Kurara Haruka

Other Name: 遥くらら

Age: 69

Birthday: November 9, 1955

Nationality: Japanese

Gender: Female

Kurara Harukaa, birth name Yamasaki Kumiko (山崎久美子) was a Takarazuka Revue Top Star before starting her TV and film acting career in 1984 with Toho Entertainment. Her stage name was given by the playwright Yashiro Seiichi. 'Haruka' (遥) means 'aimed at far away' while 'Kurara' is romaji for 'Clara' which is derived from the name of Clara Schumann, a German piano teacher, and composer, who's regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era. She entered Takarazuka Music School in 1972 then joined Takarazuka Revue after graduating in 1974 with the 60th Generation Takarazuka Revue class. She played otokoyaku (male roles) in the Star Troupe and then in 1977, made her musumeyaku debut (female role) as Scarlette O'Hara in Gone With the Wind. On July 30, 1984, she left the Takarazuka Revue at the end of the Tokyo performance of Gone with the Wind. She was touted as "the number one musumeyaku of Takarazuka" and it was the first time in history that a goodbye show was held for two days. Shortly after leaving the Takarazuka Troupe, she won the 10th (1984) Kazuo Kikuta Theater Award for the role of Wagna in 'The Cherry Orchard'. In 1990, she played the role of Yukiko in 'Sasameyuki' at the 45th Agency for Cultural Affairs Arts Festival where she received a drama category award. In 1985, she became widely known as Okou, the female ninja heroine of NHK's new large-scale historical Taiga Drama 'Sanada Taiheiki'. Since then, Haruka has appeared in many TV dramas, films, and commercials (CMs) for Suntory, Maruai, Morinaga & Co., Kao. In the early 1990s, she married a non-celebrity man and retired from the entertainment world. Even after retiring, she still responds to interviews with Takarazuka-related publications. In 2014, she participated in the Takarazuka Revue 100th Anniversary Festival 'Violet Flowers Playing Time' and stood again on the stage of the Takarazuka Grand Theater for the first time after 30 years. In addition, due to the 100th anniversary, she was the youngest of the 100 people in the Takarazuka Revue Hall of Fame due to her contributions to the development of the Takarazuka Revue opera..