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68-451: The Takarazuka Revue was founded by Ichizō Kobayashi in 1913 as an all-female troupe staging taishū engeki , a term for "popular" theater aimed at "ordinary people". Kobayashi was the founder of the railway company Hankyu , and chose the city of Takarazuka, Hyōgo to house the Revue and Grand Theater as it was located at the terminus of a Hankyu line to Osaka ; the city was also already

136-441: A revolving stage , hydraulic trap lifts , and lighting and sound systems, as well as restaurants, cafes, and souvenir stores. Its design, similar to that of a department store, has been cited as an example of Hanshinkan Modernism . The Grand Theater was immediately popular, with its success leading to the establishment of the nearby Takarazuka Hotel in 1926, and the film production company Takarazuka Eiga in 1938. The majority of

204-585: A Grand Theater performance is 3500 yen, and the most expensive is 12,500 yen. All tickets for Bow Hall performances are 6500 yen, regardless of seat assignment. Part of the novelty of Takarazuka is that all the parts are played by women, based on the original model of kabuki before 1629 when women were banned from the theater in Japan. The women who play male parts are referred to as otokoyaku ( 男 役 , "male role") and those who play female parts are called musumeyaku ( 娘 役 , "girl role") . Collectively,

272-420: A Musumeyaku holds a similar event, it is referred to as a Music Salon. Many actresses continue to do dinner shows even after they have left the company. Every year (with some exceptions) a Takarazuka Special is held, usually for one day only. Members from all five troupes come together for skits, dance and song numbers, as well as lengthy MC portions featuring current and former top-stars. From 1961 to 1982 this

340-472: A goodbye performance (さよならショー, sayonara shō ), where they are able to perform several numbers from their most cherished and memorable roles. This tradition began in 1963 with the graduation of Akashi Teruko. Once the performances have concluded, the troupe leader (組長, kumi-cho ), will read letters or remarks from the graduating actresses in front of the closed curtain, allowing the graduates to change into their graduation attire, usually hakama , but sometimes

408-738: A popular tourist destination for its hot springs . Early Revue productions were staged at the Paradise Theater, a renovated indoor pool in Takarazuka that the Revue quickly outgrew. To accommodate a larger audience, Kobayashi conceived of the Grand Theater as an immense structure located in the suburbs that would contrast other theaters of the era, which were typically small, aimed at a discerning audience, and located in major cities. The Takarazuka Grand Theater opened in July 1924. At

476-551: A regular troupe who still wish to maintain their association with the revue and perform from time to time. Flower and Moon are the original troupes, founded in 1921. The Snow Troupe was founded in 1924, followed by the Star Troupe in 1931 (it was disbanded in 1939 and was later reestablished in 1948). Cosmos, founded in 1998, is the newest troupe. Though Takarazuka Revue gives the appearance of having been created to grant Japanese women freedom from social oppression, ironically, it

544-402: A tuxedo for the otokoyaku who favors it. When preparations have finished, the curtain will rise to reveal the entire troupe standing on stage. The troupe leader will then call each member to the stage, where they will descend the grand staircase, before being given flowers from a classmate (同期生, doukisei ), as well as from the troupe. For those most senior, it is not uncommon for someone outside

612-585: Is 14.6 meters (48 ft) in diameter. The theater uses advanced acoustic technology, including a sound field control system that ensures equal acoustic quality for all seats in the venue, and a positional sound image control system that allows sound to be timed to the movement of the actresses. Acoustic tests performed by the Acoustical Society of America found the Grand Theater has a reverberation time of 1.1 seconds at 500 Hz , results deemed "very satisfactory". In addition to its performance space,

680-529: Is a division of the Hankyu Railway company; all members of the troupe are employed by Hankyu. The Takarazuka Revue was founded by Ichizō Kobayashi , an industrialist-turned-politician and president of Hankyu Railways , in Takarazuka , Japan in 1913. The city was the terminus of a Hankyu line from Osaka and already a popular tourist destination because of its hot springs. Kobayashi believed that it

748-464: Is considered the upholder of traditional dance and opera for the whole company, being the vanguard of traditional Japanese drama in a company that tends towards Western material. They were the first troupe to perform Elisabeth in Japan. The troupe has been moving towards the opera and drama style of the Moon and Flower troupes. The Star Troupe tends to be the home of Takarazuka's stars. They, along with

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816-579: Is not uncommon, however, in Takarazuka for a mostly male orchestra to be led by a female conductor. The five troupes ( 組 , kumi ) of the Takarazuka Revue have certain differences of style and material which make each unique. The Flower Troupe is considered the "treasure chest" of otokoyaku . Many of the most popular former and current top stars of the company originated in the Flower Troupe; these include Miki Maya (who held

884-401: Is relaxed for costumes during extravagant finales which include scores of glittering performers parading down an enormous stage-wide staircase, known as the ōkaidan , and a Rockette -style kick line. Lead performers portraying both male and female roles appear in the finale wearing huge, circular, feathered back-pieces reminiscent of Las Vegas or Paris costuming. Before becoming a member of

952-408: Is that the female audience of Takarazuka is drawn not exclusively by lesbian overtones, but rather by the subversion of stereotypical gender roles. Japan is a society notorious for its rigid conception of gender roles. While the original goal of the show may have been to create the ideal good wife and wise mother off stage, on-stage gender roles are, by necessity, subverted. The otokoyaku must act

1020-459: Is typically fleeting and is seen in Japanese society as more of a phase in growing up rather than "true" homosexuality. Robertson sums up her theory thus: "Many [women] are attracted to the Takarazuka otokoyaku because she represents an exemplary female who can negotiate successfully both genders and their attendant roles and domains." The other theory, supported by Canadian Erica Abbitt ,

1088-405: The otokoyaku represents the woman's idealized man, free from the roughness or need to dominate found in real life. It is these male roles that offer an escape from the strict, gender-bound real roles lauded in Japanese society. In a sense, the otokoyaku provides the female audience with a "dream" of what they desire in reality. In addition to their claim to "sell dreams", the actresses of

1156-541: The Bow Hall Theater was opened within the same complex as the Grand Theater. Seating 500, the Bow Hall features smaller shows that run for just over a week, and which often lack the grandiosity of Grand Theater shows. Currently, Takarazuka performs for 2 million people each year. Tickets are famously difficult to acquire, though are not considered to be incredibly expensive - the cheapest ticket available for

1224-735: The Flower Troupe also performed a stage adaptation of the shōjo manga series Boys Over Flowers . In August 2022, the Cosmos Troupe performed a stage adaptation of the series High&Low in collaboration with LDH . Among works adapted from other Asian sources is the Beijing opera The Hegemon-King Bids His Lady Farewell , detailing the romance between General Xiang Yu and his lover, Madam Yu. Takarazuka has also performed original musicals written "in house" based upon people and events in American, European, and Asian history. Among

1292-427: The Flower Troupe, have very strong otokoyaku players. In recent years, many of the company's prominent musumeyaku have also originated from the Star Troupe, such as Hana Hizuki, Shizuku Hazakura, and Yuki Aono. Cosmos, the newest troupe, is less traditional and more experimental. When it was first formed, it culled talent from the other troupes. The Cosmos style is influenced by performers like Asato Shizuki ,

1360-553: The Flower Troupe. High ranking Otokoyaku often perform dinner shows towards the middle or end of their careers. Typically held as hotels like the Takarazuka Hotel, Hotel Hankyu International, or the Palace Hotel , dinner shows showcase an actresses popular songs, as well as covers of other non-Takarazuka songs. Attendees pay a premium for food and beverage, as well as a chance to see their star in closer quarters. When

1428-466: The Grand Theater houses multiple amenities. The second floor of the theater houses the Salon de Takarazuka, an exhibition space on the history of the Revue showcasing costumes, stage drawings, videos, and music. The Salon also houses the Revue's publicly-accessible multimedia archives, which house information on previous works, performers, and visual artifacts such as posters and advertisements. Located within

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1496-639: The Hankyu Takarazuka and Imazu lines, and the JR West Fukuchiyama Line . Takarazuka Revue The Takarazuka Revue ( Japanese : 宝塚歌劇団 , Hepburn : Takarazuka Kagekidan ) is a Japanese all-female musical theatre troupe based in Takarazuka , Hyōgo Prefecture , Japan. Women play all roles in lavish, Broadway -style productions of Western-style musicals and stories adapted from films, novels, shōjo manga, and Japanese folktales . The Takarazuka Revue Company

1564-651: The Moon Troupe, said that she conceived male impersonation as just a "role" that she wore like the makeup and costume that helped create her otokoyaku image. She said she reverts to her nonperforming "feminine" self after performance. Other otokoyaku feel uncomfortable switching to female roles. Otokoyaku Matsu Akira, who retired in 1982, stated: "Even though I am a female, the thing called 'female' just won't emerge at all." Most actresses refer to otokoyaku as an "image", which they learn to create on stage. Although traditionally an all-female troupe, in 1946

1632-481: The Revue would debut at Tokyo's Tokyu Theatre Orb an adaptation of another Capcom video game, Sengoku Basara , done by the Flower Troupe. This focused on character Yukimura Sanada , played by Tomu Ranju , the same actress who had taken the role of Phoenix Wright prior to becoming a top star. In 2017, the Flower Troupe performed a stage adaptation of the shōjo (girls') manga series Haikara-San: Here Comes Miss Modern , and performed it again in 2020. In 2019,

1700-450: The Takarazuka Revue take on another role, empowering themselves as women in a male-dominated culture. Kobayashi's desire to make his actresses into good wives and mothers has often been hindered by their own will to pursue careers in the entertainment business. It is becoming increasingly more common for women to stay in the company well into their thirties, beyond the perceived conventional limits of marriageable age. The actresses' role within

1768-404: The Takarazuka Revue thus overlaps into the culture surrounding it, adding to their appeal to the female-dominant audience. "In fact, it is the carrying over of this 'boyishness' into everyday life and the freedom that this implies that captures the attention of some fans." The otokoyaku , however, is not bound to her assigned male role in the theater. Tsurugi Miyuki, top otokoyaku star of

1836-417: The Takarazuka Revue. Established in 1978, Bow Hall is a 500-seat theater that stages experimental works; the name references the bow of a ship , and was so named as to "lead the way" for the Revue's theatrical development. Bow Hall was conceived as a means to develop talent for directors, and stages several performances annually. The Takarazuka Grand Theater is served by Takarazuka Station , which connects to

1904-510: The Takarazuka employed male performers who were trained separately from the female members of the troupes. Ultimately, however, the female members opposed these new male counterparts, and the department was dissolved, the last male department terminating in 1954. A 2007 Japanese musical, Takarazuka Boys , was based on this chapter of the company's history. While the casts are all-female, the staff (writers, directors, choreographers, designers, etc.) and orchestra musicians are predominantly male. It

1972-475: The Takarazuka performers are called "Takarasiennes" ( Takarajennu ). This name derives from the revue's fondness of the French revues and the word "Parisienne." The costumes, set designs, and lighting are lavish and the performances melodramatic . Side pathways extend the already-wide proscenium accommodating elaborate processions and choreography. Regardless of the era of the musical presented, period accuracy

2040-683: The company had become popular enough to obtain its own theater in Takarazuka, called the Dai Gekijō , meaning " Grand Theater ." In 1934, the company opened the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater, which then underwent a renewal in 2001. Each Grand Theater show will typically perform for one month in the Takarazuka Grand Theater before a three week break, followed by a one month run in the Tokyo Theater. In 1978,

2108-495: The company since she joined in 1997 until her retirement in 2013). While it had a troupe-born actress become musumeyaku top back in 2006 with Asuka Toono , it was not until 2014 that an actress originating from this troupe became an otokoyaku top star: Seina Sagiri , the former top star of the Snow Troupe (2014–2017). While not necessarily being a troupe, members of the Takarazuka Revue who do not take part in any of

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2176-483: The creation of a more modern and technically-efficient Grand Theater. The newly-constructed theater, which opened on January 1, 1993. incorporates multiple stages, dressing rooms, rehearsal rooms, offices, storage space, and the Takarazuka Music School . Its exterior white stucco and red tiled roof is inspired by Spanish Colonial architecture . On April 5, 2014, the centennial of the Takarazuka Revue

2244-551: The curtain closing, there is typically an announcement declaring the end of the performance. However, the standing ovation will often continue until the top star slips out in front of the curtain for one final goodbye. Upon the second announcement declaring the end of the performance, audience members begin to disperse. It is customary for audience members wear white to final performances. The current top stars of each group are: Takarazuka roster members who went on to work in stage , movies , and television include: Women make up

2312-420: The end of a show, they will participate in two graduation ceremonies; one at the end of the final performance at the Grand Theater, and one at the end of the final performance at the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater. Towards the end of the second act of these performances, it is common to see graduating members with flowers pinned to their dress or lapel. Top stars or prominent second-in-line (二番手, nibante ) will often get

2380-517: The faculty and the current troupe members into otokoyaku and musumeyaku at the end of the year. Those playing otokoyaku cut their hair short, take on a more masculine role in the classroom, and speak in the masculine form . The company has five main troupes: Flower ( 花 , hana ) , Moon ( 月 , tsuki ) , Snow ( 雪 , yuki ) , Star ( 星 , hoshi ) and Cosmos ( 宙 , sora ) , as well as Superior ( 専科 , senka ) , an emeritus troupe for senior actresses no longer part of

2448-511: The female audience is on account of the perceived link to freedom from traditional Japanese society's imposed ideas of gender and sexuality. Brau states that while the Takarazuka Revue "reinforces the status quo and sublimates women's desires through its dreamy narratives, there remains some possibility that certain spectators find it empowering simply to watch women play men." Some Takarasienne shows, such as The Rose of Versailles and Elisabeth , feature androgynous characters. In Brau's view,

2516-665: The final play staged at the Grand Theater prior to its closure, was performed for a standing-room only audience on March 4, 1944; in May of that year, the Imperial Japanese Navy took over the Grand Theater for use as a barracks. The Grand Theater was not significantly damaged during wartime air raids , as Allied forces instead targeted the area surrounding the theater with airborne leaflet propaganda reading "Do not worry, Takarazuka girls! We will not bomb you!" and "We will make Takarazuka flower again soon." The Grand Theater

2584-412: The first Budokan solo concert in Takarazuka's history), Sumire Haruno and Tomu Ranju of Flower, Jun Shibuki , Jun Sena and Kiriya Hiromu of Moon, and Hikaru Asami of Snow. Their performances tend to have larger budgets, with lavish stage and costume designs, and are often derived from operatic material. While tending to be a home for young performers (with Yūki Amami in her sixth year reaching

2652-468: The first theory, American Jennifer Robertson observes that lesbian themes occur in every Takarazuka performance, simply by virtue of the fact that women play every role. The audience clearly picks up on it and responds. Within the first ten years of Takarazuka's founding, the audience was vocally responding to the apparent lesbianism. Female fans wrote love letters to the otokoyaku . In 1921 these letters were published and several years later newspapers and

2720-410: The founding otokoyaku top star; Yōka Wao and Mari Hanafusa , the "Golden Combi" who headed the troupe for six of its first eight years. Cosmos was the first troupe to perform Phantom and to have a Broadway composer ( Frank Wildhorn ) write their musical score. Most of the otokoyaku in this troupe are above 170 centimetres (5.6 ft) tall (the most notable is Hiro Yuumi , the tallest in

2788-414: The majority of Takarazuka works are written "in house" by members of the creative staff, they are often adapted from Western classic musicals, operas, plays, novels or films: Novels: Films: Operas: Musicals: Plays: Stories based in Japan and modeled on historical accounts or traditional tales are often referred to as nihonmono ( 日本物 ) or, less frequently, wamono ( 和物 ) . Among

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2856-475: The moment they enter the music school to the moment of their graduation. The gender-neutral terms senpai (upperclassmen) and kōhai (lowerclassmen) are used to distinguish senior and junior members of Takarazuka. Lowerclassmen are the actresses who have been performers in Takarazuka for less than seven years. They are employees of the company, and usually work as background dancers and in shinjin kōen (performances exclusively for underclassmen). After

2924-499: The more recognizable of these biographical adaptations are Last Party: S. Fitzgerald's Last Day , about F. Scott Fitzgerald ; Valentino , about Rudolph Valentino ; Dean , about James Dean ; and Saint-Exupéry: The Pilot Who Became "The Little Prince" , about Antoine de Saint-Exupéry . They created a piece Wind in the Dawn: The Challenge of Shirasu Jirō, Samurai Gentleman about U.S. Occupations of Japan focusing on

2992-500: The most common of these adapted to the Takarazuka stage is The Tale of Genji . Popular manga series have often shaped Takarazuka, such as in the case of Riyoko Ikeda 's The Rose of Versailles . Other manga adaptations include The Window of Orpheus , also by Ikeda, Osamu Tezuka 's Black Jack and Phoenix , and Yasuko Aoike 's El Halcón . Recent examples of works adapted from Japanese novels or short stories include Moon Troupe's Osaka Samurai ( 大阪侍 ) , based upon

3060-401: The primary audience of Takarazuka, with some estimates showing that the audience is 90 percent female. There exist two primary theories as to what draws these women to Takarazuka. These theories, put forward by Western scholars, complement each other, drawing on the traditional homoerotic elements of Japanese performing arts, and the ancient subversive nature of the feminine in Japan. One is that

3128-515: The public rallied a cry against Takarazuka, claiming it was quickly becoming a "symbol of abnormal love". In order to combat this, the producers kept its actresses in strict living conditions; they were no longer allowed to associate with their fans. Robertson mentions a phenomenon of "S" or " Class S " love, a particular style of love wherein women who have been influenced by Takarazuka return to their daily lives feeling free to develop crushes on their female classmates or coworkers. This type of romance

3196-479: The regular troupes for one Grand Theater run before being receiving individual troupe assignments. Before performances featuring the newly graduated class, all class members will appear sitting seiza on stage, wearing hakama . Three of their classmates will then make introductory remarks, before the main show begins. The line dance portion of these shows will be comprised only members of the newly graduated class. Actresses are referred to as students (生徒, seito ) from

3264-511: The revue. In 1993, Tommy Tune wrote, directed and choreographed the revue Broadway Boys to accompany the Moon Troupe's rendition of Grand Hotel . In 2006, Takarazuka worked with Frank Wildhorn , musical writer and composer of Jekyll & Hyde and The Scarlet Pimpernel , to create Never Say Goodbye for the Cosmos Troupe. In 2019, Takarazuka worked with Dove Attia , music producer of 1789: Les Amants de la Bastille and La Légende du roi Arthur , to compose Casanova for

3332-687: The rivalry between Shirasu Jirō and General Douglas MacArthur , Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers. Finally, other original stories round out Takarazuka fare, including musicals such as Boxman by the Cosmos Troupe, Too Short a Time to Fall in Love  [ ja ] performed by the Star and Moon Troupes, and Silver Wolf  [ ja ] by the Moon and Snow Troupes. Takarazuka has occasionally worked with notable writers, composers, and choreographers to create original content for

3400-414: The role of otokoyaku presents a type of androgynous freedom that embraces slippage and a non-constrained continuum of gender. While the actual female otokoyaku performer's masculine persona or "secondary gender" was disapproved of outside of the theatrical purposes of Takarazuka, female fans were able to embrace the full gender-fluid continuum otokoyaku provided, as well as engage with Takarazuka in

3468-400: The second level, bringing the total capacity of the theater to 2,550. The stage is 23.6 meters (77 ft) wide – 54 meters (177 ft) including the back stage – and 19 meters (62 ft) deep, and is equipped with eight trapdoors, 26 step stairs referred to as "The Great Stairs" ( Ookaidan ) , three curtains, sixty decorative lights, seven floodlights, and a circular rotating stage that

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3536-426: The seventh year they become upperclassmen, and negotiate contracts with the company instead of being employed by it. When an actress decides to leave the company, its often referred to as retirement (退団, taidan ), or graduation (卒業, sotsugyō ). Actresses will often choose to graduate at the end of a Grand Theater run, but can also announce immediate retirement and forgo any ceremony. In the case of those graduating at

3604-555: The short story by Ryōtarō Shiba and Flower Troupe's Black Lizard ( 黒蜥蜴 , Kurotokage ) , based upon the Kogoro Akechi story by Edogawa Rampo . In 2009, Takarazuka Revue performed two shows based on an adaptation of Capcom 's video game series Ace Attorney . They took the stage in January 2013 to represent the courtroom game again with the production titled Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth: Ace Attorney 3 . In June 2013,

3672-484: The status of top star in the 1990s), the members of the Moon Troupe are also strong singers. The term "Musical Research Department" is occasionally used in articles about the troupe, underscoring the troupe's focus on music. Their material tends toward drama, Western musicals, and modern settings, such as Guys and Dolls and Me and My Girl . During the era of Makoto Tsubasa as top star, they had at least two musicals adopted from classic western novels. The Snow Troupe

3740-474: The theater are five restaurants, which orient their menus to specific repertoires and include the favorite foods of Takarazuka performers. Several stores are also located within the Grand Theater, including the Revue Shop (which sells souvenirs) and Quatre Rêves (which sells Takarazuka memorabilia, such as photographs and catalogs). Adjacent to the Grand Theater is Bow Hall, a smaller theater also operated by

3808-554: The theater's interior was destroyed by a fire on January 25, 1935, causing the theater to briefly close for renovations and re-open in March of that year. The technical equipment and interior design were regularly improved in the decades subsequent to the fire. In 1944, the Grand Theater was forced to close amid the Second World War as a result of a government order that shuttered most leisure institutions. Tsubasa no Kessen ,

3876-652: The time of its establishment it was the largest theater in Asia; sources alternately report its audience capacity as between 3,000 and 4,200. The theater was designed by two architects from the Takenaka Corporation : Washio Kuro, who oversaw the design of the building (and who later designed the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater ), and Fujii Yatarō, who oversaw the design of the stage and audience seating area. The theater featured modern amenities such as

3944-483: The troupe, a young woman must train for two years in the Takarazuka Music School , one of the most competitive of its kind in the world. Each year, thousands from all over Japan audition. The 40 to 50 who are accepted are trained in music, dance, and acting, and are given seven-year contracts. The school is famous for its strict discipline and its custom of having first-year students clean the premises each morning. All first-year women train together before being divided by

4012-421: The troupe, or someone already graduated, to be called to the stage to give them their doukisei flowers. A song is then sung with troupe members holding each other arm in arm. What follows is a series of remarks from both the graduating actresses and the top star, interspersed with the opening and closing of the curtain as well as the calling of troupe members to and from the stage. Following the fourth iteration of

4080-506: The troupes mentioned above are called "Superior Members (Senka)." These members usually have one of a few roles in the troupe: playing a fukeyaku (role of old person) , playing a supporting role , playing the role of elderly guys, etc. There can also be cases of playing the main role as an otokoyaku, in a play alongside other troupes such as former top stars Yachiyo Kusagano and Yu Todoroki as well as plays where all partaking members are superior members, such as Hanakuyō , in 1984. While

4148-479: The way men are supposed to act. Abbitt insists that a large portion of the appeal of Takarazuka comes from something she calls "slippage", referring to the enjoyment derived from a character portraying something they are not, in this case a woman portraying a man. While not denying the presence of lesbian overtones within Takarazuka, Abbitt proposes the cause for the largely female audience has more to do with this subversion of societal norms than sexual ones. In essence,

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4216-423: The women are drawn to its inherent lesbian overtones. One author states, "It was not masculine sexuality which attracted the Japanese girl audience but it was feminine eroticism". Another theory is that the girls are not drawn to the implicit sexuality of Takarazuka, but instead are fascinated by the otokoyaku (the women who play male roles) "getting away with a male performance of power and freedom". Favoring

4284-400: The year in which they graduate the music school. For instance, those graduating the music school in 2024 will be referred to as the 110th class. Before performing for the first time on the Grand Theater stage, the graduating class will perform what they have learned in their time at the school in the Bow Hall, through something called bunkasai (文化祭). Then will then go on to perform with one of

4352-435: Was created with the opposite intention, with Takarazuka scholar Lorie Brau stating that "The production office and corporate structure that control Takarazuka are overwhelmingly patriarchal." However, although Takarazuka embodies Shiraishi's idea that the actresses become " good wives and wise mothers " upon leaving the company, it also simultaneously represents progressive feminist points of view. Some believe that its appeal to

4420-546: Was marked with a revue held at the Takarazuka Grand Theater. The Grand Theater closed in April 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and re-opened in July of that year, at half capacity and with recorded music instead of a live orchestra. The New Takarazuka Grand Theater opened in 1993 as a two‐level, 2,527 seat venue. Twenty-three additional seats were added in 2005 following renovations to provide better stage visibility for

4488-460: Was occupied by American occupation forces upon the conclusion of the war in September 1945, and reopened to the public in April 1946. By the 1980s the theater generally resembled its current incarnation, in terms of both its facilities and its European-style interior design defined by marble floors, red carpets, and crystal chandeliers. By the end of the decade, the growth of the Revue obligated

4556-465: Was referred to as "Takarazuka Festival". From 1984 to 1994 this was referred to as "Takarazuka Music Publication (TMP) Special". In 1995, TMP was renamed to "Takarazuka Creative Arts (TCA)", and thus specials from 1995 to 2007 were referred to as "TCA Specials". From 2008 to present, this has been simply referred to as "Takarazuka Special". Each actor is referred to as being part of a Takarazuka Musical School class year, or ki (期), which corresponds with

4624-416: Was the ideal spot to open an attraction of some kind that would boost train ticket sales and draw more business to Takarazuka. Since Western song and dance shows were becoming more popular and Kobayashi considered the kabuki theater to be old and elitist, he decided that an all-female theater group might be well received by the general public. The Revue had its first performance in 1914. Ten years later,

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