Poster for At the Soul of An Actor (2006)
Takako Matsu
1. Chinese Poem of the Day:
李白 (701 - 762)
山中問答
問余何意棲碧山，笑而不答心自閒。
桃花流水窅然去，別有天地非人間。
2. I have been enjoying Takako MATSU's acting since I came across her in the 1996 Japanese TV drama Long Vacation.
According to Wikipedia, "Takako Matsu was born into a traditional buyō house, which produced famous actors and actresses", so I suppose singing and acting is in her gene.
And she does excel in both singing and acting.
Many of Takako Matsu's music are of the folksy type.
("Takako Matsu", Wikipedia): "Matsu has an established career as a songwriter and singer and the style of her music is often laid-back and relaxing."
3. The song We're All Alone is the theme song of the 2006 Japanese TV drama At the Soul of An Actor, which starred Takako Matsu and Makoto FUJITA.
("Yakusha Damashii", DramaWiki):
"Life is often likened to a stage of a play. And you are the star of your life. Everyone should have a story or two to tell. But some people just don't realize it and stay out of the limelight choosing to live in someone else's backstage just like our heroine. Since she lost her parents when she was only 3, she just has been accepting what life gives her instead of trying to get more. But when she starts working for a seasoned Shakespeare actor who has his own problems as his manager, she finds a strange bond with him and develops a special relationship like a family. This is a heartwarming comedy with full of struggle, humor, witty conversation, and love."
This 11 episodes TV drama is very heartwarming and I do feel warm and fuzzy when I watched it.
Although all the actors give very good performances, I especially like the main character Kaizo HONNOJI, which is "Japan's representative Shakespearean actor" in the drama.
Kaizo Honnoji was played by Makoto Fujita, who was 73 years old when he appeared in this drama.
Makoto Fujita passed away in 2010.
4. We're All Alone by Takako Matsu:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl7_ur3SZkI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODLOegF-6DQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWVNjMw5GSI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pekfd5JQ9Y0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZIWIin8TdM
5. Covers of We're All Alone by Aya Matsuura:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK0rgpBqncQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKhfeseE8ZM
The song starts at the 2:50 mark:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0dq7djM9y0
6. An aside -- The Japanese version of Let It Go of Disney's Frozen (2013) is sung by Takako Matsu:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZ1poicuB2s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-dqMG-Uycg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oph93kXKEQg
7. Names, Words and Phrases:
At the Soul of an Actor (Japanese: 役者魂!; romaji: Yakusha Damashii).
Aya Matsuura (Japanese: 松浦亜弥).
Kaizo Honnoji (Japanese: 本能寺海造).
Long Vacation (Japanese: ロングバケーション; Chinese: 悠長假期).
Makoto Fujita (Japanese: 藤田まこと).
Takako Matsu (Japanese: 松たか子; Chinese: 松隆子).
We're All Alone (Japanese: みんなひとり; romaji: Minna Hitori).
References:
"Yakusha Damashii", DramaWiki,
http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Yakusha_Damashii
(accessed 2014-08-30).
"Takako Matsu", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takako_Matsu
(accessed 2014-08-30).
"松たか子", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%BE%E3%81%9F%E3%81%8B%E5%AD%90
(accessed 2014-08-30).
"松隆子", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%BE%E9%9A%86%E5%AD%90
(accessed 2014-08-30).
"李白", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%8E%E7%99%BD
(accessed 2014-08-30).
End.
