During our column dedicated to the anime of the 80s we have immersed ourselves in numerous different stories, from sports to magic, from robots to love stories. This time we totally change the subject and talk about theater and acting for the first time. This is, in fact, the main theme of the anime that we will talk about this week and which bears the title of Maya's big dream. What would you be willing to do to fulfill your greatest aspiration? The protagonist of this cartoon at all, too to suffer for days. On the other hand we know: when it comes to Japanese anime, sacrifice is always around the corner!
But what, then, is Maya's Great Dream about?
Maya's great dream: the plot
An encounter that changes everything
Maya Kitajima he is 13 years old and has a big dream: become an actress. A desire that comes from his deep love for theater and acting. Maya has lost her father and is not a wealthy girl; on the contrary, to make do with the deliveries for the small restaurant where his mother works. Buying a ticket for the theater is therefore a huge expense for her, which is why, in the first episode, we also see her throwing herself into the river to retrieve a ticket for a play. However, this striking gesture is noticed by a woman who will then change her life. She is Chigusa Tsukikage, a successful actress who, however, was disfigured in one eye due to a serious accident on stage. He has since created an acting academy and is a teacher. Maya's great love for the theater impresses the woman who decides to meet her and propose her to follow her lessons but only if she is ready to give her all. She accepts with enthusiasm, not knowing, however, that there are many difficulties waiting for her.
The rivalry with Ayumi and the Scarlet Goddess
From the first episode we also know Ayumi Himekawto. Beautiful and talented, daughter of a famous director and a well-known actress, she is 13 years old as the protagonist and will immediately enter into competition with her. Maya as well as Ayumi have one big goal: to play one day The Scarlet Goddess. It is a character that we could say legendary, who 20 years earlier played their teacher, Ms. Chigusa Tsukikage. It was during that show that the serious accident that disfigured her face took place. Today she is the one who has the rights to that play and it is precisely to find the new Scarlet Goddess that for years she has been training new actresses. Now, however, all eyes are on Maya, on whom she places enormous expectations.
The thousand tests of Maya
Becoming a great actress for the young Maya will not be easy at all. The sacrifice you spoke of at the beginning is here both physical and moral. The protagonist, in fact, will undergo all kinds of tests to 'get better into the character'. A few examples? She will be completely tied up and deprived of movement to best interpret a doll; or else she will be blindfolded and locked up in a dark and desolate house to then take on the role of a deaf-mute. Maya, however, will not back down in the face of any of these burdensome trials: the dream of someday being the Scarlet Goddess is stronger than any pain. Same thing for Ayumi, who instead wants to reach this goal to get rid of the burdensome appellation of 'daughter of' for her. In fact, her mother was also a pupil of Tsukikage and, like her, aspired to be the Goddess who, on the other hand, is a role that marks those who play her as the best actress in Japan.
The secret admirer and the anecdote of 'scarlet' roses
In the years of its formation, Maya will be constantly followed and supported by a secret admirer. He doesn't know that he not only met him (in the first episode), but then went on to see him often. He is Masumi Hayami, owner of Daito Art Production and only interested in the business of his company. Knowledge of Maya, however, will gradually soften it; eventually he will fall in love with her. In each of his successes he will pay homage to her with a bouquet of “murasaki”, that is purple, roses. Yet, by mistake, in Italy they are called 'scarlet' roses, therefore red, probably in assonance with the Goddess that the protagonist hopes to interpret one day.
The end
But how does Maya's story end? Can the young woman make her dream come true? We open here a chapter particular enough to tell you that, in reality, there is no real ending because the manga from which the anime is based is not yet finished. In the final part of the cartoon, Maya and Ayumi are tested like never before: the two compete, playing Helen Keller, a deaf-blind girl (who later became a well-known writer, teacher and activist). At the end of the two acting tests, however, the proclamation of a real winner does not arrive. The anime therefore leaves us like this, between questions to be solved and situations yet to be discovered.
Maya's great dream: curiosity
The manga with a symbolic title
Glass no kamen is the title of the manga from which Maya's Great Dream is based. In Italy it is called 'The glass mask', a title with a strong symbolic sense. The glass mask is, metaphorically, the one that actors wear when they go on stage and interpret, in front of an audience, a character. A fragile mask that, at the first distraction of the actor, can shatter and cancel the magic that is happening on stage. Returning to the manga, the serialization began in 1976 but the story, in reality, has not been over yet. Hence the ending of the anime. The manga is by Suzue Miuchi: to date 49 volumes have been published and not consecutively but, often, years later. Over 50 million copies have been sold and, to this day, is still in the process of being published.
A 'real' theater
Over the course of the anime's 51 episodes, Maya and her rival Ayumi must prove themselves in various theatrical rehearsals. An interesting peculiarity is that those brought to the stage are, very often, well-known and really existing works. Maya will find herself playing Beth, one of the March in sisters Little Women. And again we will see the two young women in The Lady of the Camellias by Alexandre Dumas, Cime tempestose, Carmilla, Il principe e il povero and many other works.
The abbreviation
The theme song takes the title of the cartoon, "Maya's Great Dream", and is sung by Cristina D'Avena. The song was written by Alessandra Valeri Manera on music and arrangement by Detto Mariano.
The characters
Maya Kitajima - Protagonist of the anime. She is 13 and dreams of becoming an actress.
Rei Aoki - Aspiring actress, she attended the academy with Maya.
Yu Sakurakoji - Very talented aspiring actor, friend of Maya. Have feelings for her.
Chigusa Tsukikage - Maya's acting teacher. Former actress, victim of a serious accident on stage.
Ayumi Himekawa - Very talented young aspiring actress and Maya's main rival.
Masumi Hayami - Owner of Daito Art Production and great admirer of Maya. Have feelings of love for her.
The Big Dream Of Maya Volume 01
- Sugii Gisaburo (Director)
- Audience Rating: G (audience generale)
You want to relive the adventures of others 80s anime? From the magic of Sandy of a thousand colors, we then took a dip in the Kyashan. Then we met Ranma 1 / 2 among the Cursed Springs, and we stumbled upon the dreams of Red-haired Anna. We went to a dystopian future with Conan and we are passionate about the sporting challenges of Holly and Benji, Lotti e Mila and Shiro. But also a lot, more!
Anime the great dream of maya manga Maya's great dream: when sacrifice is everything!
