Tokyo Ballet [ONP Garnier 18-22 mai 2012]

[chien en peluche]

[sophia]

[chien en peluche]

[PetitCygne]

D'après les extraits que j'ai pu trouver sur le net (ils sont rares) on voit beaucoup le corps de ballet masculin dans Kabuki de Béjart. Est-ce que les filles sont assez présentes tout de même dans ce ballet ?
Est-il plutôt accessible pour des gens qui n'ont pas l'habitude de voir du Béjart ?

[chien en peluche]

[mizuko]

[mizuko]

Here are the main roles in the Kabuki. I quoted the commentaries from the programme of the representation in decembre 2008.

Yuranosuke: a leader of youngstars. After going back in time to the era of Chushingura, he becomes the leader of 47 Enya Ronins and revenges their dead master (Enya Hangan).

Tadayoshi: Younger brother of the Shogun

Enya Hangan: The person in charge of entertaining Ashikaga Tadayoshi. The insults of Morono drive him to violence, resulting in seppuku and the disbandment of his family's clan.

Kaoyo Gozen: Enya Hangan's wife. Lord Morono makes advances to her, and she becomes the puppet of fate after the death of her husband.

Morono: Governer of Kamakura and aide to the Shogun. Spurned by Lady Kaoyo, he insults Enya Hangan, resulting in the fatal fight.

Bannai: One of Morono's retainers. He spies on Yuranosuke's intention of revenge.

Kampei: A young retainer of Enya Hangan. Blaming himself for not being present to support his master at the critical moment, he goes with Okaru into hiding at Okaru's parents' home in the mountains.

Okaru: Lady Kaoyo's maid and Kampei's wife.

Sadakuro: A former retainer of Enya who becomes a bandit.



The story is inspired by Kanatehoncho Chushingura which is Kabuki/Ningyo-Joruri based on a true story happened on 14 december (30 january in 1703, in the current calender), known by Genroku Ako jiken. The ballet begins in modern Tokyo. The leader of youngstars finds an Japanese old sword. The moment he touchs the sword, he slips back in time to the era of Chushingura, the mid Edo era, and ... becomes Yuranosuke.

This ballet is a fusion of Kabuki and ballet with a taste of japonism. So you will see "kuroko", too, who is a stagehand of Kabuki dressed in black, appears on stage.

(to be continued...)


[editted the underlined part]

[mizuko]

Avant-goût de Kabuki de Béjart, un article par Gérard Mannoni dans En Scène !:

http://www.operadeparis.fr/actualites/bejart-kabuki


(Do you say "avant-goût" in this case?)

[sophia]

"La Galerie de l'Opéra de Paris" accueillera Mademoiselle Mizuka Ueno et Monsieur Naoki Takagishi du Tokyo Ballet pour une séance de dédicace du DVD "Kabuki" (chorégraphie Maurice Béjart, publié chez Shinshokan) le dimanche 20 mai de 17h15 à 18h.

[haydn]

Grâce à l'entremise de notre amie Mizuko, qui gère la section japonaise de Dansomanie, le service de presse du Tokyo Ballet nous fait parvenir, en guise de hors-d’œuvre, ces quelques images assez spectaculaires de Kabuki, de Maurice Béjart, bientôt à l'affiche du Palais Garnier :





Rui Yoshikawa


Yui Nikaido (debout) et Naoyoshi Nagase


Mika Yoshioka


DanTsukamoto (à gauche) et Yui Nikaido




Mizuka Ueno

_________________
Un petit "j'aime" sur la page Facebook de Dansomanie : http://www.facebook.com/Dansomanie/

[mizuko]

Here's the rough synopsis by me, which means "not official":

The ballet begins in modern Tokyo. [Prologue] The leader of youngstars finds an Japanese old sword. The moment he touchs the sword, he slips back in time to the era of Chushingura, the mid Edo era, when the shogun Ashikaga Takauji put down the nobleman Nitta Yoshisada and built the Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine in Kamakura to commemorate his victory. The young man from modern Tokyo doesn't know what happened to him. He encounters some incidents such as:

Scene 1 "Lady Kaoyo identifies a warrior's helmet" (* the forth and the seventh photos above)
Lord Ashikaga Tadayoshi, the shogun Takauji's younger brother, has journeyed from Kyoto on behalf of the shogun Takauji to attend the inauguration ceremony of Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine where the helmet of the dead Yoshisada is to be dedicated as the chief trophy as to complete the inauguration of the shrine.
Lady Kaoyo, Enya's wife, is summoned by Tadayoshi to identify the helmet of the dead Yoshisada, as Lady Kaoyo was a waiting maid in the imperial palace so she has seen his helmet and it was only she who could identify.
Ko no Morono, the governor of Kamakura and Enya Hangan, the lord of the castle Hoki and Kaoyo's husband, are there to welcome and serve Lord Tadayoshi.
After the ceremony, lustful Morono makes advances to beautiful Kaoyo but she rejects Morono. Morono gets indignant with Kaoyo and then becomes harsh on Kaoyo's husband Enya.

Scene 2 "Okaru and Kampei"
The young lovers Hayano Kampei, the retainer of Enya Hangan, and Okaru, Lady Kaoyo's waiting maid, are enjoying a brief moment together outside the shrine on the same day.

Scene 3 "In Pine Tree Chamber at the Palace"
Morono has become more and more abusive and insulted Enya Hangan repeatedly with hatred for Kaoyo. At last, in the Pine Tree Chamber at the palace, it gets beyond Enya's patience, he draws his sword and slashes Morono. He does not kill Morono as he is held back by the lords.
Kampei was not inside the palace. When he learns what happend, he feels dishonored as samurai because he was not there when his master needed him. Kampei goes into hiding with Okaru in her parents' home in the mountains.

Scene 4 "Enya Hangan commits seppuku" (* the third photo above)
Enya is sentenced to seppuku, confiscation of his estate and reduction of his men to ronin (lordless samurai) for attacking Morono and drawing his sword in the palace which is a crime, too.
Enya anxiously waits for the arrival of Oboshi Yuranosuke, his chief retainer. When he takes up the dagger, stabs it into his left side and pulls across his stomach, he asks the young man from the future at his side who he believes is Yuranosuke to seek vengeance. Enya Hangan dies.
From this moment, the character of the young man alters to Yuranosuke and he steps into the world of Bushido.

Scene 5 "Enya clan leaves their palace"
Bannai, a Morono's retainer, is pleased with the death of Enya and the destruction of his clan.
Meanwhile at the mansion of the late Enya Hangan, the waiting maids are having fun without knowing the great tragedy of their lord until the Lady Kaoyo arrives in grief. They leaves the mansion.
Yuranosuke, the chief retainer, discusses with other aides on the plan to take. Yuranosuke talks the aides not to commit seppuku until the enemy dies. The written oath of vengeance is taken by all.


(to be continued...)

(Reference: the programme of the representation in decembre 2008 and Wikipedia )

[Celi]

Thanks a lot Mizuko !!!!

[Florestiano]

Long article de présentation de Kabuki de Béjart dans The Ballet Bag ; la chose est en anglais mais passionannte - quelques belles photos illustrent par ailleurs la page.

C'est ici !

[mizuko]

Rough synopsis

Scene 6 "Yamazaki highway"
Morono sends out Bannai to spy on the retainers of the late Enya Hangan if they are seeking vengeance.
Kampei and Okaru married and live with Okaru's parents in the mountains. Kampei still feels disloyal to his lord Enya, he now makes living by hunting, wishing to be permitted to join the league in taking revenge. Okaru loves her husband and she sells herself to a brothel in Gion, Kyoto, without telling him, to make money for him to be a samurai again and join the league. Her father Yoichibei went to Kyoto for her and on the way back home with the large sum of money 50-ryo in gold (actually it was half the money for selling her daughter) in a wallet, on Yamazaki highway, he was robbed and murdered by Sadakuro who was one of the retainer of Enya and is now a banddit.
Kampei was hunting a boar then but accidentally shot Sadakuro. It was dark and raining so he couldn't see the body clearly. He finds the money and take it from the dead body knowing it's guilty.
When the body of Yoichibei is brought home, Kampei is accused of murdering his father-in-law and he believes it. Kampei commits seppuku.
Yuranosuke knows this tragic death of Kampei, impressed by his sincerity, and, with compassion, adds him to the league of the written oath of vengeance. Yuranosuke reaffirms his pledge to take revenge for Enya Hangan.

Scene 7 "Ichiriki chaya" (* the second photo)
It's Yuranosuke's plan to mislead the enemy, he often drinks and enjoys himself at the chaya (teahouse) called Ichiriki in Gion, Kyoto.
Okaru now works at this chaya as a prostitute. Yuranosuke knows it and is concerned for her.
Rikiya, Yuranosuke's son, arrives with a secret letter from Lady Kaoyo, which tells the recent news of Morono and says to act fast. While Yuranosuke reads the letter, Okaru also reads it in a mirror from upstairs. Bannnai, the spy of Morono, sneaks up to Yuranosuke beneath the floor to read the letter. Yuranosuke senses, drives the sword through the mat and wounds Bannai.

Scene 8 "Farewell in snow" (* the fifth photo)
A snowy night, Yuranosuke visits Lady Kaoyo who now lives in seclusion. Yuranosuke does not reveal his real intensions even to Kaoyo at this moment. Kaoyo cannnot hide her disappointment.
The ghost of Enya Hangan appears and leads Yuranosuke to take revenge for his master's death.

Scene 9 "Revenge" (* the first photo)
Yuranosuke and the 45 ronins (the dead Kampei makes 46) gather outside the Morono's mansion in the snowy night. They attacks the mansion, finds Morono and cuts his head off.
Suddenly Enya's ghost appears before them, accepts the Morono's head from Yuranosuke and disappears. Revenge is completed.
The 47 ronins, the loyal retainer of Enya Hangan, commits seppuku and die together in the morning sun.


- end -


(Reference: the programme of the representation in decembre 2008 and Wikipedia )

[mizuko]

Selon @TheTokyoBallet (twitter), la télévision japonaise WOWOW filme un documentaire sur la tournée à Paris du Tokyo Ballet avec Kabuki de Béjart. Il sera diffusé cet été.