Tezuka's very own Dreamgirls: Ribon no Kishi (Princess Knight) the Musical
Those who have done their reading know that Osamu Tezuka drew from the Takarazuka stage tradition in creating his seminal shoujo series, Princess Knight (Ribon no Kishi, or Princess Sapphire, or Choppy and the Princess, or something else depending on which country you're from and which language you're familiar with). It was only fair, then, that the Takarazuka should return the favor. In August 2006, a musical adaptation of Tezuka's classic ran on the Takarazuka stage, guest-starring omnipresent pop group Morning Musume (and friends). Rarely has there been such a conjunction of different creative worlds, bringing together a hundred-year-old tradition, a fifty-year-old tradition, and an almost-ten-year-old tradition.
WARNING: SPOILERS FOLLOW
As a two-hour adaptation of a four-volume manga series (and a 52-episode anime), the musical is highly abridged, although it still manages to bring in a number of genuinely Tezuka-esque plot twists. Some character relationships are adjusted from the original, while other characters are cut out entirely. The role of the sidekick angel Tink/Choppy, for example, is replaced by a metaphysical prelude where the Musume, dressed up as cosmic beings, cause the inadvertent switch that gives Sapphire the souls of both a girl and a boy.
Prince Sapphire (Ai Takahashi, left) takes on visiting Prince Franz (Rika Ishikawa, right) in a fateful duel.
From there it follows the premise of the original to an extent, but soon starts making adjustments and eventually takes the story in its own direction. Sapphire is biologically a girl but raised as a boy, as the kingdom of Silverland only allows men to take the throne. Were it not for "Prince" Sapphire, the son of the scheming Duke (or Prime Minister) would be the successor. Early on, Prince Franz from the neighboring country of Goldland is introduced, and he soon takes an interest in a mysterious flaxen-haired girl -- who is actually Sapphire in her civvies, enjoying "normal" life for once! Continuing with the niceties of royal diplomacy, Franz heads to the royal court and engages in a "friendly duel" with Prince Sapphire to symbolize the peace between the two countries. However, things go awry during the duel when an accident engineered by the Duke causes the King of Silverland to die of poisoning. Later on, as Sapphire is about to take the throne, her secret is revealed and the Duke and his son take over. From there it's a quest for Sapphire and her mother, now in exile, to return to Silverland, expose the truth, and reclaim the throne -- if it doesn't fall to an invasion from Goldland first.
The Duke's son (Koharu Kusumi, right) understands economics. The Duke (Hitomi Yoshizawa, left) doesn't seem to agree.
As a one-shot adventure story and not an episodic serial like it was in print and on screen, the arc is simple but powerful -- enough to move your emotions for a couple of hours and believe in the ideals of love and leading an honest life. Sapphire does not necessarily go and fight crime or engage in political intrigue -- the "Phantom Knight" character only shows up once, to extract a necessary bit of plot-furthering information -- but her conflicted relationship with Prince Franz is enough to drive the entire story. Well, that and the Duke's quest for power, adding some thoughts on greed and hubris to the prevalent theme of love. Stealing the show is Hitomi Yoshizawa as the Duke, absolutely relishing her devious role; her cocky attitude and forceful delivery really bring out this villainous character. On the receiving end of tragedy, however, is the Queen, played by Brazilian-born actress Marcia, who masterful expresses the love and pain of a royal mother, even descending into madness when the role calls for it.
Miki Fujimoto as the soul-swiping witch Heckett.
Aside from those two standout performances, the strongest stage presence in the second act is probably Miki Fujimoto, playing the conscience-conflicted witch Heckett (Hecate) who has grown tired of eternal life and takes Sapphire's female soul in order to live out her days as a human. In the climactic scene of the musical, it is the witch's change of heart -- along with the reconciliation between Franz and Sapphire -- that reminds us that we are truly in a Tezuka story, where there is never absolute bad and good but that even a seemingly heartless soul can be redeemed. Tezuka was always one to play with big ideas and moral questions, and it is to this musical's credit that even as the story was altered significantly, the key themes of his work stayed intact.
Prince Franz (Rika Ishikawa, right) has stormed the castle and challenges Sapphire (Ai Takahashi, left) to one final duel.
However, some elements of the production make you wish that Takarazuka adaptations of a manga inspired by Takarazuka performances were best left to, well, the Takarazuka, and not a chipper group of teen-to-early-twentysomething pop stars. The Morning Musume influence is clearest in the lackluster music score, which goes cheap with little more than a session band and a brass section. The songs are still fundamentally decent, and very true to the principles of theatrical songwriting, but the arrangments just kill them. Here's a sweeping fantasy story, which ought to be accompanied by the sweeping sounds of an orchestra, and you're sending in a pop backup band instead just because the main cast was trained as pop singers? Oh, and that brings up the point of them being pop singers. While some of the cast are able to handle it -- Ai Takahashi, who plays Sapphire, actually sang in a chorus club in middle school -- others are clearly out of their element. Rika Ishikawa, notorious for having a very weak singing voice, is poorly-equipped for the vocal challenges of Prince Franz (most notably singing below her normal range) and junior idol Koharu Kusumi would obviously be much more at home bouncing and grinning as "real-life anime character" Kirari Tsukishima on the children's variety show Oha Star.
The most annoying part, though, is the self-referential fourth-wall breakage that goes on throughout the musical -- look, I already know I'm watching a Tezuka adaptation with Morning Musume in it, so don't remind me in the middle of the story by talking about idols and crap. We're supposed to be talking princes and princesses and kingdoms here! And that fourth wall is demolished beyond recognition when, at the end of the show, the group puts on a "mini-concert" where they sing their hit songs and make us completely forget about that powerful, moving story. So maybe just hit eject on the DVD player when the curtain drops on them after the final scene.
The Queen of Silverland (Marcia, left) and Princess Sapphire (Ai Takahashi, right) enjoying a girly-girl moment.
Overall, it's still worth checking out for any Tezuka fan -- and Takarazuka fans, and Morning Musume fans, of course. It's a daring, ostentatious experiment in bringing disparate worlds of entertainment together, but with a strong source material as the glue, it just gets silly and incongruous at its worst moments, never downright bad. And when it gets good, it absolutely soars -- the final love ballad between Franz and Sapphire is a transcendent moment that never would have been possible in print or on TV. That's what we love about musicals: every emotion is compressed to its purest essence, every expression is raised aloft in song, and even the dreams and hopes of a princess raised as a boy become our very own.
The Region 2 DVD of Ribon no Kishi (Princess Knight) the Musical is available for purchase online.
WARNING: SPOILERS FOLLOW
As a two-hour adaptation of a four-volume manga series (and a 52-episode anime), the musical is highly abridged, although it still manages to bring in a number of genuinely Tezuka-esque plot twists. Some character relationships are adjusted from the original, while other characters are cut out entirely. The role of the sidekick angel Tink/Choppy, for example, is replaced by a metaphysical prelude where the Musume, dressed up as cosmic beings, cause the inadvertent switch that gives Sapphire the souls of both a girl and a boy.
Prince Sapphire (Ai Takahashi, left) takes on visiting Prince Franz (Rika Ishikawa, right) in a fateful duel.
From there it follows the premise of the original to an extent, but soon starts making adjustments and eventually takes the story in its own direction. Sapphire is biologically a girl but raised as a boy, as the kingdom of Silverland only allows men to take the throne. Were it not for "Prince" Sapphire, the son of the scheming Duke (or Prime Minister) would be the successor. Early on, Prince Franz from the neighboring country of Goldland is introduced, and he soon takes an interest in a mysterious flaxen-haired girl -- who is actually Sapphire in her civvies, enjoying "normal" life for once! Continuing with the niceties of royal diplomacy, Franz heads to the royal court and engages in a "friendly duel" with Prince Sapphire to symbolize the peace between the two countries. However, things go awry during the duel when an accident engineered by the Duke causes the King of Silverland to die of poisoning. Later on, as Sapphire is about to take the throne, her secret is revealed and the Duke and his son take over. From there it's a quest for Sapphire and her mother, now in exile, to return to Silverland, expose the truth, and reclaim the throne -- if it doesn't fall to an invasion from Goldland first.
The Duke's son (Koharu Kusumi, right) understands economics. The Duke (Hitomi Yoshizawa, left) doesn't seem to agree.
As a one-shot adventure story and not an episodic serial like it was in print and on screen, the arc is simple but powerful -- enough to move your emotions for a couple of hours and believe in the ideals of love and leading an honest life. Sapphire does not necessarily go and fight crime or engage in political intrigue -- the "Phantom Knight" character only shows up once, to extract a necessary bit of plot-furthering information -- but her conflicted relationship with Prince Franz is enough to drive the entire story. Well, that and the Duke's quest for power, adding some thoughts on greed and hubris to the prevalent theme of love. Stealing the show is Hitomi Yoshizawa as the Duke, absolutely relishing her devious role; her cocky attitude and forceful delivery really bring out this villainous character. On the receiving end of tragedy, however, is the Queen, played by Brazilian-born actress Marcia, who masterful expresses the love and pain of a royal mother, even descending into madness when the role calls for it.
Miki Fujimoto as the soul-swiping witch Heckett.
Aside from those two standout performances, the strongest stage presence in the second act is probably Miki Fujimoto, playing the conscience-conflicted witch Heckett (Hecate) who has grown tired of eternal life and takes Sapphire's female soul in order to live out her days as a human. In the climactic scene of the musical, it is the witch's change of heart -- along with the reconciliation between Franz and Sapphire -- that reminds us that we are truly in a Tezuka story, where there is never absolute bad and good but that even a seemingly heartless soul can be redeemed. Tezuka was always one to play with big ideas and moral questions, and it is to this musical's credit that even as the story was altered significantly, the key themes of his work stayed intact.
Prince Franz (Rika Ishikawa, right) has stormed the castle and challenges Sapphire (Ai Takahashi, left) to one final duel.
However, some elements of the production make you wish that Takarazuka adaptations of a manga inspired by Takarazuka performances were best left to, well, the Takarazuka, and not a chipper group of teen-to-early-twentysomething pop stars. The Morning Musume influence is clearest in the lackluster music score, which goes cheap with little more than a session band and a brass section. The songs are still fundamentally decent, and very true to the principles of theatrical songwriting, but the arrangments just kill them. Here's a sweeping fantasy story, which ought to be accompanied by the sweeping sounds of an orchestra, and you're sending in a pop backup band instead just because the main cast was trained as pop singers? Oh, and that brings up the point of them being pop singers. While some of the cast are able to handle it -- Ai Takahashi, who plays Sapphire, actually sang in a chorus club in middle school -- others are clearly out of their element. Rika Ishikawa, notorious for having a very weak singing voice, is poorly-equipped for the vocal challenges of Prince Franz (most notably singing below her normal range) and junior idol Koharu Kusumi would obviously be much more at home bouncing and grinning as "real-life anime character" Kirari Tsukishima on the children's variety show Oha Star.
The most annoying part, though, is the self-referential fourth-wall breakage that goes on throughout the musical -- look, I already know I'm watching a Tezuka adaptation with Morning Musume in it, so don't remind me in the middle of the story by talking about idols and crap. We're supposed to be talking princes and princesses and kingdoms here! And that fourth wall is demolished beyond recognition when, at the end of the show, the group puts on a "mini-concert" where they sing their hit songs and make us completely forget about that powerful, moving story. So maybe just hit eject on the DVD player when the curtain drops on them after the final scene.
The Queen of Silverland (Marcia, left) and Princess Sapphire (Ai Takahashi, right) enjoying a girly-girl moment.
Overall, it's still worth checking out for any Tezuka fan -- and Takarazuka fans, and Morning Musume fans, of course. It's a daring, ostentatious experiment in bringing disparate worlds of entertainment together, but with a strong source material as the glue, it just gets silly and incongruous at its worst moments, never downright bad. And when it gets good, it absolutely soars -- the final love ballad between Franz and Sapphire is a transcendent moment that never would have been possible in print or on TV. That's what we love about musicals: every emotion is compressed to its purest essence, every expression is raised aloft in song, and even the dreams and hopes of a princess raised as a boy become our very own.
The Region 2 DVD of Ribon no Kishi (Princess Knight) the Musical is available for purchase online.
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