Auditions for Japanese Production of “The Wiz”
Yesterday night’s broadcast of AKBINGO! (episode 303) revealed that 101 members of AKB48 Group recently completed the first round of auditions for the lead role in the second Japanese production of the stage musical The Wiz. It is a reproduction of the original 1974 musical, which in turn is an adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s children’s novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The Wiz is a retelling of the novel in the context of African American culture. Its 1975 Broadway production went on to win seven Tony Awards, the most prestigious awards in Broadway theater.
Of the 101 auditions, 25 successfully passed the first round and will move on to the next round of auditions, which will be documented in future episodes of AKBINGO! Three of these are members of JKT48. According to a prior press release by the theater production company Parco, the winning audition will play the role of lead character Dorothy Gale.
| AKB48 | SKE48 | NMB48 | HKT48 | JKT48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Karen Iwata Chiyori Nakanishi* Mariko Nakamura* Haruka Ishida Yuuka Tano Yui Yokoyama Miyu Takeuchi* Nana Okada Yuria Kizaki* |
Mieko Satou* Miki Yakata* Akane Takayanagi Nao Furuhata Makiko Saitou* Aya Shibata Akari Suda |
Akari Ishizuka Ayaka Umeda* Shuu Yabushita |
Haruka Kodama Sakura Miyawaki* Anna Murashige* |
Haruka Nakagawa Rina Chikano Novinta Dhini |
| *Members who passed first round auditions for the 2012 production of The Wiz | ||||
For the audition, JKT48 appears to have enlisted the help of Junio Fernandez, who has been the vocal coach for a number of local musical productions in Indonesia. Vocal coaching lessons for auditioning JKT48 members began on July 19, with the audition being held on August 9 at RCTI studio in Kebon Jeruk, Jakarta. At least ten members had auditioned for the role: Ghaida, Shania, Kinal, Viny, Chikarina, Sendy, Nat, Dena, Nobi, and Haruka.
This is the second production of The Wiz in Japan by Parco and is directed by Amon Miyamoto and choreographed by Rino Nakasone. Both were also involved in the 2012 production of The Wiz, which featured then-AKB48 member Yuka Masuda as Dorothy. (See video below.) Parco has scheduled this second production for debut at the Tokyo International Forum in March 2015, with additional performances planned in Osaka and Nagoya.
先日放送された「AKBINGO!」(303回)にて、AKB48グループから101人がミュージカル「ウィズ」（2回目の日本プロダクション）主役の第１次オーディションを通過したことが明かされました。「ウィズ」とは児童小説「オズの魔法使い」をベースとした1974年のミュージカルの再演出です。元々の「ウィズ」ミュージカルはアフリカ系アメリカ人の文化を背景としてオズのストーリーを再び描いています。1975年のブロードウェー演出は「トニー賞」（ブロードウェー劇界の最優秀賞）を７つも勝ち取っています。
オーディションを受けた101人の中で25人が次のラウンドへ通過し、その模様はAKBINGOにて放送される予定です。なお、25人の中で3人はJKT48のメンバーです。 パルコ社の記者会見によると、オーディションを通過した1名はミュージカルの主役「ドロシー・ゲール」を演じることになります。
（上記の25人の中で、AKB48中西智代梨・中村麻里子・竹内美宥・木崎ゆりあ、SKE48佐藤実絵子・矢方美紀・斉藤真木子、NMB48梅田彩佳、HKT48村重杏奈は前回の2012年のオーディション通過者です）
オーディションにあたり、JKT48運営はインドネシアでいくつかのミュージカル演出でのボーカルコーチを務めたジュニオ・フェルナンデスの協力を得たそうです。オーディションを受ける予定のJKT48メンバーのためのボーカルレッスンは7月19日に始め、オーディション自体は8月9日にジャカルタのケボン・ジェルッにあるRCTIスタジオで行われました。オーディションを受けたメンバーは最低でも10人：ガイダ、シャニア、キナル、フィニ、チカリナ、センディ、ナタリア、デナ、ノフィンタとハルカ。
今回の「ウィズ」はパルコ社による2番目のプロダクションで、宮本亜門（演出）と仲宗根梨乃（振付）も関わっています。両氏とも元AKB48メンバー増田有華が主役を飾っていた2012年の同作品のプロダクション（下の動画を参照）に携わっていました。パルコ社はこの「ウィズ」のデビューを2015年3月・東京国際フォーラムで予定し、追加公演を大阪・名古屋に予定しています。
Source: 2channel. Photograph via Junio Fernandez. Additional reporting by Anon and Ijul.
Japanese Translation by Wotaliano
“…the winning audition will play the role of lead character Dorothy Gale.”
wait whaaa…..
as much as i love much most loveable miyu, as much as i love karen’s quirkiness, as much as i love yuria’s roundness and darkness(?), murashige’s guigui chara,
i’m rooting for nobi! she’s a talented singer, has unique personality, and looks to boot!
go nobi!
..
i know it’s far fetched, they all have great voices, a lot of them are great dancer and all of them are pretty. but… *finger crossed*
I hope the best who will play the role of Dorothy Gale, because I don’t know stage musical The Wiz
Good luck for Haruka, ChikaRina n Novinta
The show will be conducted in Japanese language right? Or will it be in English? Let’s say it’ll be in Japanese and Nobi got a role, how’s her Japanese language skill?
This production is indeed in Japanese. See the video above for an example of the 2012 production.
Waaaw goodluck nobi~ i wish she’ll be the winner !
Pretty face, talented, musicality experience. Perfect !
Yes, I also hope that Nobi gets a chance at this. she studied in one of Bali’s premier art school, and honestly i think that during her time in JKT48 her artistic talents are pent up..
Go Novinta!!
i’m sorry i meant to add this link to my comment but forgot
it’s an article about an interview with Nobi, in which she stated that one of her dreams was to perform a musical theatre piece on Broadway..
http://hot.detik.com/music/read/2014/04/12/084838/2553026/228/novinta-jkt48-gadis-bali-yang-bermimpi-tampil-di-broadway
did they held an audition too in SNH48?
i’m pretty curious about that,since JKT48 are often compared with SNH48
As far as we know, SNH48 did not participate in the auditions.
Why Nobi??
Sendy still better..
Why Nobi? Because she passed the audition…
Besides…it’s a musical drama which means there is acting involved…not just singing…Nobi have experience in a theatrical stage performance….
Yes, you right, Nobi Sugooii!!
And then i got good news for everyone :
Fernando Almanto @Edo_Almanto . 15j
“U’re very talented. Maybe the best than every contestant in here” ~ ucap Juri Utama Wizard of Oz kepada Nobi di jepang :’)
Fernando Almanto @Edo_Almanto · 15 j
Indonesia sangat bertalenta. Hanya kesempatan aja yg dibutuhkan.
Fernando Almanto @Edo_Almanto · 29 Agt
Suara Terbaik, Dance Terbaik, Acting Terbaik :’) bangga banget punya adek kyk km ! @Novinta_JKT48 hasilnya apapun ga masalah, serius
Fernando Almanto @Edo_Almanto · 29 Agt
Pengakuan juri Pusat,dari 25 kontestan 48fam, Nobi skill yg terbaik dari semuanya. Itu uda lebih dari cukup. Lolos/tidak ga masalah :’)
https://twitter.com/Edo_Almanto
But the result has not been announced..
I think, Nobi still has a problem about langguage..
So, The last thing that we can do is pray, hope Nobi can pass this audition.
Wow Rino Nakasone , a great name
nobi … her opponents are those who got in akbingo diva segment yesterday right …
and also that furuhata kid …. and suda akari ….
oh well, go kick their a** Nobi