The show is very colourfull and glistening and the costumes are a feast to look at.

I am sorry to say that this is all I can write about the play, since I myself do not understand Japanese and therefor could not follow the plot.
 
 
 

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