In Search of El Dorado
Aug. 30th, 2006 05:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ekusudei
In Search of El DoradoSnow Troupe, 2001
Not to be confused with the 1997 Tsukigumi show El Dorado. Actually, I used the English translation listed on the Wiki, because that may be the official translation, but I think "In Search of the Golden Country" might be a better translation with less baggage.
| Role | Main Cast | Shinjin Kouen |
| | ||
| Iwasaki Yatarou | ||
| Kise (Yatarou's wife) | ||
| Yoshida Touyou (chief retainer of Tosa) | ||
| Sakamoto Ryouma (Tosa rounin, sea fleet captain) | ||
| Gotou Shoujirou (Yoshida's nephew and Yatarou's best friend) | ||
| Minomura Rizaemon (One of the heads of Mitsubishi) | ||
| Okita Souji (Shinsengumi, captain of the 1st division) | ||
| Maruyakko ("O-Yuki") (Yamatarou's mistress and a former geisha) | ||
| Kawada Koichirou (Director of Mitsubishi Corporation) | ||
| Takera Zuizan (leader of the Imperialist Party) | ||
| Oguri Tadamasa (Bakufu Account Magistrate) | ||
| Shibusawa Eiichi (Shogunate retainer. An industrialist after the restoration.) | ||
| Inoue Kaoru (A politician serving as highest advisor to Mitsui) | ||
| Miwa (Yatarou's mother) | ||
| O-Yuu (Okita's lover) | ||
| O-Ryou (Ryouma's wife) | ||
| Thomas Glover (A British merchant) | ||
| Ernest Satow (A British diplomat) | ||
| Jon Manjirou (teacher at the Tosa clan school) | ||
| Kawakami Otojirou (an actor) | ||
| Ine (Siebold's daughter and a doctor) | ||
| Yajima Yatarou (a boy from the present) | ||
| Hitomi (Yajima's girlfriend) | ||
| Jinguuji (speaks about Yatarou in the present) | ||
Summary
This performance follows the life of Iwasaki Yatarou, the man who began the Mitsubishi Corporation in the 19th century. It is told from the perspective of Jinguuji, who tells Yajima Yatarou and his girlfriend Hitomi all about it.
Yatarou grew up in Tosa (present day Kochi) as the son of a peasant family, but followed his teacher Yoshida Touyo to Tokyo. In Tokyo he gained an interest in commerce, and met many important political figures of the times. It was during this period that the Meiji Restoration would soon begin. Among them, he became friends with Sakamoto Ryouma. Later, Yoshida was killed and Gotou blamed Ryouma for his death, but because of Ryouma's easy nature, violence was avoided.The show also features interesting little glimses of famous historical people, such as the tension between Ryouma and Okita Souji of the Shinsengumi. Almost all of the major characters are based on real people of the time.
Yatarou returns to Tosa to be a teacher, and is married to Kise.Eventually, he returns to Tokyo without his wife to start his commercial empire. While there he rescues Maruyakko, a geisha, and shebecomes his mistress. When Kise arrives in Tokyo, Maruyakko eventually realises the deep bond between husband and wife and leaves of her own accord.
At age 50, Iwasaki Yatarou died of stomach cancer, but his corporation continued to expand even to the present day.
What I Thought
The glorification of the Corporation, Japan style. Only Takarazuka could make this not only palatable, but rather amusing.
Hm. Well, I couldn't understand one word in ten because of the thick accents most of the men used, but... Well, the cast was great, and the little jokes made it all worth it. There was a lot of makes-you-chuckle-and-giggle kind of humor in here, from Yatarou's brash naivete at the beginning, to Ryouma's amiable insanity, to the gaijin jokes. Actually, some people might be offended by those. XD Personally, I found Wataru's inability to keep his hands off the blond woman's butt rather funny.
The humor I didn't much like, and the real weak link in this play, was the flashing back into modern times. Maybe they needed some way to give Komu a good role, but if I were Komu, I wouldn't have been pleased with it. It broke up the flow of the story something awful, and the lame joke of how they all kept ending up in the hospital wasn't funny the first time, let alone the third.
I'm very curious to hear what anyone else has thought of this show....
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