ミュージカルを楽しむ方法 HOW TO ENJOY JAPANESE MUSICALS

ミュージカルを楽しむ方法　

　５月６日、中日劇場でミュージカル「エドウィン・ドルードの謎」を観てきた。日本の本格的なミュージカルを観たことがないので (ロンドンで「オリバー」をみたことがあるが）、歌やらダンスやら舞台劇やらで、最初はなじめなかったが、第２部から面白くなってきた。
　観客は３０歳前後の女性が多く、皆舞台の演技に歓声や笑い声をあげていた。何が面白いのやら、わたしはさっぱりわからなかったが、彼らは舞台俳優のことを知り尽くしているのだ。女房が劇場案内人から聞いたところによると、舞台俳優たち（山口祐一郎、壮一帆など）は宝塚出身者や劇団四季の俳優で、「オペラ座の怪人」などに出ているようだ。だから、舞台の俳優の動作や台詞が観客に歓声を上げさせるのは、別の舞台のパロディーを演じているからなのだ。舞台を楽しむためには、舞台俳優のバックグランドを知っていれば知っているほど面白くなる。幕が終わって、わたしの席の前に並んでいた若者４人が一斉に立ち上がってスタンディングオベイションをした。それぐらい彼らにとっては楽しかったのだ。
　考えてみると、これは歌舞伎鑑賞に似ている。贔屓の歌舞伎役者や有名な役者が出てきて、クライマックスになると「待ってました！」と声がかかる。歌舞伎通は舞台のことは何でも知っているのだ。わたしだって、先代の勘三郎、三津五郎、松緑、梅幸亡くなった団十郎のことは海老蔵のころから知っている。
　そうなんだ。私がミュージカルを楽しむには、もっと見て、俳優のバックグランドを知ることだと思った。

HOW TO ENJOY JAPANESE MUSICALS

 

I went to the Chunichi Theater with my wife to see a musical “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” (Japanese version) based on the Charles Dicken’s novel.

The audience were mostly women in their 30’s. They seemed to be enjoying the musical very much, laughing, shouting, and clapping their hands. I did not understand why they were so excited.

Actually, I did not enjoy the musical at first, partly because I had never seen a Japanese one before (I saw “Oliver” in London), and partly because the dances, the songs, the revised story, and the actors and actresses were foreign to me. I thought I would rather leave the theater. However, after the intermission, I began to enjoy it.

My wife told me what she heard from an usher during the break. She said, “Most of them come from the Takarazuka Dancing Team or the Gekidan Shiki Drama Company. The main characters are Yuichiro Yamaguchi and Kazuho Sou. They have recently performed in ‘Phantom of the Opera.’”

I realized that most of the audience knew many things about the actors and actresses. I thought the performers must have spoken similar phrases or showed similar actions from their previous plays like “Phantom of the Opera.” They must have performed the parodies, which entertained them.

It is natural that the more you know about the actors, the more you enjoy their performance. When the musical ended and the finale started, the four people sitting in front of my seat gave a standing ovation, clapping and waving their hands hard.

It is the same of Kabuki plays. When your favorite Kabuki actors appear on the stage, you applaud and sometimes encourage them by shouting, “The Best in Japan!” or “We’ve been waiting for you!” Kabuki fans know everything about them: their family backgrounds, their previous performances, their childhood lives. I know many things about the late Kanzaburo and his two sons, the late Shoroku and his big eyed son, and the late Danjuro and his son, Ebizo. I enjoy Kabuki plays all the more for the knowledge of their backgrounds.

   The knack of enjoying Japanese musicals is to know about the actors.