I can’t think of a better place to wallow in the wonderful gender-bendiness of Takarazaka, than to enjoy the reimagining of it in our own image in the Grand Stage series of Drama CDs. Today, we’re looking at the 4th of the first series, Grand Stage, Volume 4 “Minami Kohaku“ (グラン・ステージ 第4幕「美波琥珀」).

In the previous CDs, we played the part of young musumeyaku (women playing female roles) who met and were paired with otokoyaku (women who play the male roles) who were charming, arrogant and boyish in turn. In Volume 4, we play an older, experienced musumeyaku who has been paired with a new otokoyaku in training and are taking her under our wing.

Minami Kohaku, the young, inexperienced lead, is played by Kitamuri Eri, who we best know as Miki Sayaka from Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Cure Berry from Fresh! Precure. She brings an earnest and passionate personality to Kohaku that we find absolutely irresistible.

The performance we’re working on is an adaptation of Camille by Alexandre Dumas fils; with several references to the famous opera based on the novel, La Traviata. Kohaku has come to us for special training before taking on Armand.

We learn that Kohaku has joined Grand Stage after her older sister…whom she is surprised to learn is rather famous among the leads. The two of us sneak into the theater and, as we are about to confess something about our fears, we are interrupted. We run away. Kohaku admits that she’s fallen in love a little bit with the stage, with us, with our voice. We are put out by this. Her explanation, and her sincerity turns us around. What follows is a slightly sexy scene as Kohaku realizes that it wasn’t her confession that bothered us, but her apology for it. We call her “pure” and imply something that sets her spluttering with embarrassment. She wasn’t thinking of that, she assures us! And adorably, she asks us out for a hamburger. And says she looks forward to our relationship changing as we get to know each other better. Clearly we are besotted by her adorableness.

When she vows to work hard to be worthy of us, you just know we squeed inside. Outside we were just cool and mature. ^_^  (For this CD, I think I would have liked to have our dialogue, too.)  And we promise to wait until she graduates and becomes our partner.

The final track is Kohaku’s image song, predictably titled “La Traviata” which is a crappy tango-esque piece that Kitamura does a very decent job with.

Included with the CD is a “signed” picture which, this time, includes a note of thanks. With her dreamy amber eyes, and her kiss to our hand, Kohaku is clearly going to make a wonderful Armand to our Marguerite.

Ratings:

Overall – 10

I was 100% with the “me” of the storyline. Minami Kohaku was absolutely irresistible. ^_^

Let it be said and recognized that Inoue Marina is one of the best least-known voice actresses that you have ever heard. I first “heard” her as Lirio in El Cazador de la Bruja, (which is an irony, as Lirio almost never spoke) but she’s probably better known as Gurren Lagan‘s Yoko. We’ve encountered her many times as Cure March in PreCure, Eriol in Nanoha Strikers and my favorite, as Shouko from Maria-sama ga Miteru. Generally speaking, I adore her voice, and I was pleased as punch that she was included in this wackadoodle Yuri Drama CD series as Grand Stage’s “Peter Pan,” Kazamiya Eru.

In Grand Stage 3, “Kazamiya Eru (グラン・ステージ　第３幕「風宮絵琉」) she gets to stretch her voice a little and overplay a uniquely overplayable role…and be delightful doing it. ^_^

Kazmiya Eru, the third otokoyaku of the Grand Stage we meet, is playful and childish, with a boyish charm. She is about to play Peter Pan, which suits her personality, and so, of course, we will be her Wendy.

Eru-kun is disarmingly cheerful and energetic and we respond accordingly. But unlike Akito and Ryoya, she is also deeply concerned with the issue of gender. Having been scouted in New York, Eru maintains she wants to portray a “cool guy” even as she’s bouncing around the room, childlike.

The format of the story is settled now – we meet our potential partner, end up in their apartment, feed them, listen to their story, find ourselves charmed and end up together as the perfect partner. When Inoue-san says, as Eru-kun, “I love you – so much!” in English, with the emphasis almost, but not quite correct, it’s hard to not want to hug the stuffing out of her. ^_^

Then Eru-kun sings her image song, “Flying Boy,” which pretty much wore the Peter Pan analogy threadbare.

The Drama CD includes, as the other’s have, a “signed image” by the Grand Stage top star, images of her in tux and in “street clothes” and this time included a short SS “shousetsu”, i.e., an official fanfic, printed in the CD insert, which was absolutely delightful and ridiculous.

Concerned about our happiness, Eru-kun asks Akito and Ryoya for advice on a birthday date. A limo driven by Akito takes us to the zoo where a Ryoya panda leads us around. We end up the day in a romantic spot, with the other two listening in openly. We are – of course – moved by Eru-kun’s kindness and even more so when she asks us to call her by her real name, Hibiya Hikaru. We and Hi-kun (squee! we have a special nickname for her!) end the day happily, under the benevolent smiles of Akito and Ryoya.

Gosh we’re such softies. ^_^

And as I wrapped up this CD I thought, “I love this series. It’s so goshdarn tack-tastic and full of all the Yuri things, what’s not to love?”

Now I’m super motivated to listen to the others and get the new series asap. If this were an anime, I’d watch the hell out of it. In the meantime, this is, really, truly, the “Yuriest” thing coming out of Japan in ages.

Ratings:

Overall – 10

Squee.

Last summer I had a chance to listen to and review the first of the Grand Stage Drama CDs. Grand Stage is a series of monologues by otokoyaku (women who play males roles,) of a fictitious musical review troupe called Grand Stage. The first CD followed “Hiou Akito,” voiced by Ogata Megumi. Akito is teasing and playful, very much the way she voiced Tenoh Haruka in the original Sailor Moon anime.

So this year, we’re in Animate in Tokyo and it occurs to me to try and find the Grand Stage CDs, as I know there are a few new ones that were just coming out around then. No luck on my first try. Or my second, but on our last shopping day, as we mosied around the Animate in Ikebukuro (our home away from home when we’re in Tokyo) I looked up and there was Hiou Akito! I’m like, REALLY?!?  So I start looking for the rest of the series.

Wait – let me digress here and discuss one of the many “issues with shopping for stuff in Japan.” Animate is 8 floors, and one floor is all CDs and DVDs, but when I say “floor” I mean the space is pretty damn small for a store. Maybe 1000 sq. ft./section in two sections on either side of the elevator? It’s hard to guesstimate with all that *stuff* in the way. I.e., there is only so much space on the shelves and they tend to favor the current and popular over anything else – and they do a lot of business as pre-orders. So often it’s easier for me to order media and have it shipped rather than try to find it on shelves. Point is, the chances of me seeing the newest Grand Stage Drama CD were astronomical.

And yet, there it was. My wife ran up and asked where the rest of them were (if the rest were…) and lo and behold, on my last day in Tokyo, when I had no intention of buying anything, I blew $150 on Drama CDs. (I wasn’t alone in this, my wife threw $100 at the Bandai Premium Spiral Heart Moon Rod and Bruce ended up buying a Hatsune Miku figurine so large and magnificent that he had to get new luggage to transport her. ^_^. ) So thank you Okazu Patrons for helping me support this awesome Yuri Drama CD series!

The real surprise here is that this series sold well enough for them to make a second series of CDs. I’m pretty happy about that.

Which brings me to Grand Stage, Vol. 2 “Subaru Ryoya”  (グラン・ステージ 第2幕　「昴 涼夜」)  which follows the Grand Stage’s “Phantom of the Opera”, voiced by Toyoguchi Megumi, whom you will know best as Sei in Maria-sama ga Miteru.

The first track is, as it was in the first volume, the Grand Stage theme, sung by all 5 of the voice actresses. It’s perfect and ridiculous and wonderful.

Subaru Ryoya is, as one might expect of a otokoyaku nicknamed “Phantom,,” haughty and aristocratic. “We” bump into her – literally – on the way to practice and she is extremely rude. When it turns out that we are her partner, she is…condescending, to say the least. She informs us that she is a member of a famous kabuki family and her father and brother are both well-known stars. We, uninterested in cultural relics, don’t apparently, care. That someone would be such a uncultured clod but still expect to be her Christine makes Ryoya laugh – for the first time, not unkindly. “What a strange girl” we are!

We spend time with her, make her something sweet to eat, and learn a bit about how she ended up on the Grand Stage. And all the while, Ryoya is softening towards us and our apparently clueless, but confident, personality. By the time we nail the audition, the “Phantom” has convinced herself we have potential to be her Christine, but warns us that the role has sent 13 other singers to the hospital trying to keep up with her.

Obviously, we are amazing and we and Ryoya head out to practice, knowing we will be amazing together.

The final track is Toyoguchi-san singing a solo, “CRIME OF LOVE” the very title of which has me giggling. You can hear it here on the Youtube clip for this CD:

Ratings:

Overall – 8

Although, I have to admit, I kept thinking, “Sheesh, Ryoya is kind of a jerk.” ^_^