Yuji Miyake and Hisahiro Ogura Reflect on 47 Years as the Powerful Duo of “SET”

“Super Eccentric Theater” has lasted for 45 years because these two are here!

“Super Eccentric Theater” (SET), amidst many theater groups emerging and fading during the small theater boom, is celebrating its 45th anniversary in 2024.

Yuji Miyake (73), the leader, is a well-known popular TV personality who has been active not only on stage but also on television and radio. Additionally, the presence of his close friend Hisahiro Ogura (70), who was a founding member of the theater troupe, must not be overlooked.

Having known each other for 47 years, the duo’s combination has reached a mature level, and they revealed some unknown stories of hardships and joys.

Ogura: I originally had no interest in this world. But around the time I graduated from university, due to the oil shock, it was difficult to find a job in general companies. At that time, I watched a drama called “Ore-tachi no Matsuri” (Our Festival), where Masatoshi Nakamura (73) played a member of a theater troupe who would drink and party after rehearsals… Their daily life seemed so fun. I thought theater seemed great. Just as I was thinking that, I happened to see in a magazine that “Oedo Shin-Kigeki” was holding a debut performance, so I went to watch it.

Miyake: That debut performance was much more interesting than I had imagined.

Ogura: The lead, Miyake-san, was tall and looked like a model, but he was making the audience laugh effortlessly. That was simply cool.

Miyake: It’s more interesting when there’s a gap. That was exactly the point of what I was going for!

Ogura: After that, I went to audition for “Oedo Shin-Kigeki,” and the prompt was, “Please express your emotions—joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness,” and I didn’t know what to do.

I just said things like, “Oh, I’m so happy!” or “I’m so mad!” and read the lines in a flat tone (laughs). Then they told me to show my special skills, so I showed some backflips and karate forms because I had experience with gymnastics and karate in school. Maybe the contrast worked, and I passed the audition.

Miyake: I don’t remember any of that (laughs). It was 47 years ago, and I’ve done hundreds of auditions as a judge. But Ogura, even after joining the troupe, couldn’t do anything for a while. He was a bit shy and couldn’t raise his voice.

Ogura: I’m the type to immediately say, “This is no good! I’m not cut out for this.” There was one time backstage during a performance when I got really scared and thought I couldn’t do it. Then Miyake-san said, “Don’t say things like that now! I’ll talk to you later,” and he hugged me and jumped around to cheer me up.