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Field Trip of Bloodshed? AKB48 Majisuka Gakuen Musical Report Part 1!
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Gekikara and Otabe, two of the most dangerous characters in the Majisuka Gakuen universe took the stage at AiiA Theater in Tokyo for a limited run (May 14-May 19) of “Majisuka Gakuen ~Kyoto Keppu Shuugaku Ryokou”, a musical adaptation of the popular schoolgirl delinquent (yankii) series. Starring Rena Matsui (SKE48) as Gekikara and Yui Yokoyama (AKB48) as Otabe, it has to be the most physical theater production staged by the AKB48 groups to date!
Rena Matsui as Gekikara, the sadistic and violent Queen of Majisuka Gakuen’s Rappapa gang (Majisuka Gakuen 1 and 2).
Yui Yokoyama as Otabe, the calm and collected transfer student from Kyoto who served as Rappapa’s President (Majisuka Gakuen 2) and one of the Queens (Majisuka Gakuen 4).
The rest of the Majisuka Gakuen students are: Yuka Tano (AKB48 Team K) as Guts, Ryoka Oshima (AKB48 Team B) as Sankaku, Juri Takahashi (AKB48 Team 4) as Bote, and Saya Kawamoto (AKB48 Team 4) as Ooiri. Bote, Sankaku, and Ooiri are Team Kebab, a continuation of the food-themed groups at Majisuka Gakuen.
The members of the Dendeke gang from Mibuodo High School are Mariya Nagao (AKB48 Team K) as Hijikata, Miyabi Ino (AKB48 Team 4) as Shinpachi, Ayano Umeta (AKB48 Team B) as Hajime, Miki Nishino (AKB48 Team 4) as Uribou, Nana Okada (AKB48 Team 4) as Okita, Tomu Muto (AKB48 Team K) as Sano, Megu Taniguchi (AKB48 Team A) as Heko, and Chiyori Nakanishi (AKB48 Team A) as Kondo.
Mako Kojima (AKB48 Team 4) and Nana Owada (AKB48 Team A), who played Hiroko Yoshinaga in the AKB49 musical, are Kamisori and Zombie.
The play opens with Gekikara being once again released from a correctional facility with the warning that the next time she gets arrested, she would be sent to Majisuka Prison.
Going directly to school (as all delinquents in Japan do?), Gekikara is met with unknown faces everywhere she looks, except for Otabe (who despite being the smartest students, has not yet graduated). In a bizarre turn of events, the students of one of the worst schools in all of Japan are just about to leave to go on a field trip to Kyoto and Gekikara is invited!
The scene shifts to Kyoto where the members of Dendeke are introduced. Perhaps some of you recognize what the inspiration for Nana Okada’s character was (hint: it’s a person who used to be on a TV show with Minami Takahashi)? The group from Majisuka bumps into Dendeke, Otabe is recognized by her former enemies, and a scuffle ensues between the two groups.
Gekikara snaps, unleashing a blood-curdling laugh while taking out Okita and Hijikata before turning on Otabe.
As if Dendeke didn’t have enough bad luck with Otabe and Gekikara in town, Zombie and Kamisori appear out of nowhere and rob them! However, Hijikata and Kondo propose that they use the 2 middle-schoolers to take down Gekikara and Otabe.
Disclaimer: There will be many spoilers from this point on.
It turns out that, unlike most school field trips, the girls from Majisuka Gakuen have ended up working at a Buddhist temple run by a strict nun. After finishing up scrubbing toilets, they decide to tell ghost stories. Gekikara tells a particularly chilling tale but, something else sends all of the members scattering!
Finding themselves outside of the temple, a secret about Sankaku and Bote is revealed! Performing the duet “Oshibe to Meshibe to Yoru no Chouchou”, they prove to be more than just friends brought together by their love of kebabs.
However, their evening takes an unfortunate turn as Shinpachi and Hajime from Dendeke find them them and hold them captive with baseball bats. Could it be that the duo from Dendeke is projecting something hidden about themselves onto Sankaku and Bote?
Despite Okita showing up and attacking Bote with some skillfully thrown guitar picks, Ooiri and Guts come to the rescue and force Dendeke to retreat.
Gekikara snaps again and attempts to stab herself while Otabe struggles to stop her. It’s at this point in the musical where the audience is given a glimpse into what lead to Gekikara becoming the unstable character that she is famous for. This might be one of the darkest parts of the play.
Otabe stays with Gekikara as she works out her demons. This is one of the many scenes which really shows off Rena Matsui’s range as an actress.
Gekikara runs into Kamisori and Zombie and gives them her wallet without a fight as she had just been through a battle of her own already. Despite their easy win, the joke is on them as there were only a few coins in it!
After Zombie and Kamisori extort money from Dendeke again, Hijikata and Kondo come up with a plan to find out Otabe’s weakness and exploit it to gain the advantage through strategy rather than strength. Despite the fact they should have already known a lot about her when she was living in Kyoto, Dendeke uses Okita’s credit card to go to Tokyo and investigate Otabe.
Will Gekikara stay on her path to self-destruction? Will Dendeke be able to find Otabe’s weakness? Will Bote, Sankaku, and Ooiri be able to find decent kebabs in Kyoto? Stay tuned for the second part of this photo report coming soon!
Songs Used
Sakura no Shiori
Majisuka Rock’n’Roll
Teppen Tottande!
Tengoku Yarou
Cross
Oshibe to Meshibe to Yoru no Chouchou
Majisuka Fight
Punkish
Hana to Chire!
Inochi no Imi
Next Heaven
Birth
Sakura no Ki ni Narou
Mae Shika Mukanee
AKB48 Official site: http://www.akb48.co.jp/
Photos by Yosuke Mochizuki
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SKE48 AKB48
Kai Okudara
Writer, researcher, photographer, foodie, KSDD
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