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Toen Parata was located a little distance from Shimokitazawa Station.
Toen Parata did not have a lobby or ticket booth.
The narrow street was filled with fashionable girls and boys, laughing and chatting cheerfully.
A long table was set up in front of the theater, and two or three female staff members checked the names of customers who had made reservations written on notebooks, received their money, and handed out tickets.
Several other actors in school uniforms who had finished their makeup also went outside and worked hard to organize and guide the customers.
I want go to the bathroom before the show, and cheerfully asked a scary-looking man in a school uniform with an eyepatch, "Where is the bathroom?"
He was completely immersed in his role, and easily climbed the narrow, creaky wooden stairs, saying, "Please come this way," and pointed to the bathroom, then bowed deeply and gentlemanly without saying a word.
I didn't know what was about to happen, but I happily sat down in the front row.
Ignorance is bliss.
(I think the seats weren't chairs, but thin cushions laid on the steps.)
I was so scared during the first half that I was writhing in agony inside.
The front seats are where you can reach the stage by stretching out your hand 30cm, and the stage height is right in front of you.
Artificial flowers, lychee juice, various pieces of debris, dust, the actors' saliva (especially Shimada Kyusaku's),
shards of glass, fake blood, and many other things flew into my face and body. I was constantly prepared for an actor to fall on me.
While watching the play, a lychee rolled right in front of me, and when I reached out to pick it up, a wooden chair was placed down and the actor sat down.
I pulled my hand away at a dangerous moment, but my finger was about to be crushed. Lucky for that close call.
A unique smell fills the theater when a Grand Guignol performance is held.
It may be a mixture of the smell of fake blood, wood, or something else, but
it is a pleasant, unique smell that is unique to Grand Guignol.
The smell wafts from the entrance at every Grand Guignol performance,
and I feel intoxicated even before the show starts.
Even now, I sometimes have an irresistible urge to smell that smell, but I have never encountered it again since Grand Guignol disbanded.
Fear turned to pleasure and ecstasy.
I became so engrossed in the play that it no longer felt like a play.
Koshi Miharu's cute, high, clear voice like a girl, the passionate performances of the actors,
the heavy footsteps echoing across the stage, the distinctive smell, the music, the lighting - everything became reality around me.
This reality was not the fear I felt at first, but a comfortable excitement similar to an exciting love, as if I was peeking from somewhere at a secret society of boys.
Boys and girls who watch this will never be able to escape.
The colors of Grand Guignol are infused right down to their very brain, and they want to stay that way forever.
•Anything I watch except Tokyo Grand Guignol is no longer interesting.
•Other plays have become just plays, and boring.
•I am certain that there will never be a play like this again.
After this, Tokyo Grand Guignol Lychee Light Club decided to perform again in March at Toritsu Kasei Super Loft KINDO, and I was able to see the show three more times.
Every time, I was in the front row and was ecstatic as I was covered in fake blood.
At that time, the fake blood that Zela called out got dotted on my handkerchief, which I still have as a treasure.
I also got to meet Shimada Kyusaku, Koshi Miharu, and Tsunekawa Hiroyuki.
I gave Ameya Norimizu a bouquet of flowers and shook his hand.
I remember that Ameya's hands were cold and delicate.
Keiko・Olds
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Lychee Hikari Club ending scene" On top of the ladder are the boys who were supposed to have been killed.
Litchi and Marin lie dead at Zela's feet like toy dolls.
Time has stopped and they continue to live, and the boys' secret society begins again from zero.
Mr. Toru Shoji, who has also seen Lychee Light Club in the past, commented on the "Lychee Dark Club" hosted by Mr. Hiroyuki Tsunekawa of Tokyo Grand Guignol, which was held the other day, so I wrote this with his permission. ⬇︎
I had the chance to listen to the sound source of the Tokyo Grand Guignol version of "Lychee Light Club". It's been 30 years since I saw the revival in real life. I've almost forgotten the other plays, but for some reason I remembered this one very clearly, and although I had many mistakes, I realized that I remembered it almost exactly.
I'd like to make a few notes before I forget.
First, in the beginning, during the searchlight dance to the music of SPK, the conveyor belt on the left side starts to move, and a student who was peeking at the club (Hamari-san in the revival, Imaizumi-san in the revival) is dragged out upside down and hung up by a chain.
I couldn't remember what song was switched from SPK to this scene, but in today's original version, it almost cut out and switched to Hosono Haruomi's TREMNLING, and I was able to confirm the flow of SPK again. I thought SPK was only played once, but it was played about two other times. It was that long.
The carillon bells that I remembered playing at the end were not played at the end, but during the scene where the female teacher first appears.
Marukide Maruo, played by Suehiro Maruo, appears immediately afterwards, but this scene was cut out in the re-run. This was the first time I was able to hear this scene. It's definitely a scene that doesn't matter whether he's there or not.
The music for the periscope, one of the coolest scenes in "Lychee Hikari Club," was Kundalini by 23SKIDOO, but in my memory it was cold life by Ministry https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfwwVRnlpzQ
but this wasn't played. Actually, I think the periscope was played twice, right? Note＊
Also, something that was definitely there but I couldn't confirm in the audio was Ameya/Jaibo's strange laugh. He was really creepy and laughed at a fast tempo, just like Suneo, so why wasn't his voice included at all? Was the acting slightly different between the original and the re-run? Or was it possible that some of the audio was cut?
In the second half, I was surprised that they played songs from the second half of the B-side of Ryuichi Sakamoto's Esperanto. I remember that they played Japan in the Coda, but I didn't realize that so many songs were selected from this album.
Even so, Ameya-san really loves the sound of birds, like the opening of Walpurgis. Note **
I completely misremembered who the other person was in the scene in the second half where Ameya-san/Jaibo was looking at the stars through a periscope. I remembered it was Zela, but it turned out to be Tamiya, and it was a scene where he was tempting people to burn down the lychee fields. But was the lychee rampage at the end so quiet? I think they were playing OTT.
The music when Ameya-san/Jaibo says "Hey, psychic TV!" and fucks the TV seems to be TEST DEPT. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co68-gGSnQA&sns=tw via youtube
(For those who don't know Psychic TV, here's the band they are →) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKBuKcDPjzM&index=5&list=RDxokJyITQlrI
The Toritsu Kasei Loft where I saw the revival was a former warehouse, and had just been restored after being spectacularly destroyed by Ai-chan from her Hanatarash days just before Lychee. As expected, Ginyoru wasn't as extreme as this, but it was perfect for them after Parata was banned. (Volume warning) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3kworqbeqw
Twitter @ToruShoji
Graduated from the Department of Film and Media at Osaka University of Arts. Founded Passepied while still a student. Presented four theater productions in Osaka and Kyoto (two under the name Sasasenmaru). After working as a copywriter, planner, creative director, and head of the planning and development department at an advertising agency in Tokyo, founded Service and Connections in 2013. Currently preparing the Betsujin project in 2015.
*If I remember correctly, the opening music at the premiere of Lychee Hikari Club, which was held at Shimokitazawa Toen Paratha, was "M541", created by Toba Tech for Tokyo Grand Guignol. https://youtu.be/eKXNLjogddo?si=Qnv1Y2Xc9rVaHrJN
There are four periscopes made of long metal tubes attached to the ceiling, which come down in an arc towards the audience, creating an overwhelming sight.
** Ameya Norimizu used to run a pet shop called "Dobutsu-do” where he dealt in rare creatures such as flying rabbits and armadillos. Ameya Norimizu himself loves animals, and in order to give his pet owl more freedom, he moved it to the mountains and tried to coexist with animals, but the owl was eaten by a hawk, which made him question his decision.
Keiko Olds
Mr. Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
(He played the role of Zela in Tokyo GG's Leychee Hikari Club)
Cruel Theatre Lychee ⭐︎Hikari Club Theater Report
December 18, 2015 I finished watching the cruel theater "Lychee⭐︎ Hikari Club"!
Yes! It was a fun dance show!
A world of boys' love where cute boys dance happily!
It felt more like a Tokyo Gegegay dance show or a stylish steampunk music video than an idol-style show.
However, it was completely different from Tokyo Grand Guignol's "Leychee Hikari Club" which has the coldness of hard iron.
I like the world of "Kekkai Kyo" which depicts Zela, a boy who dreams of becoming a steel dictator, and the girl sitting next to me was excited and said, "Wow! It's so cool! I've never seen anything like it!"
I was sitting at the back so I could see the whole thing, but I wanted to see the fake blood from my seat.
The impression might be different if I watched it up close.
In Maruo Maruichiro's script, Zela was as fragile as glasswork, closer to Emperor Heliogabalus.
Maruo, who wrote the script for the cruel opera Lychee, is from Kansai, so he has a worldview of peace.
Zela also had a Naniwa feel to her, and the final fight between Tamiya and Zela, who used the water, was like "Hell of oil killing women."
The whole work was beautifully put together with a beautiful style, and I think it's acceptable in its own way.
On the other hand, the writer of Tokyo GG, Kikyo Tagane was raised as the daughter of a former samurai in Edo, and likes rough work.
So Lychee Light Club is a parade of cruelty and violence without question.
For example, when I played Zela, I imagined Max from "A Clockwork Orange," but Nakamura-kun,
I wonder if he imagined Heliogabalus. I wonder if he imagined a fragile decadent emperor.
Kawahara, the director of Deer Killer, was a skilled director.
He incorporated the subtleties of the boys' emotions into their gestures, while also using bold gimmicks on a larger scale, but
one thing I didn't quite understand was the presence of the three dancers, who looked like either witches or ghosts.
Also, the sudden appearance of a pole dancer. I'm a bit skeptical.
His (her?) consistent actions throughout the story make sense.
I wonder if he's a professional dancer, too?
He was cool.
Raizo and Jaibo’s characters overlapped so much that sometimes I couldn't tell which was which.
Maybe I've just gotten too old and senile?
I hope Jibo doesn't pander to people and you can't tell what he's thinking.
I wonder if Tamiya is an actor in Nakayashiki's theater company.
I liked how they created an image of Tamiya as a tough guy, but his acting was too subtle to see from the back of the audience.
I think it would be cooler if he moved more boldly and big.
Tokyo Ground Guignol “Lychee Hikari Club
Zera ＝ Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
Why did they use "lychee" in Lychee Hikari Club?
An article in a magazine said the following.
The reporter went to eat Chinese food with Ameya Norimizu, and they were served lychee for dessert.
Ameya seems to have been staring intently at the lychee, and that's where the idea came from.
Ameya Norimizu must have told Kikyo Tagane about the idea.
It also seems that the play was inspired by Umezu Kazuo's manga "I am Shingo,"
which also features a girl named Marin.
The junk and television onstage clearly show the influence of artist Mikami Seiko.
Every frame of the Grand Guignol stage is like an illustration by Maruo Suehiro.
The actors and set design look like Maruo Suehiro's drawings, drawn with thin, round pen lines.
These are by no means the lines of manga or anime.
Grand Guignol is art that is as delicate as copperplate printing.
No matter how you look at it, it is perfect, beautiful art.
The actors of Tokyo Grand Guignol seemed completely unaware of the audience.
They performed in their own place, in their own world, doing whatever they thought was interesting.
So the audience was not in their eyes.
They practiced repeatedly, made their roles their own perfectly, and the lines in the script came out as their real words.
They didn't look at the audience's reactions, didn't care about them, didn't pander, and didn't seem to be considerate of the audience.
They didn't try to get laughs or talk to the audience.
The stage was a different space, and they couldn't see the audience.
So it was all real, and the audience was overwhelmed by its power.
I'm currently living in the US, so I can't go and see it. So a few days ago,
I decided to watch a short clip of AiiA Theater 2.5: The Cruel Opera Lychee Hikari Club.
As Mr.Tsunekawa said, it was indeed 100% different from Grand Guignol.
I think it was a very exciting and wonderful show.
If Grand Guignol is a dark underground play, this is a glamorous Broadway musical.
These are plays made with the audience in mind, and the actors perform while taking into consideration the audience's reaction. They aim for laughs, and are entertainment that focuses on the audience and provides service. The audience watches the play as if they were watching idols. The direction is also fun. It seems to have many scenes that are not in the original or the manga, and it seems to have become a rich play.
I like Usamaru-san's manga. Because his manga has a Grand Guignol smell.
But I don't feel like watching the movies or stage adaptations of his manga now.
I want to keep Grand Guignol's Litchi Hikari Club in my heart forever.
I don't think that will be lost just because I see something new, though.
Keiko・Olds
*The photos of Cruel Stage posted here have been picked up from Google Images.
*The photos of Tokyo Grand Guignol are my personal property or were provided by Tsunekawa Hiroyuki(Zela).
*Tsunekawa Hiroyuki's comments and permission to post them have been received from him.
Tamiya and Zera chess scene
Lychee appears
Marin (Kanon) and Zela's meeting scene ⬇︎The meeting scene from the movie
Romantic scene between Marin (Kanon) and Lychee
★Zera and Hikari Club★
Narutoshi Ishikawa Niko Hiroyuki Onoue Marine MiharuKoshi CanonKanon Nanaki
Kyusaku Shimada Lychee Kori Ryoiki Sano Dentaku BOW
Jiro Ohashi Jakob Ryo Kato Naomi Hagio Women Teacher KUMI
Kennosuke Yaguruma RaizoRyosuke Ikeoka Jin Ueno Kaneda Tomoru Akazawa
Hiroshi Okumura Duff Ryosuke Mikata Tatsuhide Takei Tamiya Reo Tamaki
Middle-aged man Suehiro Maruo Hamazato Kentaro Hamazato
★Toen Paratha★
Shimokitazawa,Tokyo Japan
This is a small venue where Tokyo Grand Guignol first performed "Lychee Hikari Club.
Toen Paratha Shimokitazawa
Price: 1,600 yen (unreserved seating)
Only 70 seats
In 1959, actor Haruo Aizawa and directors Motoo Hatta and Masao Shimomura formed the Tokyo Theatre Seminar, which is today known as the Tokyo Theatre Seminar.
The first play they performed was Chekhov's "The Misfits". In 1962, they changed their name to the current "Gekidan Touen", with Hatta and Shimomura taking turns directing. After Hatta and Shimomura passed away, they moved their base to Shimokitazawa in 1978 and opened a small theatre called Touen Parata.
They continued to perform there energetically, and Touen Parata led the theatre town of Shimokitazawa.
In 1982, they completely renovated the theatre and rehearsal space, and also opened it to other creative groups.
It became popular as an ingenious theatre (with a stage ceiling height of 18 bays), and many groups started to use it, and it gained support from young people and newly established theatre companies, especially due to its affordable
accessible price. The theater is run in accordance with its founding principles and serves as a space for the creation of performing arts, primarily theater.
Audience seating at Toen-Paratha(70 seats)
Shimokitazawa Touen Paratha seating plan
Toen-Paretha 1F Theatre floor plan. Toen-Paretha 2 F Theatre floor plan
1/50 scale 1/50 scale
VS 
☆AiiA 2.5 Theater☆
Shibuya, Tokyo
AiiA 2.5 Theater Tokyo sibuya
Price: 7,800 yen (all seats reserved, tax included)
824 seats
This theater is located in Jinnan, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo. It has 824 seats. Formerly known as Shibuya Muscle Theater.
From March 21, 2015, it was operated as AiiA 2.5 Theater Tokyo, a theater dedicated to 2.5-dimensional musicals, by the Japan 2.5-Dimensional Musical Association, a general incorporated association, for about one year.
AiiA Theater seating area (824 seats)
The ultimate beautiful boy, Ameya Norimizu at the time
The wonderful Kyusaku Shimada
The alluring Ameya Norimizu of those days
A beautiful young man, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
The cute Koshi Miharu back then The lovely Koshi Miharu Now
The scene where Dentaku is inputting data into Lychee
Postcard inviting the Re-run
Thank You!!👍
