Mon, Sep 10, 2012
Maya takes a job working in the park so that she doesn't have to borrow too much money from Tsukikage. She runs into Sakurakouji who offers to take her to Ayumi's new play; but they are thrown out before the play starts. Tsukikage gives the girls a new acting assigment which is to do a play only using four words. That night Ayumi shows up at Tsukikage's class and participates in the lesson by acting as Tsukikage's "assistant".
Sakurakouji sends Maya two tickets so that they can attend Ayumi's new play together. Tsukikage hold told the class their new play will be "Little Women" and Maya has been cast as the third sister, Beth. Maya now has to live as Beth for a week in order to better understand her role. Masumi meets with Tsukikage to ask her to end her business relationship with Aoyogi and join his Father's troupe.
Auditions for the role of Beth are held and Maya wins the role again. Sakurakouji takes Maya to his home to teach her the piano. Ayumi, Sakurakouji, and all the major critics show up to review the Tsukikage Acting Troupe's first play "Little Women." May receives a bouquet of purple roses from her first fan.
Several student quit the acting troupe after the bad review by the critics and nasty rumor about Tsukikage. Tsukikage tells the girls not to trust Masumi as he is out to destroy her troupe. The investors visit Tsukikage after her release from the hospital and tell her she has to enter the upcoming acting competition in Nagoya.
Tsukikage Acting Troupe finds out the Ondine Troupe is also performing Takekurabe and that Ayumi will be Midori. The troupe starts rehearsals and Tsukikage really pushes Maya even so far as to locke her in a shed out back until she finds herself. This causes Maya to create her role and to make her own Midori. Each troupe is give a day to practice on the stage where the compeititon will be; but when Tsukikage shows up she finds out that their day was moved up and they missed it. She learns that Onodera was behind this mix up.
The Tsukikage Acting Troupe and Ondine Troupe will go head to head in today's competition. The girls go outside to rehearse since it has the same dimensions as the stage they will perform on. Maya's "fan" leaves her another purple rose. The crowd goes crazy over Tsukikage's Acting Troupe's performance.
Tsukikage Acting Troupe is again favored to win in the National Acting Competition. Maya gets the lead again and they are performing "Gina & the Five Blue Jars". The night before their competition someone destroys all of their props and costumes. One of the rival troupes volunteers to help with repairing the set props.
Since the cast did not return in time for the competition, Maya volunteers to perform solo. Maya gets her first curtain call for her great performance. There will be two sets of winners announced. One is the audience choice and the other is the judges. Tsukikage is the audiences' choice for first place and Ondine wins 3rd place. Before the judges can announce a winner, Onodera stands up to ask that Tsukikage Acting Troupce be disqualified since only one actor performed and not the required 14.
The girls ask Tsukikage if she will still teach them acting now that the troupe has been disbanded. They all take jobs so that they can pay her. Maya's secret admirer gives her a ticket to see "King Lear". Sakurakouji tries to persuade Maya to join is acting troupe. Maya takes a bit part in an upcoming movie.
Maya films her bit part in the movie and see a close up. Ayumi vows to take any role possible so that she can get enough "life experiences" that will enable her to achieve reaching the ultimate role. The schools' acting troupe is putting on a new production. When the lead actress has to be rushed to the emergency room, Maya volunteers to tackle the role. Masumi offers to let Maya joing the Ondine Troupe. The girls learn of Aoyogi's plan to destroy their troupe.
Maya meets Miss Harada from another troupe and askes to be in her production. Her audtion is to express four emotions using one prop and she gets the role. Ayumi's new roll upsets her audience so much they start to leave but she is able to engage them again. Maya is a little nervous about her new play because the audience is all adults. She had never considered who the audience would be before taking a role. But the girl whose role Maya take has something up her sleeve for Maya.
Maya takes a part-time job managing props for another theater. One day as they are waiting on the actors Maya calms down the kids by telling them a story. When it's time to start the play, the kids riot because they want Maya to finish her story. She is promptly fired after the play. Miss Harada informs Tsukikaga that they will never hire Maya again eventhough they know she will take the stage by storm one day. Maya is asked to audition fo rthe lead in "Wuthering Heights."
"Wuthering Heights" starts and the audience is impressed with the intensity of Maya and Ryou, who play the younger versions of Cathy and Heathcliff. Sakurakouji can't believe Maya's intensity and leaves halfway thru the play. As more people see the play during it's run, the audience is becoming more confused because the younger actors play with much more intensity than their adult actors. Due to this the play receives bad reviews. Tsukikage tells everyone that their troupe will put on another play and that the Ikkakujuu Troupe will help them out.
Tsukikage pulls the troupe together to perform the play "The Stone's Smile." Maya is cast in the role of the doll. Tsukikage rents out an old, abandoned café for their acting troupe. On the 10th night of the plays run, they are a complete sell out. Masumi offers to pay all of Maya's expenses if she will join the Daito Theater. Maya's anonymous fan also offers to pay for Maya to attend school and acting. Maya's Mother has to leave her job due to her deteriorating health.
Majima has been coming to all of Maya's plays as he thinks of her as Cathy and fallen for her. He takes her out for ice cream and asks her out. Maya is upset because she knows Sakurakouji has not been to this play at all. On the last night of the play, Maya is told her Mother is sick and missing from the clinic she was recuperating in. Maya loses her concentration during the play thus causing her to lose her mask as she is thinking about her Mom she just saw on the street.
Maya goes on stage when called eventhough she does not know her lines as someone switched her script. Ayumi comes on stage to "save" her so Maya begins to "play" off her lead. Maya allows her anonymous fan to send her to school. She goes to the principals office to see if she can meet this person to thank him. Maya is also asked to audition for the role of Helen Keller in Daito's next play.
Maya in under lots of pressure to win the role of Helen Keller or she will be expelled from Tsukikage's troupe. Tsukikage tries to help her audition for the role but becomes too sick again. All the girls auditioning for the role spend the summer rehearsing for this audition. Ayumi lives among the deaf and blind children and tries to imitate them. Maya goes off to a summer house, blindfolds herself and wears earplugs in order to try and live like a deaf and blind person.
When the girls arrive for the final auditions they judges put them in a room to ask them to "entertain" themselves as Helen would. For the second round they all have to eat as Helen. The third round they have to act how Helen would when she is looking for her Mother after just waking up from a nap. For the final round they sound an alarm and all but Ayumi and Maya react. The judges then pick both Maya and Ayumi to be Helen and they will alternate who plays Helen during the run.
Ayumi and Maya both perform their versions of Helen for the Theater Festival; Ayumi is first to perform. When Maya and Utako started their version of Helen Utako was stunned at first working with Maya's presence on the stage. Utako then transforms her acting abilities to be as intense as Maya's. After the play, Utako tells May how glad she was that she got two act with her.
Maya is starting to attract all kinds of autograph seekers and scouts. Masumi warns her that she is now going to have lots of agents seek her out for roles and she needs to be careful. Maya and Ayumi have both been nominated as Best Supporting Actress for their portrayal of Helen. After Maya gives her acceptance speech for winning Best Supporting Actress Ms. Tsukikage comes on stage and offers both Maya and Ayumi the chance to play the lead role in "The Scarlet Angel". Ms. Tsukikage also makes arrangements for the Daito Theatre to start housing and schooling Maya.
After Maya's & Ayumi's press conference for Daito Theater she is really doubting herself but Satomi makes her feel better. Everyone realizes that Maya has fallen in love with Satomi. The Daito Theater has launched a campaign to spread the word about Maya. Masumi's people have found Maya's Mother but Masumi decides to keep that information to himself. Maya starts to realize how jealous people are of her success.
Maya's manager reprimands her for falling in love with Satomi. Maya sneaks off on a date with Satonmi after announcing to the press they are in love. Someone is out to sabotage Maya as so far they have spiked her food, removed bolts from set props and made a bucket of water fall on her. Maya is flooded with thoughts of her Mother as she starts shooting her first movie. Masumi offers Miss Yamazaki a chance to shoot some commericals that will garner world wide viewing so she decides to let go of her anger towards Daito Theater.