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| Zachou Kouen ikuzoooo! |
Goods
Thanks to being hardened by the freezing winter of Finland, queuing out in the Japanese winter was no problem for me. It felt like spring really. I was prepared to queue for a long long time, as the line went around like three sides of the venue, but surprisingly enough it was done pretty fast! The only explanation for this that I can think of is that the zigzaggy line they have in front of the goods stands was nearly non-existent today. Works for me! I was done pretty early and had time to go for a delicious meaty lunch and hours of karaoke fun!
Thanks to being hardened by the freezing winter of Finland, queuing out in the Japanese winter was no problem for me. It felt like spring really. I was prepared to queue for a long long time, as the line went around like three sides of the venue, but surprisingly enough it was done pretty fast! The only explanation for this that I can think of is that the zigzaggy line they have in front of the goods stands was nearly non-existent today. Works for me! I was done pretty early and had time to go for a delicious meaty lunch and hours of karaoke fun!
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| This on the t-shirt made me so sure that tonight was gonna be about Momotaro! |
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| I can't resist posting pictures of food, especially cute food. :3 |
Inside Yoyogi National Gymnasium
I had never been here before, so it was pretty exciting to be attending something so close to the heart of Tokyo. When I found my seat I was surprised at how nice the lottery second round tickets were. The seats were on the second floor quite close to the edge and provided a perfect view of the whole stage setup which included a front stage, a back stage, a middle stage and stage walks that connected all three. I felt these seats were decidedly better than some of the first round ones that might be on the back rows of the arena, where the view would be quite limited. So all in all, I was happy how things turned out regardless of my ticket fiasco!
01. SUPER☆MAN
I was really hoping to hear SUPER☆MAN tonight since I wanted to know how it would pan out live, and it was really fun as expected! Nana and Team Yo-Da were doing the dance from the PV and it just looks even more hilarious in real life than it does in the video. I couldn't stop grinning. xD
02. Clutch!!
I was still in my SUPER☆MAN high, so it took me a while to process that it was Clutch!! that had begun, and I have to say that even though it is the least interesting song to me from SMASHING ANTHEMS, I was surprised at how enjoyable it was live.
MC1
Nana is joined on the middle stage with Mishi-P and as is tradition they discuss the journey from the very first Zachou Kouen to here. It is pretty incredible when you think about it, I mean it started out as a pretty small thing and it has now become this big. Wish I could have experienced one of those more intimate Zachou Kouens, though if she did that now then getting tickets would be super hard. It's already hard enough as it is. xD
I was still in my SUPER☆MAN high, so it took me a while to process that it was Clutch!! that had begun, and I have to say that even though it is the least interesting song to me from SMASHING ANTHEMS, I was surprised at how enjoyable it was live.
MC1
Nana is joined on the middle stage with Mishi-P and as is tradition they discuss the journey from the very first Zachou Kouen to here. It is pretty incredible when you think about it, I mean it started out as a pretty small thing and it has now become this big. Wish I could have experienced one of those more intimate Zachou Kouens, though if she did that now then getting tickets would be super hard. It's already hard enough as it is. xD
03. ブランブル
I was kinda hoping to hear Never Let Go tonight since I ship it so much xD but getting to hear Bramble was still a nice surprise! It felt more epic than I had expected. Though, it is one of those songs that just passes through you and once it's over, it has already left you behind. It's not the sort of song that lingers in you for a long time. If that makes any sense.
I was kinda hoping to hear Never Let Go tonight since I ship it so much xD but getting to hear Bramble was still a nice surprise! It felt more epic than I had expected. Though, it is one of those songs that just passes through you and once it's over, it has already left you behind. It's not the sort of song that lingers in you for a long time. If that makes any sense.
04. 純潔パラドックス
I guess we're now done with the new songs, wish I could have heard a couple more though. :3 It's been a while though since I've last heard Junketsu Paradox so it was nice to be getting it tonight. Looks like on the day performance they got Metro Baroque instead.
MC2
Announcement of NANA CLIPS 7! They are doing a special thing this time, where they want everyone to vote for what song (any song!) you'd like to see a PV of from Nana on the questionnaire on her site, and the song with most votes will get included in NANA CLIPS 7 with a spanking brand new PV (the winner is Pray btw, if for some bizarre reason you weren't aware of it yet)!
I guess we're now done with the new songs, wish I could have heard a couple more though. :3 It's been a while though since I've last heard Junketsu Paradox so it was nice to be getting it tonight. Looks like on the day performance they got Metro Baroque instead.
MC2
Announcement of NANA CLIPS 7! They are doing a special thing this time, where they want everyone to vote for what song (any song!) you'd like to see a PV of from Nana on the questionnaire on her site, and the song with most votes will get included in NANA CLIPS 7 with a spanking brand new PV (the winner is Pray btw, if for some bizarre reason you weren't aware of it yet)!
05. PHANTOM MINDS
Ooh wasn't really expecting this! I always make a note of not getting spoilers beforehand (since there was that day show), so I had no clue what was coming.
-Mishi-P Talk-
I was kinda expecting that Mishi-P was gonna stay on and talk for a long time, but instead he brought up SUPER☆MAN and that we were in for a treat. We got to see the making of! Not sure if it was the whole thing that'll be included in NANA CLIPS 7 too, or just a part of it, but in any case it was fun to get a glimpse into the world of that quirky PV. Afterwards, we even got to see the whole PV itself, so tonight was definitely a full on dose of SUPER☆MAN. xD Though now that we had just gotten to witness Nana and Team Yo-da pull the super cute dance in real life at the start of tonight, seeing the PV didn't have that much impact anymore.
Then..... Zachou Kouen!
(Side note: I might have mixed up the order of some scenes and for that I apologize. orz I also found the heading names from the NANA CLIPS 7 description, so I put them where I thought they probably are. I could be wrong though. I'll fix them up once I know for sure!)
<Scene 1 - 桃太郎とは - About Momotaro>
Ooh wasn't really expecting this! I always make a note of not getting spoilers beforehand (since there was that day show), so I had no clue what was coming.
-Mishi-P Talk-
I was kinda expecting that Mishi-P was gonna stay on and talk for a long time, but instead he brought up SUPER☆MAN and that we were in for a treat. We got to see the making of! Not sure if it was the whole thing that'll be included in NANA CLIPS 7 too, or just a part of it, but in any case it was fun to get a glimpse into the world of that quirky PV. Afterwards, we even got to see the whole PV itself, so tonight was definitely a full on dose of SUPER☆MAN. xD Though now that we had just gotten to witness Nana and Team Yo-da pull the super cute dance in real life at the start of tonight, seeing the PV didn't have that much impact anymore.
Then..... Zachou Kouen!
(Side note: I might have mixed up the order of some scenes and for that I apologize. orz I also found the heading names from the NANA CLIPS 7 description, so I put them where I thought they probably are. I could be wrong though. I'll fix them up once I know for sure!)
<Scene 1 - 桃太郎とは - About Momotaro>
[A lone old man] comes up on the middle stage and talks to the audience. He tells the story of Momotaro's origin, how he and his wife found him floating along in the river inside a giant peach. They discovered Momotaro inside the peach when they tried to eat it. Whoopsie daisie. He then proceeds to tell about Momotaro's companions, who then show up on stage for him to narrate about. They are a [dog], [monkey] and [pheasant]. Once he finishes with his introductory tale, we are presented with the whole cast introduction video.
『新説・桃太郎英雄譚』(= "New Theory - Heroic Tale of Momotaro")
【出演】- CAST
桃太郎：水樹奈々
Momotaro: Mizuki Nana
Momotaro: Mizuki Nana
犬：保村真
Inu (Dog): Yasumura Makoto
Inu (Dog): Yasumura Makoto
猿：杉田智和
Saru (Monkey): Sugita Tomokazu
Saru (Monkey): Sugita Tomokazu
キジ：名塚佳織
Kiji (Pheasant): Nazuka Kaori
Kiji (Pheasant): Nazuka Kaori
金太郎：小西克幸
Kintaro: Konishi Katsuyuki
Kintaro: Konishi Katsuyuki
一寸法師：福圓美里
One-Inch Boy: Fukuen Misato
One-Inch Boy: Fukuen Misato
くま：浅沼晋太郎
Kuma (Bear): Asanuma Shintaro
Kuma (Bear): Asanuma Shintaro
おじいさん：松本保典
Ojii (Granpa): Matsumoto Yasunori
Ojii (Granpa): Matsumoto Yasunori
黒鬼：置鮎龍太郎
Black Demon: Okiayu Ryūtarō
Black Demon: Okiayu Ryūtarō
少年：沢城みゆき
Shounen (Young Man): Sawashiro Miyuki
Shounen (Young Man): Sawashiro Miyuki
浦島太郎：中村悠一
Urashima Tarō: Nakamura Yuuichi
Urashima Tarō: Nakamura Yuuichi
乙姫：五十嵐麗
Otohime: Igarashi Rei
Otohime: Igarashi Rei
~Background info~
The story tonight is loosely based on the [story of Momotaro from Japanese folklore], but instead of following the usual storyline of Momotaro, it seems to offer a fun take on what happens afterwards based on Ojii's starting narration and the various characters mentioning how Momotaro already beat the demons once during the play. The screenplay seems to have been written by Asanuma Shintaro, so the guy playing Kuma.
Oh yeah, I should also mention that characters from other folklore and fairytales made an appearance too, for some reason or another. xD You can already see that from some of the roles in the cast list, though there are also some that were only revealed during the play itself.
Oh yeah, I should also mention that characters from other folklore and fairytales made an appearance too, for some reason or another. xD You can already see that from some of the roles in the cast list, though there are also some that were only revealed during the play itself.
<Scene 2 - 黒鬼 - Black Demon>
A look at the demon's side. They seem to have some eternal rave party going on or something. I guess being a demon is not so bad? xD We are introduced to their leader, the [black demon] when [Urashima Tarou] comes to start a squabble with the lesser demons.
<Scene 3 - 桃太郎帰還 - Momotaro's Return>
We then go back to the old man, Ojii, and the companions, who are wondering where Momotaro is. Momotaro, who is Nana as we know, finally makes an entrance! She appears on a "boat" going around pretty high on the right side (from the stage) singing the first enka song of the night.
06. きよしのズンドコ節 (= Kiyoshi no Zundoko Bushi)
I had been wondering what Enka songs Nana would grace us with tonight and I thought she had already covered all the ones I was familiar with at previous Zachou Kouens, but turns out I was wrong! Here comes Hikawa Kiyoshi's Kiyoshi no Zundoko Bushi! I got so excited that I knew the song and that I actually also really like it! \o/ It was so awesome to get to call out to Nana during the song instead of "Kiyoshi!", it felt like such an honor to participate in a piece of Enka. Never imagined it would happen!!
06. きよしのズンドコ節 (= Kiyoshi no Zundoko Bushi)
I had been wondering what Enka songs Nana would grace us with tonight and I thought she had already covered all the ones I was familiar with at previous Zachou Kouens, but turns out I was wrong! Here comes Hikawa Kiyoshi's Kiyoshi no Zundoko Bushi! I got so excited that I knew the song and that I actually also really like it! \o/ It was so awesome to get to call out to Nana during the song instead of "Kiyoshi!", it felt like such an honor to participate in a piece of Enka. Never imagined it would happen!!
Nana is reunited with her companions and Ojii, they talk for a bit. Ojii brings up Obaa's dango and their deliciousness. They are obviously the Nanette dango that are part of the Zachou Kouen goods this time. Come to think of it, the food made a cameo in the last Zachou Kouen too. xD
<Scene 4 - 変化 - Change>
Not long after Nana makes it to the stage, her companions are off to do various things. Buff bearman, a.k.a. [Kintarou] arrives... So in other words, Konishi-san wearing a huge plushie bear (his legs are the front paws) with fake legs hanging down from both sides of the bear's back making it kinda look like he was actually saddled on top of it.... with really short legs mind you. xD He teases Momotaro about her height. They banter for quite a while and then we get introduced to Misato's character, though we can't see her. She is so tiny. Too tiny to be visible at all. :'D She is the [One-Inch Boy] after all. Nana finally "spots" her and moves her to another part of the stage.
Momotaro contemplating to go beat the demons again, but feels she can't do it unless she becomes better and stronger first. [Shounen] shows up to pep talk her, with Misato helping. Though, Sawashiro accidentally "steps" on Misato.
<Scene 5 - 竜宮城 - Palace of the Dragon King>
Not completely sure whether this happened here, but at some point we take a look at the Demon Island again. The Black Demon and Urashima Tarou are still at odds, when an ominous lady shows up. It is the demons' real leader, [Otohime] and she shows the boys their place. She has plans. ominous plans.
Shounen finishes up her pep talk convincing Momotaro Nana that she is ready to face the stronger demons. Nana is worried about her companions' whereabouts but no worry, they show up at the back of the left side (in same "boat" Nana arrived in), ready for battle. The boat starts moving towards where I was sitting and I was getting super pumped up when suddenly.... Nana joins them! Holyyyyyy! I wasn't expecting her so close to me tonight, don't shock me like that Nana!!!
07. あばれ太鼓〜無法一代入り〜 (= Abare Daiko 〜 Muhou Ichidai Iri 〜)
When Nana reached the boat, the second Enka song of the evening kicks off. It is Sakamoto Fuyumi's song, Abare Daiko 〜 Muhou Ichidai Iri 〜. I don't think I have heard this before, but I enjoyed it all the same! Getting to hear Nana's Enka skills so close up was literally pure heaven. I almost wanted to cry of joy. By the end of the song, they have reached the front stage on their little boat and get off.
<Scene 6 - いざ再び鬼ヶ島 - Emergency at Onigashima Again>
They arrive at the demon lair. Otohime confronts Momotaro and surprise surprise, she is Momotaro's Obaa! After Nana finds out her Obaa is behind everything she runs away heartbroken. Her companions are left to deal with the demons on their own. Saru runs away. Kiji tells Inu to take care of it. We jump back and forth from Kiji's "battle" to Inu's "battle". Inu's battle plays off typical dog behavior, while Kiji uses the mighty power of selfies to thwart her enemies. It is all pretty hilarious.
We then see Kintarou and his [bear], now separate individuals, deal with a kappa demon and another one. Proper boxing match style. There's even a referee. xD This drags on for a while, Kintarou's attacks blocked by the kappa's shell, and the kappa's attacks blocked by Kintarou's amazing muscles.
Even Misato shows up! She is bigger now and is doing her fighting while sailing in a miso soup bowl.
After they are done we see Saru arriving by himself ready to fight. Urashima Tarou comes on stage with his mighty fishing rod. Sugita calls him by real name "Hey Nakamura!". Nakamura explains that he is not Nakamura right now, they have roles to uphold and they battle, resulting in Saru being strung up by Nakamura's fishing rod. Sawashiro comes to the rescue. She flies from the back sprinkling fairy dust... she is Peter Pan! Plot twist! Once she lands she pulls out her hat, making it more obvious. Cue in the Black Demon, who seems to now find himself in the role of Captain Hook. They go off to battle it out like Captain Hook and Peter Pan should.
<Scene 7 - 真実 - Truth>
She goes on a demon massacre, starting from the front stage and making her way to the back stage dual-wielding swords and being super badass. In between some of her companions come and offer her a brief respite, Kintarou and kuma boxing match style, with a towel and stool, then Saru, Inu and Kiji bring her snacks and so on. By the time Nana has made it all the way to the back, she has killed 77 demons. There was a kill counter on the big screens at the front. xD
Nana's companions reunite in the front stage and Nana shows up in new battle dress to save the day.
She goes on a demon massacre, starting from the front stage and making her way to the back stage dual-wielding swords and being super badass. In between some of her companions come and offer her a brief respite, Kintarou and kuma boxing match style, with a towel and stool, then Saru, Inu and Kiji bring her snacks and so on. By the time Nana has made it all the way to the back, she has killed 77 demons. There was a kill counter on the big screens at the front. xD
Finally Nana makes it to the stage at the back of the arena, when one more demon shows up. Ojii shows up to finish up last guy... with his lawnmower? Or something like that. xD He says to Nana that this is his problem as well and they face Obaa together. They have a heartfelt talk about their feelings and bond as a family. They persuade Obaa to come home.
But it's not over yet! Black Demon (or Captain Hook, whichever he identifies with more at this point xD) still tries to stop them, but Nakamura comes to the rescue. He beats the captain up quite easily and then bids everyone goodbye as he leaves in search of girls lol. xD
08. 愛燦燦 ( = Ai Sansan)
I was pretty sure that Zachou Kouen couldn't end without Nana singing a Misora Hibari song and so we get Ai sansan! I bought a Misora Hibari best of CD of sorts a couple of years ago, but I can't recall if I have heard this before or not. I seem to remember the more energetic Enka songs more easily than these emotional ones, even though I really love both kinds of songs a lot. Enka really is just so beautiful to listen to.
<Scene 8 - カーテンコール - Curtain Call>
Everyone comes on the middle stage to take their bows. As last time, everyone is given the opportunity to say whatever it is they want to say (how they are so grateful to get to be a part of this, etc) finishing with Nana of course. I can't really remember what anyone said here, because all of them talked quite a lot and this took pretty long. Keeping the play itself in my head was hard enough. xD
YESSSS!!! I have been waiting for a live announcement ever since LIVE ADVENTURE! I have been feeling for the past year or so that Nana would be returning to Tokyo Dome soon since it's already been quite a while, and now it finally happened! I am SO ecstatic!! Also, a funny thing - I have gotten into the habit of making bets about the randomest things with my boyfriend of which the most recent one was "what will Nana's next live be called". I don't even remember what I bet on (we made the bet a couple of months ago already), but my boyfriend very confidently declared it was going to be LIVE GALAXY. You can only imagine how I felt tonight when it really was that. I so couldn't believe it!!
And that's all folks for now. Hopefully I will be able to dish out some LIVE GALAXY reports at least as fast as I did with this one, but we'll see! I'll leave you with a picture of the cast.
08. 愛燦燦 ( = Ai Sansan)
I was pretty sure that Zachou Kouen couldn't end without Nana singing a Misora Hibari song and so we get Ai sansan! I bought a Misora Hibari best of CD of sorts a couple of years ago, but I can't recall if I have heard this before or not. I seem to remember the more energetic Enka songs more easily than these emotional ones, even though I really love both kinds of songs a lot. Enka really is just so beautiful to listen to.
<Scene 8 - カーテンコール - Curtain Call>
Everyone comes on the middle stage to take their bows. As last time, everyone is given the opportunity to say whatever it is they want to say (how they are so grateful to get to be a part of this, etc) finishing with Nana of course. I can't really remember what anyone said here, because all of them talked quite a lot and this took pretty long. Keeping the play itself in my head was hard enough. xD
<Scene 9 - エンディング - Ending>
After everyone has had their say and bows, they leave Nana alone on stage... to be joined by Mishi-P. And finally it was the time for what I had been hoping for all night.... announcement time! In April... At Tokyo Dome....
YESSSS!!! I have been waiting for a live announcement ever since LIVE ADVENTURE! I have been feeling for the past year or so that Nana would be returning to Tokyo Dome soon since it's already been quite a while, and now it finally happened! I am SO ecstatic!! Also, a funny thing - I have gotten into the habit of making bets about the randomest things with my boyfriend of which the most recent one was "what will Nana's next live be called". I don't even remember what I bet on (we made the bet a couple of months ago already), but my boyfriend very confidently declared it was going to be LIVE GALAXY. You can only imagine how I felt tonight when it really was that. I so couldn't believe it!!
And that's all folks for now. Hopefully I will be able to dish out some LIVE GALAXY reports at least as fast as I did with this one, but we'll see! I'll leave you with a picture of the cast.
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