My Grades:

Story: A
Starring Performances: A
Supporting Cast Performances: A+
Music: A
Staging: A

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Overall Grade: (A)


I love moon troupe! It's arguably my favorite troupe and this DVD has become my favorite! Everyone knows Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" and this musical is exactly that. There's absolutely nothing wrong here. The best part of it is that there is no single "evil" character. Jun Sena's (Asako) Brutus and Yuu Todoroki's (Tom) Caesar are both portrayed fairly. There's also a lot of balance in creating supporting characters with some depth: Yuuhi Ozora's Cassius and Hiromu Kiriya's Antonius. The women in the tragedy are also given their chance to shine, especially Kanami Ayano's Portia, Ai Shirosaki's Cleopatra, and Eri Yoshizuki's Servilia.


As wonderful as Shakespeare's tragedy is, Takarazuka is all about the performers and they're absolutely fantastic in "Rome at Dawn". When Tom costarred in snow troupe's "In Quest of the Blue Bird" in 2004, she took center stage so much that poor Komu was pushed to second man! Not so here. Tom and Asako both have equally important parts and they balance each other perfectly. Asako's character is much more interesting than Patrick Gael, but still the "good guy" that we know her to play. And Tom's Caesar is simply... powerful. What more to say? Kanami Ayano too plays a similar support role to Asako as she did in "Jazzy Fairies". But that is a character she plays well.

Yuuhi Ozora: What an AMAZING Cassius. This is easily the most Yuuhi-filled grand theater production yet. For Yuuhi-fans (like myself), this DVD is a must-buy simply for this fact. Let's face it: Yuuhi was always more of a third man than a second, to Kiriyan. Although the gap got a lot smaller in "Jazzy Fairies", "Rome at Dawn" shows absolutely NO gap between the two of them. Yuuhi has so many solos and such a great hair-style! She is simply too good. It continues into "Les Bijoux Brillants" where she has a tango scene with Tom as well as a power-charged solo (where she appears out of a box! Have we ever seen so much Yuuhi before?). My prediction? I think that her ever-increasing roles foreshadow... an even bigger role in Takarazuka.

Hiromu Kiriya: Amazing as usual. Antonius is the most "evil" character in this show, but Kiriyan powers through. The scene where Antonius rouses the Romans against Brutus & co. is extremely solid. Her comedy scenes are also funny: she's a natural at it!!!

Kairi Hokusho: Octavius. I was really disappointed with the terrible (if cute) role she had as a FAIRY (in a horrible green costume) in "Jazzy Fairies", but she finally gets a decent role. A very serious Octavius with a rock-solid solo. Although she's not really a natural comedian like Kiriyan is, she does do a good job at supporting Kiriyan and helping the flow.

Ai Shirosaki: Cleopatra. She's tall and charismatic. What's not to like?

Eri Yoshizuki: Servilla. Brutus' mother, she's so spunky!

Izumi Aoki: Yes!!! In this show, many of the younger members get brief solo features. As one of the conspirators, she stands out, along with Rio Asumi and Kaito Seijo. The next top-stars???


Unbelievably catchy. It's not a Rock Opera as the title suggests, but it's really poppish and enjoyable music. My favorite? Well.. of course, I love all of Yuuhi's solos, but my favorite song just might be Asako's "theme song" - "Roma is for Everyone" (Roma wa Minna no Mono).

What I found amusing: It's the same composer as 2003 "A Song for Kingdoms ~Aida~", so the song "Caesar is Wise" (Caesar wa Erai) is extremely similar to the 2003 "Choosing Beauties" (Bijo Erabi).

Of course, all of the small features of the younger members of the troupe (Sugata Mano, Izumi Aoki, Rio Asumi, Kaito Seijo, ETC) are done perfectly. They can all sing so well!


Simple sets, like a Shakepearean play. The characters never change costumes as well. But it really helps accentuate the setting of ancient Rome.


This is a great production. It features the younger members of the troupe and a balance between the top 4 otokoyaku performers. As for the revue?

LES BIJOUX BRILLANTS is entertaining. The only problem is that 3 scenes are without sound for "copy-right purposes" (hmph. at 10,500 yen a DVD). But the scenes you do get are good. All of the performers are "bijoux" - jewels who dance in different scenes. I love Tom and Yuuhi's tango scene. Tom is so charimastic when she's "drunk", and Yuuhi has just always been great in tango scenes.

The act of "Jewels in the Night" with Asako, Mihoko, and Kiriyan is also adorable. Asako and Mihoko are the best in happy/cute love scenes!!!