Biyaheng Sendai

***originally published in the September Issue of Pinoy Gazette

Also published on Pinoy Gazette`s official blog: pinoygazetteofficial.blogspot.jp

Tuwing nababanggit ang Sendai, ang unang pumapasok sa isip natin ay isang lugar na sinalanta ng lindol at tsunami noong 2011. Bagamat makikita pa ang bakas nito sa ilang lugar sa Sendai, may maganda at masayang bahagi pa rin naman ang lungsod na ito.

Maraming lugar na mapapasyalan ang mga turista rito at may masasarap na pagkain na dapat dayuhin. Paglabas pa lang ng Sendai Station ay makikita na ang magagandang shopping malls at matataas na gusali, hindi nalalayo sa itsura ng Tokyo.

Seishun 18 Kippu

Para makatipid, bumili kami ng Seishun 18 Kippu, isang espesyal na pass na mabibili sa mga JR Ticket Offices. Sa halagang Y11,850 ay maaari ka nang makapaglakbay mula Tokyo papuntang Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya o Sendai. Mura ito pero may catch. Maaari itong gamitin sa lahat ng local at rapid trains ng JR sa iba’t ibang probinsya pero hindi ito maaaring gamitin sa express trains.

Maaaring magamit ang ticket ng limang beses at ng mahigit sa isang tao. Dalawa kami ng kaibigan ko na gumamit ng pass na ito. Sa roundtrip na biyahe namin, apat na beses lang namin ito nagamit. Ang biyahe mula Tokyo hanggang Sendai ay tumatagal ng dalawang oras lamang kung sasakay ng Shinkansen na nagkakahalaga ng halos Y20,000.

Gamit ang Seishun 18 Kippu, tumagal ng pitong oras ang biyahe namin pero sa halagang halos Y6,000 lamang kada tao (dahil dalawa kaming naghati sa pass). Kung may oras ka at gusto ng adventure, magandang gamitin ang pass ito.

Sedai Loople Bus

Para siguradong maikot ang buong lungsod, maaaring bumili ng 1-day pass sa Sendai Loople Bus na dumaraan sa iba’t ibang tourist spots at historical attractions sa lugar. Nasa labas ng Sendai Station ang terminal ng bus at tumatagal ng isang oras ang pag-ikot nito sa buong lungsod. Kung may 1-day pass ay maaari kang bumaba at sumakay mula sa kahit anong stop. Nagkakahalaga ang unlimited pass ng 620 yen, pero maaari ring bumili ng one-time ticket na Y240.

Tourist Spots sa Sendai

Gamit ang Sendai Loople Bus, maraming mga interesanteng bagay ang makikita sa Sendai. Ilan sa mga ito ay ang:

Sendai Castle Site. Ito ay tinayo at tinirahan ni Date Masamune, ang nagtatag ng lungsod ng Sendai. Sa kasalukuyang panahon, wala nang nakatayong palasyo ang makikita rito dahil nasira na ito. Sa halip, makikita rito ang isang malaking estatwa ni Date Masamune at matatanaw din mula rito ang kapatagan ng lungsod.

Statue of the Goddess of Kannon (Deity of Mercy). May taas ang estatwang ito ng 100m. Mula sa upper observation window ay magandang view ng lungsod ng Sendai at ng Pacific Ocean.

Rinno-ji Temple. Ang templong ito ay kasabay na lumilipat ng pamilyang Date tuwing sila ay nagpapalit ng tirahan. Permanente na itong itinayo sa kasalukuyang okasyon nang sinimulan nang itatag ang lungsod ng Sendai. May three-story pagoda ito na nakaharap sa isang magandang lawa.

Zuihoden. Dito nakahimlay ang mga labi ni Date Masamune. Napapalamutian ng ginto at mga inukin na estatwa ang lugar na ito.

Akiu Kogei no Sato (Akiu Traditional Crafts Village). Maaaring subukan ang paggawa ng iba’t ibang klaseng traditional crafts dito tulad ng painting at dyeing. Maaari rin na panooring magtrabaho ang mga bihasang artisans na kilala sa paggawa ng kokeshi dolls at Sendai tansu (Japanese chest of drawers).

Akiu Hot Spring.　Ang　onsen　na　ito　ay　nadiskubre　may　1500　taon　na　ang　nakakalipas.　Isa　ito　sa　tatlong　pinakakilalang hot spring sa Japan na tinatawag na “Japan’s three Royal Hot Springs.”

Ang Dinadayong Gyutan

            

Isa sa pinakakilalang delicacy ng Sendai na dinarayo pa ng marami ay ang Gyutan o grilled beef tongue. Maraming iba’t ibang restaurant ang nagbebenta ng pagkaing ito kaya siguradong madali itong hanapin. Isa sa pinakakilalang chain ng restaurants na nagbebenta nito ay ang Rikyu. Sa halagang Y1500 ay makakabili ka na ng isang set meal na kumpleto na may gyutan, kanin, soup at iba’t ibang side dish. Worth a try ang Gyutan dahil sobrang lambot at malasa ito. Maaari rin na bumili ng mga naka-pack na Gyutan bilang pasalubong.  

Manood ng JPOP Concert

Ang Sekisui Heim Super Arena ay isa sa mga pinakamadalas na ginagamit na concert venue ng mga sikat na artists. Kaya nitong mag-upo ng 7,000 manonood. Noong pumunta kami sa Sendai, pinanood namin ang bandang KAT-TUN na binubuo nina Kamenashi Kazuya, Taguchi Junnosuke, Ueda Tatsuya at Yuichi Nakamaru, na ilang beses na ring nagtanghal sa Sendai.

Ang lungsod ng Sendai ay patuloy na bumabangon at lumalaban matapos ang sakuna noong 2011. Sa ngayon, maaari na uli itong ituring na isa sa mga tourist destinations na pwedeng bisitahin sa Japan.

Forrest Gump: Ang Unang Pagsasadula

***originally published in the July Issue of Pinoy Gazette

Also published on Pinoy Gazette's official blog: pinoygazetteofficial.blogspot.jp

 “Life is a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get.” Sino nga ba ang hindi nakakatanda ng linyang ito na pinasikat ng pelikulang “Forrest Gump” na ipinalabas noong 1994 at pinagbidahan ni Tom Hanks? Base ito sa isang nobela na isinulat ni Winston Groom at inilathala noong 1986.

Sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay itinanghal bilang isang dula ang “Forrest Gump” na ginanap dito sa Japan. Ipinalabas ito sa Globe Tokyo noong Mayo 30 hanggang Hunyo 22. Ang Globe Tokyo, kilala rin bilang Panasonic Globe Theater, ay isang replika ng orihinal na Globe Theater sa England kung saan ipinapalabas ang mga dula ni William Shakespeare.

Ang dulang “Forrest Gump” ay pinagbidahan ni Junnosuke Taguchi, isang kilalang idolo mula sa Johnny’s Entertainment at miyembro ng bandang KAT-TUN. Kasama rin niyang nagtanghal ang iba pang respetadong aktor tulad nina Masahiro Takashima (na gumanap bilang pitong iba’t-ibang tauhan kabilang na si Lieutenant Dan), Hitomi Takahashi (bilang ina ni Forrest) at Aki Maeda (bilang Jenny).

Ang Kwento ni Forrest

Ang dula ay umikot sa kwento ng buhay ni Forrest mula pagkabata hanggang sa kanyang pagtanda. Kakaiba si Forrest dahil mas mababa ang kanyang IQ kumpara sa ibang mga bata at dahil dito kadalasan siyang tinutukso at kinukutya ng kanyang mga kaklase. Hindi naman naging hadlang kay Forrest ang kundisyong ito para hindi siya magtagumpay sa buhay.

Nakapasok siya sa kolehiyo at naging star player ng kanilang rugby team, nagtrabaho siya bilang sundalo at nakaharap niya sa White House ang dalawang pangulo ng Estados Unidos, naipadala siya sa Vietnam War at ginawaran ng Medal of Honor pagbalik niya, naging austronaut din siya, runner, table tennis player at kung anu-ano pa.

Bumili rin siya ng bangka at nagtayo ng isang fishing company tulad ng ipinangako niya sa matalik niyang kaibigan na si Bubba. Mababa man ang IQ ni Forrest, may busilak naman siyang kalooban at tapat na pagmamahal sa mga taong nasa paligid niya.

Ang Pagtatanghal

           

Tumagal ng dalawang oras at kalahati ang dula. Tuluy-tuloy ito kaya halos walang pahinga ang mga nagsiganap dito, lalo na si Taguchi na gumanap kay Forrest, dahil bahagi siya ng halos lahat ng eksena at dire-diretso ang kanyang mahahabang linya.

Para sa isang dulang may mahabang timeline at malawak na setting, napagkasya ng dula sa limitasyon ng teatro ang epektibong pagsasaganap ng iba’t ibang mahahalagang kaganapan sa kasaysayan tulad ng Vietnam War at pagpatay kay Pangulong Kennedy. Tuluy-tuloy ang pag-usad ng kwento at may madalas na pagpapalit ng mga eksena kasabay ng paglilipat ng maliliit na props na mayroon sa entablado.

Hindi kinailangan ng dula na gumamit ng magarbong props o stage design para ma-establish ang lugar at kapanahunan ng dula. Nadaan nila ito sa paggamit ng mga simple at maliliit na props na madaling ipasok at ilabas sa entablado tulad ng mga kahoy na upuan, pinto,  bakod, malalaking kumot, magagaang dingding at iba pa. Nagbukas ang dula na mayroon lamang isang wooden bench sa gitna ng entablado at malaking net na nakabitin sa ibabaw nito. Tumataas at bumababa ang net na ito depende sa eksena sa dula.

Dahil minimal ang props at stage design, mas nakatutuok ang mga manunuod sa galing ng pagbato ng linya at paghugot ng emosyon ng mga aktor at hindi lamang basta-basta sa ganda ng entablado. Kapansin-pansin rin ang stage chemistry ng mga nagsiganap lalo na sa pagitan ni Forrest at ni Lieutenant Dan. Masasabing isa sa pinakamalakas na eksena sa dula ang bahagi kung saan nagpasalamat si Lieutenant Dan kay Forrest sa pagligtas sa buhay niya noong sila ay nasa Vietnam.

Higit na pinasigla ang dula ng live music mula sa violin, gitara, keyboard, at iba pang instrumentong tinugtog ng live ng mga aktor. Kung hindi tumutugtog ang mga aktor ay nagbibitaw naman sila ng linya sa entablado. Kahit si Taguchi mismo ay nag-aral pa ng harmonica para sa pagtugtog niya sa dulang ito. Sa kwento, nagmula kay Bubba ang harmonica na naging paboritong pang-aliw ni Forrest lalo na sa mga panahong malungkot siya.

Ang Sorpresa ng Dula

Kagaya ng isang kahon ng tsokolate, maraming mga hindi inaasahang bagay sa dulang ito ang gumulat, nagpasaya, nagpaiyak at nagpatawa sa mga manunuod. Isa na rito ang natatanging pagganap ni Taguchi. Hindi man siya ang pinakamagaling na aktor na gumanap kay Forrest, pero binigyan naman niya ng kanyang sariling interpretasyon ang tauhang ito. Isang Forrest Gump na hindi mo lang katutuwaan, kung hindi mamahalin rin ng lubusan.

A Forrest Full of Charm: A Review of the First Ever Stage Adaptation of Forrest Gump

           This is the first time that Forrest Gump was adapted for the stage and I was very fortunate to secure a ticket to see it with a good seat. Last June 8, 2014, I got to watch the matinee show of Forrest Gump at the Globe Theater. The play was topbilled by famous Johnny’s idol and KAT-TUN member Junnosuke Taguchi in the title role. This is Taguchi’s first ever starring role in a stage play. He was joined by other famous actors such as Aki Maeda (Jenny), Hitomi Takahashi (Forrest’s Mother) and Masahiro Takashima (played seven characters including Lietutenant Dan). It was produced and written by G2 who is known for other high-quality stage productions in Tokyo.

Photo from QLAP Magazine

Forrest Gump was originally a novel written by Winston Groom in 1986 and was turned into a movie in 1994 with Tom Hanks in the lead role.  The story revolves around the life of Forrest Gump who has a relatively low IQ as compared to other people. Out of such condition blossomed the naivite of a child and the purity of his heart that led him to great lengths – getting into college and playing for the rugby team, meeting two American presidents, joining the US Army, having a medal honor for saving his colleagues during the Vietnam War, and becoming an astronaut just to name a few.

 

Photos from QLAP Magazine

Highlights of the Play

It has very smooth transitions and props-change. For a play that has a very long and complicated timeline – starting from Forrest’s childhood up to the time that he becomes an adult – transitions are very difficult to pull off. The play also happens in different settings that require proper establishment of environment and milieu. The life of Forrest is told with a lot of historical events in the background starting from 1944 to 1986 such as the assassination of Kennedy, the Watergate Scandal, the Vietnam War, and the hippie counterculture. The stage props are not grand but enough to establish a particular setting. They’re simple, easy to move and very practical. The best part I have to say is when they staged the part where Forrest and Liuetant Dan are at sea, trying to catch some shrimps, when they encounter a strong storm that almost sinks their ship. The construction of the scene is quite simple. A blue cloth was put to cover the whole stage, and a small elevated platform was set in the middle to serve as the boat. At the four corners of the stage, there were people waving the blue cloth to create the image of waves. The lighting on stage, hitting the blue cloth created a beautiful imagery of ocean waves. It is not real but it gives you the right feel.

The live music adds a certain vibe to the show. All the music played within the whole show was actually played live. The musicians who played the keyboard, the violin and other instruments, also played supporting roles in the show. Sometimes they would play their instruments on the side, but on another time, they would leap on stage and throw some lines. This is a clever way of creating more people on stage. For a play like this, there are a lot of “extra people” needed to play as friends, classmates, rallyists, soldiers or other random people who do not have names but just need to be on stage to make a populated scene look more credible. Using actors as instrumentalists and vice versa is a clever idea to maximize the potential of the cast.

Photo from QLAP Magazine

Another strong point is Taguchi’s live playing of the harmonica. I was surprised at how well he could actually do it with just about four months of learning it. I am no music expert, but when I listen to it, sometimes, I feel like, some notes are wavering a little, but not so bad as to distract you from the beautiful music. For me, it is believable. He plays the harmonica like someone who does it as a hobby.

Though I like the live music so much, sometimes, I feel like it is not very consistent. There were some scenes that make give me the pseudo-musical feel, but then this feel was not sustained for the whole show. There was a scene showing Taguchi and his classmates singing and dancing in class, and a few ones with Jenny singing on stage with the new band that she had just joined. There is an incorporation of live music played on stage and off stage, which I like, but I would have preferred more on stage. I understand though that this play was written not as a musical so I can actually forgo this minor point. More so, the beautiful music of the violin and the harmonica overpowered my disappointment.             

            The imagery of the opening and the last scene created a perfect circle. I like how the play started and ended, basically because they happened in the same setting. The play opened with a scene with Forrest and his famous bench and it ended with him in the same place, but with Jenny and their little son. For me, the imagery created a full circle in the life of Forrest, from being a kid to growing up, losing Jenny and finding her again, from little Forrest to having Forrest Jr.

Best Scenes

            As I have mentioned earlier, the part when Forrest and Liutenant Dan are at sea is very good and heartwarming for me, not only because the scene is so beautiful with the blue cloth and the lighting on stage, but also because it is the part where Liutenant Dan finally realizes that he should be thankful to Forrest for saving his life in Vietnam.It is not too sentimental, not too dramatic, it has just the right emotions for me. But another good part is the ending. At the end of the play, the whole theater dimmed and small lights lighted up on stage like stars in the sky. Forrest delivered again the lines that he first said in the opening scene. The scene is so peaceful, seeing it as the last image of the whole play creates a light, heartwarming feel as you exit the theater. 

Photo from QLAP Magazine

Junnosuke Taguchi as Forrest Gump

            Taguchi is a very charming Forrest Gump – too charming, actually. This is a double standard though, it can either work for or against the production depending on what the audience is looking for. I am sure that there are other more experienced actors who can play Forrest better than Taguchi, but he put some of his own flavor in the character. His acting is sometimes theatrical, yet not contrived; very light and easy on the eyes; very smooth and amusing to see. Taguchi owned the role of Forrest. This is not the Forrest that I am expecting to see on stage when I entered the theater. I am expecting a different kind of Forrest, probably because I already have an image of another Forrest on my mind. But the thing is, Taguchi created his own version of Forrest Gump – the iriguchi-deguchi-taguchi-Gump if I may say. It is the overwhelmingly charming, lighthearted, beautiful Forrest. He may not be the best actor who can play the role, but he made a way to claim a particular version of Forrest as his own – enough to make me respect him more as an actor.

Note: Usually, when Taguchi introduces himself he says, "Iriguchi, Deguchi, Taguchi desu!" It literally means "Entrance, Exit, I'm Taguchi!" (^_^)