"If I Do It, It Will Turn Into Hikaru" — The Rakugo Challenged by Voice Actress Rie Takahashi, and the Way of Life That Is Hikaru Kōragi [An Interview on "Akane-banashi"]

TV anime "Akane-banashi" has become a hot topic as voice actress Rie Takahashi, known for her roles as Emilia in "Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-" and Takagi-san in "Teasing Master Takagi-san" across various popular anime, plays Hikaru Kōragi, a young female voice actress just like herself.

The work, which has been broadcasting since April, features high school girl Akane Ōsaki as the protagonist aiming to become a shin'uchi, the highest rank for a rakugo performer, with Hikaru appearing as Akane's rival. Toward Hikaru, who pursues the path of rakugo to test her own abilities as a voice actress and a performer, Takahashi strongly commented on the official website, "I will face it with all my might."

How did she perceive the character of Hikaru, and how has she faced rakugo? We asked about her passionate feelings in this interview.

——In addition to the fact that Hikaru is a voice actress taking on the challenge of rakugo, she also speaks in the Hakata dialect when she is not in public, making her a character with many distinctive traits.

Takahashi：It's true that when it was announced that I would play Hikaru, I received some worried comments like, "Are you going to be okay with the Hakata dialect?" However, a person from Fukuoka checks it every time as a Hakata dialect supervisor, and we have been working hand-in-hand. Regarding the Hakata dialect, I have a reliable partner, so we are completely fine!

Rather, when you brought up the Hakata dialect as the very first element of Hikaru, I was a bit taken aback, or perhaps there was a part of me that thought, "There's more to Hikaru than just that."

——Even though Hikaru has been smoothly getting roles as a voice actress, she is a passionate character with a very fierce desire to earn recognition for herself through her acting and skills, rather than just the reputation of the work. Watching you speak so passionately at the talk show during the advance screening of Episode 1, I saw an overlap with Hikaru.

Takahashi：The desire to be worthy of this role and to deliver it properly through skill has been growing bigger and bigger and accelerating as I face Hikaru.

I hope that within the context of "Akane-banashi" being animated, the viewers will receive with high sensitivity the fact that Hikaru Kōragi, the voice actress, is a magnificent performer. I myself strongly feel that the person named Hikaru Kōragi is capable of so much more than that.

——As someone building a career as a voice actress just like Hikaru, I imagine there are areas where you uniquely empathize with her.

Takahashi：That's right. As for why Hikaru aims for the top, I can only answer that it's because she is just that kind of creature... While it is partly because of her profession as a voice actress or an actor, I personally think it is a way of life.

Hikaru is probably the same way, but because she is someone who lives a life biting onto expression until she dies, there are parts where I am driven by the exact same thing.

——Just as Hikaru takes on the challenge of rakugo as a voice actress, the mindset of incorporating things from other fields to improve yourself when pursuing something is very understandable. However, I also think it's an area that might be hard to empathize with unless you are pursuing something yourself.

Takahashi：As a major premise, because there is respect for the work and the characters, I believe there is a cycle of wanting to constantly improve my skills to be worthy of them and create something better.

It's not that she goes to another industry because she takes her voice acting work lightly; she wants to make her voice acting work better, which is why she greedily does rakugo as well. If people call it wearing two hats, it sounds like fifty-fifty, but I think she is the type where if one goes up by 100, the other goes up just as much. Like, both are necessary. It's hard to put into words, but that was the feeling.

——That makes sense. Even if others have doubts, it ultimately comes down to how you feel yourself.

Takahashi：Even if people around her think, "You are doing well enough," she probably has a sense of hunger or fear within herself that staying like this is not enough. I think it's wonderful that she found the path of rakugo.

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