Translator: Flowingcloud Editor: Arocks141
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Theater 5: Genius Child Actor and Genius Child Actor! – Scene 1
Wooden school building hallway.
Mimi hangs her head down in front of Tsugumi.
“—Cut… Hmm, let’s take a break.”
“…Okay.”
The director’s voice cut the scene short. It was a scene from “The Fairy’s Box” where Mimi’s character, Miho, opposes Hiiragi Lily, the character I act as.
“Hmm, there’s no temper in your acting. Do you get what I mean?”
“Yes, I-I’m sorry.”
“Well, it’s fine, don’t worry about it. Fortunately, there are many adults who you can rely on. Let’s try to switch it a little.”
Thank you very much, Director Hiraga.”
In the drama, Nana, played by Erin-chan, can no longer stand the bullying, tries to run away, and Lily catches her. Lily tries to push Nana down, but Minaho, who was bullied because of Nana, defends her. Slowly, the whole class distances themselves from Lily because of the second act of courage shown from Minaho, who did not often come forward for herself. This is an important scene that can be seen as the first turning point for the drama’s main character, Sana Mizuki, played by Aikawa Mizuho-san, who is able to fully step in to deal with the bullying among the children.
“What’s wrong with Mimi?”
“Dunno. But, I’m kinda worried.”
“Me too… I wonder what happened.”
The director looked for us first before he ran over to Mimi-chan.
“Let’s shoot Lilia, Kaede (Rin), and Akari’s (Juria) scene first.”
“Ah, okay…”
Since the scene occurs in the same classroom, we can use the same set. Kaede, played by Rin, and Akari, played by Juria, confront each other in the classroom. A mysterious person, Lilia, hears the clamor and mediates for the two and warns them.
What is Lilia thinking at this moment? She warns them when there is a problem or something is dangerous. What on earth is she thinking?
“Are you ready?”
I hear the Director’s voice. Thus, I let my consciousness go blank temporarily, as if I were going to sleep.
“Lights, camera—”
I felt as if the crew, the set, and even Koharu-san’s appearance that was watching over me were disappearing into the thin light.
Soon, even the lone remaining director’s figure faded away in a thin haze of light.
“—Action!”
Click. I could hear the sound of a switch being flipped.
The voices of Akari and Kaede arguing in the classroom. What should I do? Should I intervene? No, not yet. Let’s wait and see first.
I hid myself across from them, in the hallway, and watched them through the doorway. I was glad it was me here. I was glad it wasn’t her here.
“Kaede, listen to me. We’re all going to get hurt if this continues.”
“…So, you’re going to hurt Lily? All you’re doing is swapping who’s at the top. It won’t change anything.”
“No, it will change.”
Akari’s voice declared boldly. The expression that looked straight at Kaede was not the pure Akari that she used to be. It was the face of a person who was lost, confused, and suffered, but the face of a person who still made their own choice.
Thus, she understood people’s feelings. That’s why she was prepared to make a choice. She’s a very strong girl. Much stronger and kinder than I am.
“She needs to know who’s the one suffering!”
“Like I said! …Like I said, why?”
Exasperation. Kaede held herself back, as if to comfort herself. Even so, Akari’s eyes did not waver.
“Suffering, you see…”
“?”
Downcast eyes.
The despondence within them.
Behind those shaking eyes.
“… Is something you can’t understand unless you experience it yourself.”
Kaede was frightened. She was naive and had the traits of a leader. A girl with a strong sense of justice, who seemed to have no worries. Kaede had her breath taken away by that girl whose mood had completely changed from that.
“But! That alone is not a good enough reason to cause Lily to suffer!”
“Kaede…”
Ahh, I can’t. Let’s jump in. Those two can’t be fighting over her here right now. That said, this way, their views will continue like parallel lines. That’s why I need to stir things up.
Until the day someone stops her, I will do what I have to do.
“You two seem to be talking about something interesting, aren’t you?”
In order for her to remain with them.
Empty classroom. Child actors acting.
Hiraga gives instructions while he looks at the monitor.
“Camera 2, pull back.”
“Camera 2, pulling back.”
I watched the three’s performance while issuing instructions. Maybe Mimi was not feeling well today, but she did not seem to be able to perform to her usual ability. Now Mimi’s manager, Shimoda-san, is asking her about her condition.
So, what about the other children? Including Mimi, the child actor quartet appear to be getting along well. Would they be influenced by her and thrown off their rhythm? When we finally began with various concerns in mind, I was first taken aback by Juria’s performance.
“Who are you?”
Juria stepped forward to protect Rin. This is the first time that Lilia, who had only been in contact with the adults, comes into contact with children. Naturally, Juria acted to protect her friend.
However… has she ever acted so calmly? The way she stared straight ahead with her guard up was imposing and dignified. It was as if I was watching her mother, Asashiro Satsuki.
“I’m nobody.”
“What?”
“I can be anybody and I can be nobody. I am just here to give you one piece of advice.
Tsugumi, on the other hand, is still a top class actress no matter how many times I watch her. Her tone dropped, seemingly boyish. At the same time, the way she approached them was somewhat feminine.
“I see… She’s focusing on her movements.”
“Do you know what’s going on, Urabe-san?”
The man beside me—the acting director, Urabe Toshirou-san—mumbled in a low voice. Although he is 60 years old, he is still active as an acting director. His ability to direct is good, but more importantly, I have a favorable impression of his flexible attitude, which is very useful in preventing unnecessary friction on site.
According to Urabe-san, males tend to conduct themselves outward from the center of their bodies. Even in the act of waving, a hand waving close to the body and in a smaller motion is more feminine, while a hand waving away from the body in a way that makes one’s physique appear larger is more male-like.
“Perhaps, Tsugumi-chan is acting in such a way that the viewer perceives that Lilia is acting neutrally in her first person and tone of voice, but Lilia herself is unaware that her gestures are feminine… Man, Tsugumi-chan is amazing. She can even put adults to shame. How interesting.”
Urabe-san is a man who has traveled around for a long time to acquire the skills he has now. Producer Kuramoto told me over drinks that no one could match his greed. At the time, I did not comprehend what he meant, but now I understand.
This person is quite a peculiar person. He had not revealed his true nature until this very moment.
“Now is not the time for you to be fighting amongst yourselves.”
“What?”
“When she acts recklessly, the more people you have among yourselves the better.”
“What’s with you? What do you know about this?”
Juria tried to grab Lilia. And she avoids it… Hm? How did she just avoid it just now? Tsugumi moved backward without moving her body, as if she were floating in midair.
“Urabe-san.”
“She had her knees bent from the beginning. It’s the same as what a martial artist does inside his hakama.” 1
I see, so that’s how she moved. She showed a little bit of that technique in the first scene. I am curious, but I’ll check the footage later to confirm.
“If you decide to make up, make it quick. —As long as you do so before it’s too late.”
Her voice was deep and low. I could only see her mouth, but I could picture her distorted expression of pain.
If it weren’t for Urabe-san explaining besides me, if he wasn’t greedy for knowledge and couldn’t process all the information, I would have leaned forward with my breath taken away like the rest of the staff.
“Ah, wait a…” (Juria)
“That’s all I have to say. Bye bye.” (Tsugumi)
“…What the hell was that? What’s with that guy?” (Juria)
“Who knows—What really was that? I have no idea…” (Rin)
Lilia turned around and disappeared from the classroom. When they rushed out, she was already gone.
“OKAY—CUT! Man, that was good.”
Everyone took a breath at the signal of my voice. They must have been released from their nervousness. I could see some staff members wiping sweat off their faces. In the midst of it all, Tsugumi came running up to me, transitioning out unusually quickly.
“Thank you for the hard work!”
“Yes, good job. You performed well this time as well.”
When I praised her, she looked at me with her usual calm expression.
“Ehehe, really? Thank you very much!”
—She responded with a sweet smile, as if a flower was blooming. Was she ever a girl who could smile so innocently? What was I thinking? Was Lilia pulling my strings? If she was not acting, Tsumugi would have been like any normal girl. 2
“Shall we check the footage then?”
“Okay! Also, Director, do you know where Mimi-chan is?”
“If it’s Mimi, she’s in the rest room with her manager right now. Don’t disturb them, okay?”
“I see… Okay, got it. Please check the footage!”
I smiled at her as she bowed her head and went through the video check with all the child actors and Urabe-san. I knew my hunch was right. With this group, I knew we would be able to shoot something great. I was convinced.
- Flowingcloud: Hakama is a traditional clothing that you see shrine maidens wear, strictly the bottom though. Hakamas are not limited to any gender and anyone can wear one. They originate from ancient China and many parts of East Asia have clothing similar.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakama - Arocks141: Tsugumin acted so well, the director forgot she’s the cutest child in the world.
I don’t like where this is going D:
Mimi arc incoming!