Dress rehearsal

The big day arrived at last. I finished my packing because we were told that the after-party party might go all night. Our rehearsal would go all afternoon, and the Noh class was last on the docket. The Noh women and Kyogen women shared a dressing room, and with much help from my fellow performers and Tamato-san, our translator, I dressed in my yukata. Then I amused my cohorts by curling my hair with a curling iron and spraying it into place. There's my halo, Oe-sensei (karakarakarakara!) A dresser arrived from Kyoto University to get us into hakama pants. Mine were a gray gold and shimmered. Now we wait. Jonah-san told us to find and greet our teachers - even if they were changing clothes, and after the delights of the last class we were anxious to see them. Tamoi Sensei and Katayama Sensei looked glad to see us too. Oe Sensei was quiet and solemn. This beautiful theatre belongs to his family. Perhaps his reticence was to remind us to focus on the performance and not to disgrace them.... Our turn for rehearsal came, and our sensei first took us out on stage to talk about the space. Then we exited the stage through the little door, knelt and bowed to each other and said, "Onegai it shimas". All three sensei were providing our chorus. What an honor to have them all supporting us onstage! Meyu went first, and I patted her shoulder as she headed through the little door. Wen-hsuan and Num had run out to the audience watch our rehearsal and take photos. They too were a major source of support, but I started to get nervous anyway as I listened to Meyu's opening chant. What if I flubbed up? What if I disappointed my sensei after all their patient teaching? I closed my eyes and mentally visualized the stage as it would have looked through the tiny eyeholes of the Hagoromo mask. I focused on the last class and all the classes and whispered my opening to the chant. Ah tsu ma aa so bi no ka tsu ka tsu ni. I am a beautiful heavenly maiden, a beautiful heavenly maiden. I calmed. I heard the last note of Meyu's shimai. The little door slid open and she came through, gave me a quick smile, and I emerged onto the Oe stage. I took tiny steps to the dai sho mae, knelt slowly and almost without a wobble, opened my fan and sang. My gut muscles contracted, and I slowly rose and wondered if anyone could see my fan quiver. Then the oddest sensation came from behind as Oe Sensei tweaked my hakama pleats into place. It was comforting - like a non-verbal, "We have your back, kiddo." I danced, stopped on the wrong foot at sumi, let it go, see the moon, nejiru away, kakeru back, gather my focus, catch the wind, the treasures rain down from the heavens, gather them up and offer them to the audience, pull my wing over my chest, let it flap, soar across, turn and tilt down to see the sky, sea, and earth, swoop to the earth, nejiru away, kakeru with energy forward and build speed to the first pine, switch fan grip - no, don't grip but relax your hands - turn slowly and circle to the dai sho mae, look to the waki pillar, the sumi pillar, nejiru to the front and disappear from sight in the clouds. Close fan, rise, exit calmly. Our teachers called us out for notes. Katayama Sensei smiled and through the interpreter said, "No big changes." Rapture!! Then he proceeded to make several small changes. Still happy, I realized I had come to value the corrections as much or more than the praise. I exited to the backstage and caught Tamoi Sensei's eye. "Left stop sumi," I said ruefully. How many times had he had to run that part with me in my early classes? A slight smile played on his lips. "Left stop sumi," he nodded.