My Grades:

Story: N/A
Starring Performances: A-
Supporting Cast Performances: B
Music: B+
Staging: C

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Overall Grade: B


This dinner show didn't have any storylines, just concert-style song and dance numbers.


I haven't seen Yan-chan in anything, really, aside from her appearances in the "Dream Girls" documentary, up until this point. I was startled by how very, VERY soft-spoken she was when she didn't have assigned lines to say; whenever she'd stop to talk to the audience, she was so quiet I had to strain to hear her. Yet she'd start singing and it was like suddenly her volume quadrupled. Yan is an incredibly handsome woman, with a brilliant smile that reminds me of Natsuki Mizu. She has sharp, angular features and elegant, high cheekbones; perfect eye candy. She also has a really beautiful voice that's easy to listen to, and a charming chemistry with Morina Miharu. All in all, I like her very much and I'm looking forward to seeing more of her work.

I was delighted to find out later in the show that one of the otokoyaku was none other than baby Hikaru Asami, and one of the musumeyaku was Hitomi Tsukikage! I just have to comment here as well that they put the musumeyaku in very, VERY short skirts, and with some of the choreography they were doing I was quite impressed that they managed not to flash the audience.


It seemed like there were a lot more English lyrics than usual. Hearing Yan crooning "making love on a long hot summer's night" in English during her version of "Casablanca" is enough to make one's knees weak, let me tell you. Her pronunciation is hit-or-miss; some lines you can hear clearly, and others she might as well be singing in Japanese.

My favorite number in the show was the upbeat spanish "Sabroso" (hearing Yan shouting "Uno, Dos, Tres, Quatro!" and "Yo Quiero Mucho Mas!" was priceless.) Other moments of note include a duet of "Unforgettable" with Morina Miharu, who is probably one of the most dreamy-looking little musumeyaku I've seen, with her little dimple and huge starry eyes; and a solo moment for Morina in which she sings "Lovin' You" — yes, the Olivia Newton-John song — with big eyes and fluttery lashes.


Yan's second costume made me do a double take; they put her in a long, black, backless dress and sleek bob-style wig. The trouble is, Yan's rugged, elegant beauty makes her look just slightly like a drag queen. (I say slightly, because she was still absolutely stunning.)

Her final costume is a ridiculously padded blue velvet jacket. Which was, in itself, rather amusing. But when she started singing "I Will Survive", I was practically doubled over in fits of giggles. Not at the song itself, but at the silly choreography she executed during the music breaks, complete with some rather scandalous pelvic thrusts.


As far as dinner shows go, this one was fairly tame, and rather short. There was a lot of just standing around, or striding back and forth on the narrow stage, but there were a few stand-out numbers that picked up the pace every time it seemed to lag. Yan's distinctive good looks, and the glimpse of baby Komu, are what I would say are the biggest draws for this show.