Professor: Haruno Sumire (Flower Troupe Lead Otokoyaku)

Student: Misuzu Aki (Flower Troupe member, debuted in 1998)
Shinjinkouen Lead Role History:
* January 2004: Tenshi no Kisetsu
Gisutaabu/Pescatore (Main role ~ Haruno Sumire)
* August 2004: La Esperanza
Carlos (Main role ~ Haruno Sumire)

(Signs in background: “Certain victory” and “Kiyoku, tadashiku, utsukushiku”)



Haruno: As we approached the shinjinkouen for Tenshi no Kisetsu, I was impressed by how you did everything that needed to be done, Mattsu (Misuzu). Even though it was your first lead role, you were never confused but composed in your own way … But actually…

Misuzu: I wasn’t calm at all (laughs). It was my first lead role, first comedy, and first time playing two characters. I put a lot of pressure on myself and took on a lot of responsibility. For the first time my feet felt heavy as I walked to the shinjinkouen rehearsals. When I couldn’t go on anymore, you kindly gave me advice, Osa-san (Haruno).

Haruno: In a comedy it’s necessary to make the audience laugh, but I think the most important aspect of that work was the innocent love for Margherita. What matters is how you carry that out. I said, “I don’t know what you think is most important, but this love is what I think is critical.”

Misuzu: Yes.

Haruno: I think I said, “Assuming you agree with me, then you should think about how you’re going to express that.”

Misuzu: You told me that I needed to do something on my own since the acting all around me felt comedic…

Haruno: That’s what I think.

Misuzu: Yes. With your advice, it became much easier.

Haruno: That’s good (laughs). I didn’t see you having any trouble creating your character during La Esperanza. You must have had confidence in your performance of Carlos. That showed, plus you weren’t overeager anymore, so I thought you had really made progress.

Misuzu: At any rate, La Esperanza was fun. Everything was enjoyable, including the challenge of learning the dances. I felt happy to have been allowed to play Carlos in my last shinjinkouen. I was very nervous at the beginning of the actual performance, but that quickly turned into positive excitement. I think I was able to maintain that until the end. Afterwards, you spoke to me about a lot of things, Osa-san…

Haruno: What did I say? (laughs)

Misuzu: You said that the shinjinkouen are just another stage we pass through. When the curtain closes on the shinjinkouen period, all that has already become just a memory. You told me I had to make a fresh start now.

Haruno: Ah (laughs). Time keeps on flowing, so if you’re always lost in your memories, you’ll be left behind. I think it’s important to stand up right away and take your first step forward. You have more free time after you graduate from doing shinjinkouen, but that doesn’t mean things are easier for you. People judge you more harshly. Since you’re not being given the same tasks, you have to find, learn, and take what you can on your own… That sort of talk.

Misuzu: Yes.

Haruno: So that’s what I told you (laughs). I said all that because I could feel how serious you were, Mattsu. I wanted to communicate my feelings and wishes honestly. Then I said something like, “I want you to inherit that.” And then you started crying…

Misuzu: (laughs).

Haruno: …saying “I understand!” (laughs)



Misuzu: The first time you spoke to me, Osa-san, was during the rehearsal for Genji Monogatari Asaki Yume Mishi.

Haruno: I don’t remember (laughs).

Misuzu: I was standing at the edge of the rehearsal hall, waiting for my turn, when suddenly you called to me, “Hey, hey, hey.” I thought it was strange but I replied, “Yes?” You pointed at the empty space on the bench on which you were sitting and whispered, “You can sit here!” (laughs)

Haruno: What! I said that?! And why was I whispering?! (laughs)

Misuzu: I don’t know (laughs). At the time I thought you were a mysterious person (laughs). Right away I replied, “Y-y-yes.” But I had to go out on stage in a moment, so I was wondering why you had spoken to me (laughs).

Haruno: I wonder why. Perhaps you looked like standing there was difficult? Or… I was lonely?

Misuzu: (laughs)



Misuzu: You observe people a lot, don’t you, Osa-san.

Haruno: I do?

Misuzu: I think you understand my feelings because you watch me… which makes me very happy…

Haruno: (laughs)

Misuzu: Whenever I’m confused about something, I always want to ask you about it first. I like to think that if it’s you, Osa-san, you’ll pull me up or urge me onward. I’m sorry.

Haruno: (laughs). It’s not as though I’m intensely staring at people or anything. Maybe I’m just a little sensitive to the aura or something that a person has. I think I can respond to you straightforwardly because your emotions come to me directly.

Misuzu: I really respect you. Everything about you, Osa-san.

Haruno: I’m in trouble (laughs).

Both of them: (laugh)



Haruno: Mattsu, you’re passionate on the inside, but at first glance you look easygoing. So even if you’ve suffered and struggled to bring about a certain a result, the people around you sometimes think, “Mattsu can do anything skillfully.”

Misuzu: I’m not adept at all.

Haruno: Yeah (laughs). But everyone thinks that way about you because you manage to pull things off in the end. You should understand yourself better. I think there are a lot of parts of yourself that you still don’t understand. Like what kind of things you like, for example.

Misuzu: I’m still groping my way through the dark…

Haruno: Once you understand that, I think you’ll come to realize how to be on stage and how to interact with people. If you take the time to face the unknown things inside you and learn from them, you’ll probably become even greater. The stage reveals what’s inside you, the undisguised part of you, that’s why.

Misuzu: Yes!



5 Questions from Misuzu for Haruno


Number 1:

Misuzu: Lately the atmosphere you create when you sing seems different from before. Is that something you consciously changed?

Haruno: I agree, it has changed, but I didn’t consciously try to change it. When I listen to songs I did previously, it feels as though all I did was follow the notes and match my voice to the atmosphere of the song. Somehow that’s unsatisfactory. But lately I find myself thinking that I want to take this section of this song as far as possible, or that I want to put my own will into this song… I’ve become more possessive of my singing… I suspect that has naturally changed my voice.


Number 2:

Misuzu: Why is your face so small? When I look at a photo of both of us together, your face is smaller than mine…

Haruno: It’s not small! It’s the same as yours, Mattsu! (laughs). It looks small in the photo because… maybe… I leaned my upper body back? (laughs) If you want to have a small face when you get your picture taken, you should try leaning your upper body back! (laughs)


Number 3:

Misuzu: How do you create the characters you play, Osa-san? Is there an actor you use as a reference for being an otokoyaku?

Haruno: In the end it comes down to my own intuition. I look at the role from a number of different angles, so the way I make the character probably changes from time to time. When I think I’m missing something, I sometimes try to create the character’s atmosphere from songs or colors that suit the role. As for a reference for playing a male role, the one I observe consciously is Richard Gere. The actors I’m personally interested in are different, though (laughs). I think it would be wonderful if I could create an aura like that of Richard Gere on stage.


Number 4:

Misuzu: How do you feel when you see your face printed on giant ads throughout the city or in the airport?

Haruno: (laughs). It’s kind of like it’s not really me. There’s a big one at Itami airport. When I walk in front of it I try to create the impression that I’m not the same person as the one on the poster (laughs). Despite that, one time someone exclaimed, “Ah!” because they recognized me (laughs). I guess I’m a little embarrassed by it (laughs).


Number 5:

Misuzu: I get really nervous when I stand on stage. Do you get nervous, Osa-san? If so, what do you do about it? To me it doesn’t look like you’re ever nervous, though.

Haruno: Of course I get nervous! (laughs) But as a performer, I can’t show that to the audience. Unfortunately nervousness gets worse if you try to hide it. What matters is how you handle it. In the shinjinkouen, you changed your anxiety into excitement, right? That’s one way to deal with it, forcing the nervousness to change into something else. Another way to block out that unease might be to believe strongly, “This is what I want to do. I want to create this world.”