Don't let the coronavirus get the better of you! "Baito Show -Final-" was held with thorough infection prevention measures

A world of art to visit, see and feel
File.31 Magcal Performing Arts Academy "Byte Show -Final-"
Miyuki Inoue (Magcal Editorial Department)

Magcal Performing Arts Academy was opened in 2014 with the aim of nurturing performing arts professionals. This performance, which takes place every summer, began with "Baito Show YOKOHAMA - Youth Edition" in 2016 , and has been improving with each revision, including the International Edition!, BEST Edition, and Platinum Edition.

However, we are now facing the coronavirus pandemic.
What on earth will happen this year?

Overcoming such concerns, "Baito Show - Final" was performed with all possible infection control measures in place.

We spoke with Kensuke Yokouchi, general director, on the day before the opening day on Saturday, December 19th . We will introduce the details of the dress rehearsal that followed.

This year, spring has stopped right from the start.

In the past, we welcomed newcomers in April and held the main performance in August, but this year we were unable to hold auditions in the spring. We gathered information, took measures to prevent infection, and held auditions in September, and we received more applications than we expected. It was proof that the academy's activities have taken root, and we were really happy. We had thought that it would be okay if the applicants were amateurs, assuming that the main performance would be held in December, but we found some people who had the ability to be immediately effective, so we hired about 18 people this year.
To be honest, I did think about quitting for a while. But I realized that stopping for six months was "unthinkable" for these young people.

When will the academy start lessons again?

In-person lessons began in August, but in May, when restrictions were put in place to allow people to go out, we held remote lectures. We delivered a total of 10 "Theater Lectures" on topics such as Stanislavski's theory of theater, Nakamura Nakazo, who was called the god of theater, and Shakespeare's plays.

For example, what is "real" in theater? I thought I had been conveying this from time to time, but I think this was a good opportunity to learn the theory. This was a challenge for us as well. I was worried about how much we could do in a remote class, but I think we were able to talk about difficult things without holding back.
I think it was a very powerful lesson, as the message was "Don't stagnate!" at a time when the future was uncertain and everyone was feeling anxious.

I heard that all the performers wore masks during rehearsals for this performance.

That's right. Today (the day of the dress rehearsal) was the first time that the members took off their masks. It's hard to sing and dance while wearing a mask, but facial expressions are important in acting, so this is an impossible situation. I think some members were surprised that they were acting with such expressions. It was a real challenge and a grand experiment.
We were also careful to avoid crowding on stage. The performance time was shorter than usual, at 1 hour and 45 minutes. The members were divided into two teams, A and B, and the dance numbers that were shown with the power of numbers were reduced, so there was no room for cheating. No one knows what "doing everything we can" means. Nevertheless, we pursued the meaning of "doing" at this time.

This is the fifth year of the "Baito Show" and it's finally the "final" one.

Magcal Performing Arts Academy was launched with the aim of creating an environment in Kanagawa Prefecture where theater can be studied. Considering that a new "Performing Arts Department" will be established at Kanagawa Comprehensive High School in 2021, we believe that this will be the turning point.
When we started in 2014, we were all amateurs and thought, "This is impossible" (laughs). But we've managed to continue this far. Now some of us have graduated from music colleges and are performing on stage as professionals, so we decided to call this the "Final" as a culmination of our efforts so far.

"Baito Show" has been performed in a "theater within a theater" format with seating on the stage, with limited audience numbers. If there is a next step, I would like to perform a new work using Koyozaka Hall in its normal condition. Koyozaka Hall is a magnificent theater with a seating capacity of over 800 people, so it is difficult to fill it. However, this is our "long-cherished wish", and I would like to see what they have learned and inherited after achieving this.

It's a shame that we lost so much time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, perhaps it's precisely because we're in an unprecedented situation that we've been able to find something different. I hope that when we look back on it in the future, we'll think that 2020 wasn't a waste of time.

Lastly, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Kanagawa Prefecture and all those involved for their support and for sending me the message that they would like the concert to go ahead as much as possible, with thorough measures in place. Thank you very much.

《Click here for previous reports on the "Byte Show"!》
● 2016 "Baito Show YOKOHAMA - Youth Edition"
●2018 "Baito Show -BEST Edition-"
●2019 "Baito Show - Platinum Edition"