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This is the Japanese premiere of a Korean musical. Although the composition is by Wildhorn, he has recently been working mostly in Korea and Japan, rather than in his home country of the United States. There were many numbers in which Wildhorn sang strongly as a melody maker, and it was a fulfilling musical experience, but I felt that there was no "music that really stood out." Korean musicals often make use of strong throats and piercing voices, so I felt the difficulty of performing them in the Japanese musical world and Takarazuka singing, where the throats and singing styles are completely different, even though they are both Asians. Opinions are likely to be divided on whether it can be viewed with the understanding that "it's Takarazuka after all," or whether it feels unsatisfying. However, since Takarazuka is a "theater company," there are things that other companies cannot express, such as small theatrical exchanges within the company and the expression of deep human relationships. The appeal is that the power of the work + the company's structure = infinity. And, although there are strengths and weaknesses, the highlight is seeing the company members moving and dancing vigorously while singing and putting on a show, and the momentum of "let's do it for now!" is refreshing. It's stimulating to see how people try to secure their place in a new system. There was momentum. Even so, I was surprised at the casting, which ignored the age of the role.

This performance is the pre-debut performance of the new top star, Toa Serika (the debut at the Toho Theater performance is yet to come), but since the top star is someone with the right career to become a top star = "at long last", I personally feel that it is interesting that the color of the troupe changes drastically when the top star changes. Since Takarazuka Revue is based on the top star, the position of the troupe changes depending on whether the top star is the "I'll leave it to everyone!" type or the "Make me stand up!" type, how much they can sing and dance wildly, and how much they can dance. The new top star, Toa Serika, is a soft type of male role and not the type to make a big splash, and perhaps because he has the confidence of being the top of the upper grades, I got the impression that he lets the younger students act freely. This time, more than the top debut, the top female role, or even the second male role, the one who struck me as a "star birth" was Morgan: Yuki Mashiro! In the Cosmos troupe, where there were many mob characters, even those who were selected were often a little thin or plain, so it was groundbreaking that she was able to make her presence known so brilliantly! Even though she is still in the year of the newcomer performance, she is a professional who does not back down one step against the older students. She is a type of student that was not in the Cosmos troupe, so I hope she will stir up the troupe in the future, but at the same time, I wonder if she will be transferred in the near future? And Merlin: Ritsu Wakasho was amazing for finishing her role as the "true main character" above the main trio. In any case, Morgan & Merlin stood out in this performance. However, the two main characters, Toa Serika and Minato Sakuragi, were stable and supported the performance well. There was no freshness in the debut performance, but this sense of stability is valuable. Now, regarding "Xcalibur," the story of Excalibur and the Arthurian legend is familiar because they are regularly performed at Takarazuka, but the heroine Guinevere is a female warrior, which is new. Looking at the Korean version's materials, it is quite wild, but since it is the Takarazuka version, the appearance and music have been arranged to be quite mild. I wanted to see this work again in Toho's male and female version. Haruno Sakura's singing was quite nerve-wracking, not only because she couldn't get the notes right, but also because she couldn't get into the phrases. She has been appointed as the top female lead without having played many major roles until now, but she was still more stiff than defiant. It seems that the male roles of the Cosmos Troupe will be facing a critical moment in terms of how much manliness they can show by making her look wonderful.

[Cast]

Arthur: Toa Serika

Guinevere: Sakura Haruno

Lancelot: Minato Sakuragi

Hector: Teru Matsukaze

Merlin: Ritsu Wakasho

Morgan: Yuki Mashiro

[Staff]

Book: Ivan Menchell

Music: Frank Wildhorn

Lyrics: Robin Lerner

Original Music Arrangement and Orchestration: Koen Schoots

Original Production & Worldwide Stage Rights and Management: EMK MUSICAL COMPANY KOREA

Adaptation and Direction: Taichi Inaba

Flyer for the original Korean version