Shirota Yu, and other lights of Asian musical theater
I'm a fan, mostly of his face and personality. But tell me, DL mavens - can this Queen sing?
He has a new collection of showtunes out, available for 3,000 yen (thanks, Sony!). Cuts include 'The Darkness Spreads' (ELIZABETH, he played Der Tod in the Tokyo Stage); 'Aimer' (ROMEO ET JULIETTE, he played Romeo); 'I am with You' (SWEENEY TODD, he played Pirelli); plus covers of 'My Favorite Things' (THE SOUND OF MUSIC), 'A Whole New World' (ALADDIN) and 'The Greatest Show'/'A Million Dreams (THE GREATEST SHOWMAN). He didn't include anything from those anime musicals he did (hello, PRINCE OF TENNIS?) or West End/Broadway classics which he has been known to sing on variety shows in Japan.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 67 | May 27, 2019 8:46 AM
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In ELIZABETH, the 2016 run:
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 1 | September 22, 2018 9:02 AM
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Singing the opening number of ROMEO ET JULIETTE (whatever that was called):
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 2 | September 22, 2018 9:04 AM
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A little Disney - 'Go The Distance' from HERCULES (only half in English, for some reason):
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 3 | September 22, 2018 9:06 AM
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Rudolf's death in ELIZABETH. Yu got pretty into it...
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 4 | September 22, 2018 9:09 AM
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Tough crowd. This guy originated Tuxedo Mask on the stage, you know.
Anyway, here's Shirotan's dreamy take on 'The Shadows Grow Longer'. I like the metal cry he adds to the finish, it's sexy. Furukawa Yuta, his duet partner for this number is a pretty dancer (clearly ballet-trained) with a cute voice. Given this take on the song is more sensual than chilling it's easy to tell the director/producers of this run knew who buttered their bread; women make up most of the ticket-sales for popular theatre shows in Japan...
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 5 | September 22, 2018 10:29 PM
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Hideously garish hetero outfit, stunningly beautiful musical-gay voice.
Anyone?
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 6 | September 24, 2018 5:10 PM
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Here's his 'Oh, What a Beautiful Morning!' for the One World Broadway: 4Stars concert series, with Lea Salonga.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 7 | September 26, 2018 8:55 AM
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Speaking English for a 4Stars interview with Sierra Boggess. His pronunciation is excellent for a Japanese man. Sierra praises him here as "open, positive, funny....his spirit radiates love & peace" (lol).
SIERRA: [about Yu's pre-show rehearsals] He was chill, too, he was fine.
YU: You're talking about two days ago? Not yesterday...
SIERRA: [sound] check? That was fine!
YU: Really?
SIERRA: Yeah!
YU: I wasn't fine.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 8 | September 26, 2018 9:00 AM
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Yu's first role as Tuxedo Kamen. Kitsch!
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 9 | September 30, 2018 11:17 AM
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What is this Elizabeth musical? I've never heard of it...
by Anonymous | reply 10 | September 30, 2018 4:43 PM
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Oh, you poor dear, R10. It's been running for just over 25 years, so you've a lot of exploring ahead.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 11 | October 1, 2018 12:35 AM
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For his more obscure musical turns, see this clunky lurid production of THE LOVE BUGS. Yu was good, though.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 12 | October 1, 2018 12:39 AM
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...and his several appearances as beloved 'Buchou' (Tennis Captain) Tezuka in THE PRINCE OF TENNIS. There are no words to prepare anyone for these shows; you just have to hold your nose and stick your head under.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 13 | October 1, 2018 12:48 AM
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He's no fucking Jimmy Shigeta, that's for fucking sure.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | October 1, 2018 1:02 AM
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so he knows Ramon Karimloo....š¤š¤ knew I recognised this guy from somewhere. Iāll look him up now.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 15 | October 1, 2018 10:59 AM
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Ok so after a quick Google....
His voice/face IS pretty OP; but maybe another reason he gets so many of these big musical roles and projects is because of his connections and his gaijin looks? Per the Internet his father is (or was?) a big shot at NIPPONTv. Plus the man looks about 6ft.2ā and pale-skinned as milk with a prominent nose & pair of lips. True that the Japanese have different beauty standards than we, but in their Arts they canāt deny they still sometimes fetishise the imperial European/Regency/classic āDisney Princeā Western look...
by Anonymous | reply 16 | October 1, 2018 11:03 AM
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Heās the epitome of bisexual.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 17 | October 2, 2018 8:02 PM
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He did some, uh, interesting photoshoots in his early 20s which I'm sure DL will appraise with keen eye.
Que puto...
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 19 | October 2, 2018 11:07 PM
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Something about the Tequila blood in a personās DNA just improves everything. Iām sure this kid would have been cute anyway, but a few drops of sexy Spanish in the mix bumps him up at least 2 points tbh. I donāt think heād have been near as good-looking if he were half-German, half-Australian or half-Thai.
by Anonymous | reply 20 | October 5, 2018 3:39 PM
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Yu's Latin side is part of what makes him so interesting & charismatic-looking, yes.
Because of his distinct features he's sometimes used as a catch-all 'Western' actor when it comes to Japanese productions; while he has played many Japanese men & boys he also gets cast as European, English & American people. For example, about 10 years ago he played famous British rockabilly singer Mickey (Mikki) Curtis in the musical-biopic THE HIT PARADE for FujiTv (you can see him as Mickey in the far top-right corner of the linked pic).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 21 | October 7, 2018 8:22 PM
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Shirota played the homosexual warlord Oda Nobunaga in the Asahi drama one-shot NOUHIME II (2013), which regrettably did not feature him in any gay sex/love scenes. What is a Nobunaga without his beloved Ranmaru?
Still, he looked hot af with a sword and in period dress.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 22 | October 9, 2018 7:27 PM
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One of his earliest and most famous solos, 'Semero, tsuyoku nare!' ('Attack, and go forward!) from PRINCE OF TENNIS.
His voice is so buttery and resonant, and he was just out of College here. He has presence even on a janky stage like this one.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 24 | October 10, 2018 8:41 PM
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Well, heās in the #1 drama in Japan rn so I guess heās doing something right.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 25 | October 12, 2018 3:50 PM
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And so talented that he has to teach his castmates to sing...
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 26 | October 14, 2018 11:06 PM
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Oh man, R26. Itās lucky for that other guy heās super cute cuz he sounds like a cat on heat singing....
Btw when will Asian heartthrobs learn that anime-manga hero hair does not look good on real life guys...
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 27 | October 15, 2018 11:42 AM
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Shirotan's schmoozin' his way to the top!
But seriously, he's making waves with this Ramin connection. It sounds weird with Yu doing the Rudolf part in 'Die Schetten', but whatever.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 28 | October 15, 2018 11:21 PM
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Just noticed heās left-handed, in case anyone who manages to pick him up wonders why it looks weird when he grabs the shaft southpaw.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | October 21, 2018 3:11 PM
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My 'Phantom of the Opera'-loving Moms went nuts for that cover R28, and then crossed herself in Catholic guilt for declaring that Yu is "so beautiful" (she's 53 and he's 33, nbd imo but hey, straight ppl right?).
by Anonymous | reply 30 | October 21, 2018 5:53 PM
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This whoreās got a hotter slightly-older brother whoās not nearly as talented or famous, so you know heād do some freaky shit for the validation/attention.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 31 | October 27, 2018 7:27 PM
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^^^no lie. He soaps up naked and showers off at two minutes.
Yuu-kun would never.
by Anonymous | reply 32 | October 29, 2018 12:20 AM
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Yu x Kazuki, awww. They should date, they would make a nice handsome sweet couple with the bonus of perfect voices.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 33 | October 29, 2018 6:04 PM
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OP minor correction: he played Anthony Hope in āSweeneyā.
But yes, he can sing, albeit in a Disney way. Heāll probably end up singing Japanese dubtracks for them, if he hasnāt already.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 34 | October 31, 2018 9:50 AM
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Seems like Shiropon is a Mamaās boy. He looks just like her, and is likely the favorite (sorry, Jun).
Also his old Skyrock profile from a decade ago is still up, and itās hilariously bad. Just Engrish captioned with grainy photos taken on an ancient Samsung camera, and with no attempt to mask homosexuality.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 35 | November 1, 2018 10:26 AM
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Hilarious how he always towers over everyone in all those 2.5D musicals he does.
At encore it's like twenty-five guys standing at 5"6 and then there's Yu, three heads taller.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 36 | November 1, 2018 9:01 PM
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So is he fucking Karimloo or what?
by Anonymous | reply 37 | November 2, 2018 5:44 PM
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[quote] and other lights of Asian musical theater
You fucking rang?
by Anonymous | reply 38 | November 2, 2018 6:06 PM
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It would probably help his music and stage career if he stopped dragging down his credibility starring in silly romance tv dramas based on comic-books. This new one heās in, the latest of a dozen on his resume, seems so boring and so very heterosexual, even though he still has those good looks to coast on.
He should do like his gorgeous former costar Takumi Saitoh did, and sashay his gay self over to the U.S. permanently to model for LV and then do gigs and make arty films for prestigious festivals on the side.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 39 | November 2, 2018 10:25 PM
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Heās considered a lesser Fanservice God in theater-otaku circles, Iām told.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 40 | November 4, 2018 1:37 PM
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There isn't a song in Sweeney Todd called "I Am with You."
by Anonymous | reply 41 | November 4, 2018 4:04 PM
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Well, that's the track name on the official CD tracklist, as written on HMV and everywhere else R41. Maybe it's a retitled/mistranslated song, or a new number written in for an Asian audience (surprisingly common).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 42 | November 4, 2018 7:02 PM
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Heās going to be a guest on the music award show ONGAKU NO HI 2018. One of many, but hey, itās a gig.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 43 | November 8, 2018 6:47 PM
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I bet Jin got Yuu on the line-up for that show R43; they used to be classmates in HS.
Yuu is popular and a good choice to host or perform, but he's still not so big that he's gonna eclipse the spotlight on a reunited KAT-TUN and their comeback promo (and Kame will NOT be upstaged).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 44 | November 8, 2018 8:54 PM
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I hate the way he pronounces "beautiful" in "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning."
He's cute enough but yeah, Disney voice. And why are Japanese heroes so... bland these days? Where is the FIERCE WARRIOR?
by Anonymous | reply 45 | November 8, 2018 9:06 PM
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^^heās not so much a heroic actor, more a boyband-type bubblegum star.
Heās worked with The Backstreet Boys and done Broadway. Heās not in any way ferocious.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 46 | November 11, 2018 11:43 AM
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Right. Yu is too campy by far to ever be warrior-like.
He turns the swish up to 11 in the DD-BOYS reality show he starred in. He also had the habit of shouting all his lines.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 47 | November 11, 2018 4:39 PM
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R26 I still remember the time he said that barely any other stage actors in Japan could sing and that he had to teach his casts (think it was in Moshii magazine, sometimes a few years ago). What a narcissist.
by Anonymous | reply 48 | November 12, 2018 3:04 PM
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[quote] I hate the way he pronounces "beautiful" in "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning."
I think he just fumbled the diphthong ā-eauā; understandable as it doesnāt appear at all in Japanese, rarely appears in Spanish and is difficult to say for non-fluent French/English speakers. So it came out ābyu-ohā.
I want to hear him sing more in English, just better songs. āEverlasting Loveā would be a good choice, I feel.
by Anonymous | reply 49 | November 18, 2018 6:59 PM
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Tower Records are promoting his disc. Apparently that company are still big in Japan.
Just me, or is Yuās voice starting to sound a little like Midge Ure? It has that dreamy romantic intensity.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 50 | November 19, 2018 1:40 PM
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Tower Records?? The one on Sunset?
by Anonymous | reply 51 | November 20, 2018 4:35 PM
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In Tokyo, R51. Didnāt the one on Sunset close down years ago?
by Anonymous | reply 52 | November 22, 2018 4:28 PM
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R41 itās how the Japanese titled the number, āNot While Iām Aroundā.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 53 | November 25, 2018 2:10 PM
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Yu is close friends with this cutie and my current crush, Zukki Hiroki.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 54 | November 29, 2018 4:55 PM
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I can see Shirota moving into major cast recordings more heavily.
He could do like John Farnham with JCSS. Though perhaps Iād put Yu more easily in the Judas or Simon role.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 55 | November 30, 2018 8:42 PM
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Yu is so boring on SM now, yucking it up with random nobodies and young girls on IG. Used to be he was always hanging out with fairly obvious closet-cases like KIMERU and posting dumb stuff from his drinking binges on Twitter (guess age finally caught up with him and his managers told him to stop outing himself).
Here he is in March, drunkenly cussing with his old pal Konii Yoshikazu (he of āBoysā Loveā movies).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 56 | December 3, 2018 10:23 PM
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[quote] He said that barely any other stage actors in Japan could sing and that he had to teach his casts (think it was in Moshii magazine.
I recall this posted on LJ (used to be a big Asian stage fan) and believe he was misquoted/poorly translated. Stage actors in Japan donāt go through the rigorous training & audition/rehearsal process Broadway actors do; the most prized trait of a performer over there is the willingness to practise all hours of the day and show up early/go home late every day of the run no matter how sick or unprepared you are. People who try very hard and give ātheir bestā are valued over those with talent.
What the very-talented Yu was complaining about iirc was that young actors entering the business via this route ruin their voices & their reputations as well as entire shows by turning up to work with no technique. Itās a very valid concern and he was right to say it. Itās also likely why heās trying to crack the European stage so zealously now.
by Anonymous | reply 57 | December 8, 2018 8:12 PM
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Yet it takes a lifetime to learn kabuki.
by Anonymous | reply 58 | December 8, 2018 8:36 PM
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^^well, we canāt blame native Japanese performers if they donāt feel the same sense of duty toward Western plays as historical forms like the Kabuki. For one, the classic āmusicalā or straight-ahead page-play as we understand it is a much younger mode, and concerns the modern condition which is not wholly applicable in a Far Eastern technocratic society with entrenched feudalism. For another, musical or commercial theater has even less worth in Japan than it does in the English-speaking world.
For professional productions of classic theater in Japan thereās always Takarazuka Revue, who put 150% into their lavish American musicals and 20thC. plays. Maybe thereās no call for anything more or better, and so itās easy to see how Yu can accomplish more overseas than at home.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 59 | December 9, 2018 10:58 AM
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Kazuki is all on Yuās Twitter..again.
Yu never smiles and kids around like this with anyone else these days. These two need to emigrate so they can get hitched and get it over with. Iām TIRED, boys.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 60 | December 9, 2018 9:24 PM
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^^if heās with classy pro Kazuki thatās a step-up. Yu used to troll around with gross skanky wastrels like Akanishi Jin.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 61 | December 10, 2018 12:53 PM
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Yu turned 33 last week. If heās like any other Asian guy then his parents are hassling him to get married. Then again he has a very cool Spanish divorcee Mom plus a skanky older brother who isnāt settled either, so maybe thanks to them heās escaped that terrible fate.
Yu hasnāt been seen to have a steady gf in years, either. The tell will be whether he beards up for his inevitable debut as a Broadway lead in a few years time, so watch this space.
by Anonymous | reply 63 | January 2, 2019 5:34 PM
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[quote]Yet it takes a lifetime to learn kabuki.
But only a few minutes to learn bukkake.
by Anonymous | reply 64 | January 3, 2019 4:21 AM
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Itās already been a whole decade since that mess where he got busted for blatantly bearding bc his fake gf got papped creeping around with a middle-aged dudeš¤£š¤£
[quote] Yuu, the 23 year old actor from the Japanese drama 'The Negotiator' attended a press conference for his latest photobook release. Last week, tabloid magazine Friday posted photos of his older girlfriend Yasuda Misako bringing a mystery man home to spend the night. Reporters were hoping he would clarify the rumours at the press conference, but the organizers banned the media from asking personal questions. Shirota only commented on his work in Okinawa, where the photoshoot took place. As for the star of 'Yomei Ichigatsu no Hanayome', the 27 year old actress denied the rumours. She only apologized for the hassle it had caused everyone. An inside source reveals that the man seen with Yasuda was actually a close friend and not a third party in the relationship.
That time went way too fast, and 33 is too old and also too young for Yu to still be so closeted. These should be the best years of his love/social life not just career..
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 65 | January 4, 2019 12:24 AM
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He was in my favorite indie movie that no-one else has ever seen, GO APE.
It's hot in a kinky way to watch Yu get beaten bloody for about 70 minutes runtime then KO'd. INTENSE.
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 66 | May 17, 2019 9:20 PM
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He need to do more gay duets.
Like the cover of Whamās āLast Christmasā he did with Jaejoong of the band DBSK (for FNS Music Fest, a televised variety event).
Offsite Linkby Anonymous | reply 67 | May 27, 2019 8:46 AM
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