them back or hugged them around her head and moaned. Next to Akutagawa’s restrained performance, hers was too unbalanced and felt totally out of place.
“Storms rage through this world: storms of ideology. I rise up in the midst of them like a single great tree and yield not one step to their tempests. Sugiko is the one who grants me that strength. The fact that she believes in me.”
She writhed around, rocking her body from side to side like a tree swaying in the wind; then she changed it up and clasped her hands in front of her chest, batted her eyelashes exaggeratedly, and said in a coquettish, saccharine voice, “Ohhh, Mister
Nojima
! I do believe in you, you dear man. You will be victorious.
Please,
make me your
wife
!”
“Cut! Cut!”
I leaped in front of Tohko after this erratic performance, unable to take any more.
“What is it, Hayakawa? I would appreciate it if you didn’t interfere with Sugiko and I while we discuss our love.”
“I’m not Hayakawa! I don’t care if this scene
is
all in Nojima’simagination, it’s just creepy when you emphasize every other word like ‘
Please,
make me your
wife.
’ You need to cut it out. I don’t remember writing all those italics in the script. And your movements are way too exaggerated, too.”
“I just got too into the role, and my mouth and body started moving without me. I must have some talent as an actress to become such a completely different person.”
“What you were doing just then only counts as a crazy person.”
“Whaaaat? I was trying to act out the despondency and naïveté of a young man in love, but still give a little wink to the audience.”
“If it’s too despondent, it looks vacant. Don’t add in extra action. Play it more ordinary.”
“But then Nojima’s feelings won’t come across to the audience!”
“If it comes across too much, everyone’s just embarrassed for you!”
Kotobuki watched wide-eyed as Tohko and I talked. Akutagawa looked surprised, too. I realized that I was cutting in on Tohko like I usually did, and I caught myself.
“A-anyway, can you just follow the script?”
Tohko gave a noncommittal answer—“Uh-huh”—and then went back to practicing. What was wrong with me? I was passing as a friendly, quiet guy in class and everything.
“Sugiko, Sugiko. Look at that cloud. It looks like someone, do you not think?”
“Who, I wonder?”
Takeda was good, too. Even though her role was as a dignified girl the exact opposite of who she normally was, she sounded just right.
Kotobuki must have been nervous, because her performance was stiff. She looked embarrassed when she was saying her lines. Maybe she was more shy than she looked. When our eyes met, she flushed and hurriedly looked away.
“Konoha—it’s your line, Konoha.”
“Oh—right. ‘Ha-ha-ha! God forbid, I encounter Takeko.’ ”
“Geez, Konoha, you sound so wooden.”
“Your laugh is pretty fake, Inoue.”
“Konohaaa, try to put a little more
feeling
into it!”
… (Silence.)
My Hayakawa got panned.
After rehearsal was over, Takeda went over to Tohko.
“Tooohko? There’s a store opening next to the station today. They gave me a flyer, and they have this cute stationery stuff that doesn’t cost too much. Do you want to come with me?”
“Why not! What about you, Nanase?”
“I don’t really… Well, if Tohko’s going…”
“Yaaay! Nanase’s coming toooo!”
At first they had been awkward together, but in their own way Kotobuki and Takeda seemed to be getting along. Once the three girls had gone, Akutagawa and I left the auditorium.
Bathed in the same red light of the setting sun as on that other day, Akutagawa pushed his bike and I walked beside him.
“Man, acting is hard.”
“Don’t worry about it. You’re not a professional actor, so of course, you’re not going to be great at it.”
“But you were awesome, Akutagawa. You projected your voice and everything. I was surprised.”
“Really? All I
“Storms rage through this world: storms of ideology. I rise up in the midst of them like a single great tree and yield not one step to their tempests. Sugiko is the one who grants me that strength. The fact that she believes in me.”
She writhed around, rocking her body from side to side like a tree swaying in the wind; then she changed it up and clasped her hands in front of her chest, batted her eyelashes exaggeratedly, and said in a coquettish, saccharine voice, “Ohhh, Mister
Nojima
! I do believe in you, you dear man. You will be victorious.
Please,
make me your
wife
!”
“Cut! Cut!”
I leaped in front of Tohko after this erratic performance, unable to take any more.
“What is it, Hayakawa? I would appreciate it if you didn’t interfere with Sugiko and I while we discuss our love.”
“I’m not Hayakawa! I don’t care if this scene
is
all in Nojima’simagination, it’s just creepy when you emphasize every other word like ‘
Please,
make me your
wife.
’ You need to cut it out. I don’t remember writing all those italics in the script. And your movements are way too exaggerated, too.”
“I just got too into the role, and my mouth and body started moving without me. I must have some talent as an actress to become such a completely different person.”
“What you were doing just then only counts as a crazy person.”
“Whaaaat? I was trying to act out the despondency and naïveté of a young man in love, but still give a little wink to the audience.”
“If it’s too despondent, it looks vacant. Don’t add in extra action. Play it more ordinary.”
“But then Nojima’s feelings won’t come across to the audience!”
“If it comes across too much, everyone’s just embarrassed for you!”
Kotobuki watched wide-eyed as Tohko and I talked. Akutagawa looked surprised, too. I realized that I was cutting in on Tohko like I usually did, and I caught myself.
“A-anyway, can you just follow the script?”
Tohko gave a noncommittal answer—“Uh-huh”—and then went back to practicing. What was wrong with me? I was passing as a friendly, quiet guy in class and everything.
“Sugiko, Sugiko. Look at that cloud. It looks like someone, do you not think?”
“Who, I wonder?”
Takeda was good, too. Even though her role was as a dignified girl the exact opposite of who she normally was, she sounded just right.
Kotobuki must have been nervous, because her performance was stiff. She looked embarrassed when she was saying her lines. Maybe she was more shy than she looked. When our eyes met, she flushed and hurriedly looked away.
“Konoha—it’s your line, Konoha.”
“Oh—right. ‘Ha-ha-ha! God forbid, I encounter Takeko.’ ”
“Geez, Konoha, you sound so wooden.”
“Your laugh is pretty fake, Inoue.”
“Konohaaa, try to put a little more
feeling
into it!”
… (Silence.)
My Hayakawa got panned.
After rehearsal was over, Takeda went over to Tohko.
“Tooohko? There’s a store opening next to the station today. They gave me a flyer, and they have this cute stationery stuff that doesn’t cost too much. Do you want to come with me?”
“Why not! What about you, Nanase?”
“I don’t really… Well, if Tohko’s going…”
“Yaaay! Nanase’s coming toooo!”
At first they had been awkward together, but in their own way Kotobuki and Takeda seemed to be getting along. Once the three girls had gone, Akutagawa and I left the auditorium.
Bathed in the same red light of the setting sun as on that other day, Akutagawa pushed his bike and I walked beside him.
“Man, acting is hard.”
“Don’t worry about it. You’re not a professional actor, so of course, you’re not going to be great at it.”
“But you were awesome, Akutagawa. You projected your voice and everything. I was surprised.”
“Really? All I
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