This is a partial translation of ねこさぶ’s entries 1, 2. Please check them out for more details.
talk events notes
※ Contains spoilers about the content and production of the stage reading.
【Izaki-san talk segment】
・ About his impressions of 「Bloom Into You」
At the start, when I watched the first stage play performances, I thought 「this is very interesting」.
It was a genre I had never touched before,
but it was drawn very delicately and I felt moved after I finished watching it.
After that, when I saw the anime and read the original manga,
I thought 「ah, how are these people (the cast of the first performances) just like the characters?」
・ About the role of Maki
Because there is little information content on Maki-kun, I perform with the image of 「Maki as seen by Sayaka」 on the stage.
【About Maki-kun, played by Izaki-san】
・ Kawauchi-san
As Koito, I feel as though he’s already seen through everything.
Tsuji 「Speaking of Maki-kun, I like the batting center scene in the original work.」
Izaki 「He says some pretty amazing things (to Yuu), doesn’t he.」
Tsuji 「I hope we can do that scene someday too.」
【Nanaki-san talk segment】
・ About the role of Yuzuki-senpai
At the start, when I asked the manager what kind of role I was going to play, they said 「an unpleasant woman」. (laughs)
Then I did a search (on Yuzuki-senpai) and found a lot of things like 「she’s unforgivable」 and went “ah, so that’s the kind of role I will play.”
I’m still not sure what face to show when standing there during curtain call… (laughs)
so the bows at the end are with a feeling of apology to everyone…
Tsuji 「Those are bows of apology? lol」
Kawauchi 「Like an apology press conference.」
Still, with Kuzuki-san, who is in charge of directing,
she said 「she certainly is an unpleasant woman, but on the stage, it would be nice if we could bring (the image of the role) to the point where it’s hard to hate her」.
・ Preparing for the role of Yuzuki-senpai
In order to give Yuzuki-senpai the feeling of 「in love with love」,
I did some searching on the Internet since I wasn’t that sure what 「in love with love」 meant.
【About Yuzuki-senpai, played by Nanaki-san】
Kawauchi 「I really like her. She certainly looks cruel from Sayaka’s point of view, but Yuzuki-senpai herself is very innocent, carefree, and pure.
That’s why I end up thinking “how adorable,” when she’s with Sayaka and enjoying herself.」
Koizumi 「You can’t help but think “so cute!”」
【About the two storytellers】
・ Producer Tsuji
The original novels are written entirely from Sayaka’s point of view,
so if we did it normally, Isobe-san would be talking throughout the stage play.
But that would put too much work on her, and I thought it might be better for the audience to be able to look at different places and hear different voices, so I went with this storytelling style.
・ Kawauchi-san
Kuzuki-san first said, 「These two are fairies of Sayaka’s heart」.
There are times when I get close to Sayaka’s heart and express her feelings, and times when I distance myself a little and describe the scene.
It was difficult to get the sense of distance, of how close I should be to Sayaka at each moment, but I managed to grasp it as I went along.
I began to understand how much of Sayaka’s feelings were reflected in the lines that describe the scene.
・ Izaki-san
I thought it was interesting (to have storytellers), because in a normal stage play the story progresses only through conversations, and there are no lines that would become the stage directions of a script.
Izaki 「Kuzuki-san told me I was “a little too fairy.” (laughs) What does “too fairy” mean??」
Kawauchi 「It was the opposite for me. She told me I was “a little too human.” (laughs)」
【Although it’s called a stage reading, it’s thoroughly a stage play】
The cast members have the script just about memorized and practically perform without looking at their hands.
・ Izaki-san
First, Kuzuki-san said 「this is a stage reading, but please memorize the script」.
At the time, I thought it was a figure of speech, like 「ah, please do it with that much spirit」 and did so.
When the time came for rehearsals, Kuzuki-san said (in a serious tone) 「um, please memorize the script」.
The next day was a day off from rehearsals, so everyone spent it working hard to memorize the script. (laughs)
Koizumi 「Because it’s a stage reading, I thought it would be in the style of looking at the script.」
Tsuji 「Kuzuki-san and I weren’t planning to do that from the start. lol」
【Ways of using the script at hand】
・ Kawauchi-san
I already think of the script at hand as a prop.
As a storyteller, it feels like I’m reading Sayaka’s diary, with the color of the books that the two storytellers hold being the same as Sayaka’s book.
・ Nanaki-san
When I memorized the whole script, I went 「what is the meaning of this book…」,
but I try to use the book to produce what I would normally do with my hands,
such as covering my mouth with the book like how Maki-kun does.
・ Koizumi-san
Sometimes I use it as a normal book. When I read the script of the student council play, I do it while looking down at the book.
【Infection control in the rehearsal room】
It was essential to wear a mask and a face shield during rehearsals.
・ Koizumi-san
When rehearsing with a mask on, there is little information because only the other person’s eyes can be seen.
When the time finally came to perform in front of an audience (with the mask off), I went “ah, so they had this expression.”
In the rehearsal room, there were long sofas placed against the wall,
and we had to sit at a distance from each other.
We also ate lunch apart.
【Atmosphere of the YagaKimi stage play company】
Notably, the main three (Isobe-san, Koizumi-san, and Kawauchi-san) are noisy. They talk all the time.
Nanaki 「They’re very amusing. It feels as though there are two boke and one tsukkomi. Misato-chan’s tsukkomi are quick.」
Koizumi 「But her tsukkomi are really sharp.」
Kawauchi-san talks to herself all the time.
She even talked to the flowers throughout the ikebana experience.
Kawauchi 「”Maybe you should come this way a little more,” “ah, I can’t see you if you’re over there,” things like that. I get uneasy if I don’t talk to someone. And then Karin-chan would say 「shut up~」 (laughs)」
Koizumi 「You would always talk to yourself in the rehearsal room. But I’ve gotten used to it.」
Kawauchi 「You know, maybe you should be a little more concerned.」
Koizumi 「It’s probably never going to go away.」
Kawauchi 「Oh.」
Koizumi 「Yeah, stay the way you are.」
Tsuji 「”Stay the way you are,” she said. lol」
【Harusaki-san talk segment】
・ Harusaki-san, who came to watch SaSaTsu yesterday
I’d heard that it’s roughly a story like this (about SaSaTsu), but as I watched without knowing the details,
my chest tightened up so much and I was crying throughout the viewing.
When I heard the same BGM as the first performances, it brought back fond memories of the time I was on standby backstage.
【About the play that requires keeping a distance】
・ Koizumi-san
It would have been nice if we could do it without the distance, such as holding hands or sitting next to each other (in the scenes with Sayaka). I do my best to make it look like we’re close even with the distance.
・ Nanaki-san
I feel there are some things that can be seen better because of the distance. In the confession scene with Sayaka, the distance makes the act of reaching out for the other person look more beautiful.
・ Kawauchi-san
When they hold hands, they do each movement carefully and step by step (to make it look like they are connected), so that the audience can be able to feel a little thrill watching along.
Harusaki-san
I thought the production was very easy to understand and gentle (watching from the audience side). It goes well with the work and makes it more precious.
When the two were holding hands and faced this way at the same time, I understood with an “ah, right now they are close and facing each other. Emo…”
・ Producer Tsuji
By having the two face forward, the audience can see both of their expressions (full face). (something that cannot be done in a production where they normally face each other and hold hands)
This may have helped create a sense of distance between Sayaka and Yuzuki-senpai, and between Sayaka and Touko.
We did this for infection control, but even under normal circumstances, we still might have made a production (with the distance) like this.
It was because of SaSaTsu that I thought such a production might be possible.
【Isobe-san during curtain call】
Koizumi 「During curtain call, she becomes the Isobe Karin who works hard to become Saeki Sayaka.」
Tsuji 「She (Isobe-san) goes back to her old self as soon as it’s over. During dress rehearsal, she became too much Isobe Karin, and I asked her to stay a little more Sayaka. (laughs)」
Translation notes:
The original text mistakenly says Kuzuki Akira is in charge of the script. The correct person is Suzuki Tomoharu.
Aletheia 