Kentaro Yamazaki | Troupe 'Barazoku' 'Musical Barazoku '70'
Singer-songwriter Ginga Sosaki's new troupe 'Barazoku' premiered 'Musical Barazoku '70', inspired by a historic gay magazine.Summary
The new theatre troupe 'Barazoku', founded by singer-songwriter Ginga Sosaki, a 2000-born creator, premiered the musical 'Musical Barazoku '70' in Shinjuku Ni-chome in June 2026. Inspired by the defunct gay magazine 'Barazoku' (Rose Tribe), which began in 1971, the musical is set in that same year. It follows six characters whose lives intersect through the magazine's correspondence section, exploring themes of identity, love, and societal pressure in an era before marriage equality or comprehensive anti-discrimination laws in Japan. The troupe's name aims to reclaim the term 'Barazoku' from its historical context, much like the reclamation of 'queer,' to visualize and affirm queer creators in the Japanese theatre scene. While the review praises the strong musical performances, it also critiques the simplistic portrayal of the 'wife' character and the logistical challenges of staging a complex, multi-space narrative on a small stage.
(Source：artscape)