When TONKATSU ROCK was announced back in January, I felt as if I was the luckiest person in the world. Having just gone to see Act ONE at the Imperial Theatre, I had been charmed by Bishonen’s Taisho Iwasaki and his group’s performances and wanted to see more of them. TONKATSU ROCK would give me the chance to see more of him as well as Yuto Nasu and Issei Kanasashi. I submitted my ballots and, on results day, I waited with baited breath to see if I could attend. To say I cried when I saw that I was awarded a ticket would be an understatement, and I could hardly wait for May to arrive.
Although I was heavily invested in this show and excited to see Taisho act in person, I hadn’t…exactly…done any research into TONKATSU ROCK before I attended the shows in Tokyo. I knew the show originated back in 2002 with 20th Century as well as the basic premise for each of Bishonen’s roles. Nasu played Sukesaburo Hanakawa, a former motorcycle gang member turned tonkatsu restaurant owner. Taisho played Masaru Shinosaki, a middle school teacher. And, lastly, Issei played Taira Iguchi, a former boxer who now cuts cabbage and runs deliveries for Sukesaburo’s restaurant. Other than that, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into.
I had also purposely avoided any plot details the best that I could via social media. I couldn’t avoid them entirely and had stumbled upon a few details, such as Taisho playing a character called “Big Sho” or tweets about what song was used to calm a crocodile down or even the crocodile’s name. Although I was painfully curious what these small details meant, I kept my promise to myself to not look for anything else.
The first scene of TONKATSU ROCK had blown me away. The moment the stage lights flashed on, setting the scene for Taira’s boxing match against the champion, I was sucked into the world of this story. It was a stark contrast to the quiet murmuring and chatter from audience members prior to the show beginning. It was the kind of electric energy you want to feel at a concert. Once Taisho entered as Big Sho, a legendary singer there to perform before the title match, the excitement was palpitating. With smooth and angelic vocals, he performed as Taira made his way through the theater’s audience to enter the boxing ring on stage.
Before Taira’s boxing match could begin, Sukesaburo came sprinting in to convince Taira not to fight. He had noticed that Taira’s hands had become numb and, in order to not injure himself further, Sukesaburo wanted Taira to bow out. The pair scuffled for a moment before Taira punched Sukesaburo in the stomach, effectively knocking him to the ground, as Sukesaburo’s wife, Kimiko Hanakawa, played by Ei Morisako, joined him in the ring to check on him.
What follows this scene is a complex world full of dynamic characters and interactions that can tug at the heart strings. The audience follows the journey of Sukesaburo, Masaru, and Taira as they and the people in their riverside town pursue their hopes and dreams. Whether it’s Taira feeling the pull to get back into boxing or Masaru helping his student find her dream or Sukesaburo trying his best to help everyone in the town, TONKATSU ROCK is full of inspiring moments that push people to accomplish their own hopes and dreams.
Much like real life, there is no clear cut path. There are pitfalls and wrong decisions that hinder your journey to your ultimate goal, and TONKATSU ROCK mimics a realistic world flawlessly on stage. Characters make decisions that they believe are the correct choices only for them to find out their best intentions didn’t pan out how they imagined.
This can best be seen when Masaru takes his student, Mai Morimura, played by Rena Yamasaki, to Sukesakuro’s restaurant at Sukesaburo’s own request. The scene starts out jovial, with the main cast treating Morimura with kindness, and she even receives a fried shrimp on the house from Sukesaburo! But her demeanor quickly changes when a local police officer comes in to get food and quickly darkens when she realizes why Masaru invited her out. Although the intention was to help Morimura and turn her to a brighter path, this scene makes her run further away.
While TONKATSU ROCK is, at its heart, a drama, there are plenty of moments of comic relief to cut the tension. I found that, even with Sukesaburo being the grounding point in which all of the stories circulate, he is also the comedic center of the play. His fiery temper makes for hilarious interactions amongst the cast of characters. I also greatly enjoyed Nasu and Morisako’s ad libbed moments. At the show I attended, Morisako sang Kamen Butoukai, a well-known Shonentai song, and I couldn’t help but laugh as Sukesaburo begrudgingly sang the backing lyrics with her.
It’s not to say that Nasu was the only funny character scattered throughout the story! There’s a small story line running throughout the play involving a crocodile that is loose in the river and needs to be caught. Near the end of the play, the townspeople capture it only for the crocodile to become enraged. One of the foreign expatriates, a Brazilian character, wrestles the crocodile into submission, saying not to worry because this crocodile is small compared to the ones back in his native country. He also sings a beloved STARTO ENTERTAINMENT song to further calm the animal down. When the wild animal calms down, his friend, an Argentinian, names the crocodile after Bishonen members.
What TONKATSU ROCK accomplished the most was opening my eyes to the skills and talents of all three of the Bishonen members. Nasu is incredibly funny as Sukesaburo, but his role is so much more than those moments of comic relief. Sukesaburo is incredibly charming and radiates a manly energy in all of his scenes. There are also moments scattered across the play where Nasu shows off his dancing skills, one of which being to Michael Jackson’s “Beat It.” Sukesaburo is fiery and has a quick temper, but he is also kind, wanting to help in every facet of the town and also to those who call it home. Sukesaburo is a character with a lot of depth and facets to his personality that Nasu handles with ease throughout the course of the run time.
Out of the trio, Issei surprised me the most with his acting chops. In his first few scenes as Taira, I hadn’t connected much with Issei’s character. I had initially found Taira to be a bit selfish and lacking the ability to take accountability for his actions, and that irked me. It is when those selfish layers were peeled away, and Taira took his return to boxing more seriously that my eyes opened to the brilliance of Issei’s portrayal. Issei disappeared the moment he walked on stage and was replaced with this cocky young boxer with a lack of self-restraint, and I was fully immersed in his portrayal of Taira. Afterall, if I had such a powerful reaction to the negative sides of Taira, it meant Issei’s acting talents were on full display.
Taisho’s arc as Masaru was by far my favorite, in the biased and unbiased sense. I do adore Taisho, but I found the storyline of his character to be a challenging acting role. Masaru, like Sukesaburo, is an incredibly kind character who wants to help guide his student, Morimura. Masaru wants nothing more than for Morimura to follow her dreams, but there are quite a few pitfalls along the way. Masaru experiences a rollercoaster of emotions throughout the runtime of the play. Masaru’s drunk scene is one particular moment that requires deeper levels of thought and acting capabilities in order to successfully perform. Taisho handles these moments with ease. He expresses the emotions Masaru is feeling brilliantly, and it is hard not to root for him.
TONKATSU ROCK was absolutely incredible. It is the kind of story that can inspire its audience to reach for the stars while also reminding them that life won’t always go how you intend it to. Failures and missteps are what make us human, but it is what choices we make after that define our character and who we are. Taisho, Nasu, and Issei were perfectly cast in each of their roles, and showed off vast acting talents beyond their years. I cannot wait to see what each of them will accomplish in the future!
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