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Although born after Japan's asset-inflated “bubble economy" of the 1980s, choreographer Akane worked hard to create an authentic group dance piece centered on those high-flying times for her high school dance club in Osaka Prefecture.
She watched serial TV dramas and song shows of the 1980s to study the costume design and makeup and bought part of the costumes at secondhand clothing shops. She also made others by adding spangles and buttons to clothes in the possession of club members’ mothers and grandmothers.
“I wanted to create a piece that would entertain those who know nothing of the times and make those who remember the times nostalgic,” said Akane, 25, who also formerly belonged to the dance club of Tomioka High School in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture.
The dance piece she created has struck a nostalgic chord with viewers on YouTube and brought instant fame to the high school dance club for the crispness of its motions and costume design.
The club recently performed the piece live for the final time here ahead of the retirement of its third-year student members.
They appeared on stage during an event held Sept. 16 at the Tenpozan Marketplace commercial complex in Osaka’s Minato Ward.
Some 40 members of the club, clad in “body-conscious” suits with shoulder pads, danced to the tune of “Dancing Hero,” a Yoko Oginome hit. The audience cheered as they shook their raised forelocks loose and assumed comical expressions.
The dance club members began rehearsing the piece in February to prepare for summer competitions. In August, they captured the top place in the “Dance Club Championship” and finished second in “Dance Stadium,” both competitions of high school dance clubs from across Japan.
Scenes from the competitions and other footage, uploaded on YouTube, evoked a massive response from viewers, who said, for example, that the dancers have cool expressions and crisp movements.
Nora Hirano, an entertainer whose beat is the bubble economy period, also tweeted, “They are terrifically ‘bubbly.’”
The club members studied photos of 1980s pop stars to check their expressions in rehearsing their shows.
“We have tried to make sure that we were representing women with a crisp and bracing air,” said Saya Hayashi, 18, the captain of the club. “We are so happy that so many people have watched our performances.”
(ASAHI)
