The Play's the Thing; Bogaazan! The Child on the Battleship Yamato; Part 1

Borgerson by Akira Hayasaka, recorded live in performance by LA Theater, works in the ballroom of Doubletree Guest Suites Santamonica as the Japanese battleship Yamato steams toward the island of Okinawa in the closing months of World War Two, a naval officer on board makes an unexpected discovery among the stores of rice, leeks and pickled radishes. He makes a reluctant decision, which prompts a voyage of inner discovery and stirs emotions as deep as the seas that threaten to swallow his unsinkable ship. And now Borgerson by Akira Hayasaka featuring Jun Angela Francois Chow, Shizuko Hoshi, Jim Ishida, Dana Lee, James Cyto, Shawn Shimoda, B.D. Wong and Keoni Young. I mean, the right thing for the president today to

bring them in and spoken on the. I can't get any may take out a chunk of any equity in the galley of the 68000 ton battleship Yamato, the atmosphere was like a battlefield. We cooked and delivered meals for a crew of more than 3000. And that day we were preparing a special menu. You will be giving us each division. You may refer to the wireless room. Thank you. From the anti gun. The first mate on the network has received the bottle. Thank you, sir. Hey, you. Please forgive me, sir. You're know me. What do you think you're doing with this? Okay, so speak up. This is not a given by His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor. I apologize. I am sorry, sir.

Cleared away at once. Everyone's running barefoot here. Yes, sir. Immediately. Meaning you're not listening to me. What's the matter? Yes, sir. You're nominee. Are you afraid of dying? No, sir. The second one and will deliver the budget to see around, I can tell you, I had to on. In April 1945, the last remaining fleet of the imperial Japanese naval force carried out a desperate kamikaze attack on the American forces advancing on Okinawa. I was serving on the Yamoto as a sublieutenant, a noncombatant

directing work in the galley. I was 21 years old. Father, don't speak. You spoil my recording. Not to worry, we can easily edit the tape. Oh, oh, I see that. Yes, I thought someone from the broadcasting station could probably help me. I understand that my daughter knows you from school. I'm so sorry to have troubled you. No, not at all, sir. I don't think I'll live until April 7th next year. Father, my daughter tries to keep it secret from me, but I am fully aware of the nature of my illness. It's serious. I'm not afraid of death at all. It wouldn't have been surprising if I had died fifty years ago today.

However, I thought I should leave behind this recording of what happened. I don't know why I'm doing it or whom I'm leaving this story for. Well, I could say this is for Michael, at least for the time being, and maybe also for her boy, you know, then well, if possible, if it is possible, I would like to tell the story to children as many children as possible. The last words of an old man about his experiences on board the greatest and most powerful battleship in the world, the Yamato. Would you like to take a rest? Oh, no, no, we'd better continue.

My voice is strong enough and my mind is clear, if you insist. For the crew of the Yamato, the evening meal on that day would be their last. I was a sublieutenant. I was part of the team responsible for the menu. It was decided that everyone must have rice, usually some wheat was mixed in, but for that day it was silver shining, 100 percent rice bowl and sukiyaki dish, the Navy style with a lot of beef, green salad with mayonnaise, followed by a special dessert bar. So. Go on, then suck at this final supper. We were allowed to let ourselves go.

We could hear songs coming from all parts of the ship. Lieutenant Ichikawa, sir. Oh, it's you know, let me please may I apologize for what happened? Are you talking about the broken bottle? I sincerely hope it isn't a bad omen. Don't forget about it. It's like purify the Yamato's deck. Come take my sack. Thank you, sir. And I mean, how old are you? Seventeen years old, sir. Still very young. Have you returned home? No. Oh, by 10 a.m. tomorrow. That's the deadline for letters. No, I won't write. Why? Oh, you're.

Yes, sir. I'm from Okinawa. I'm bringing myself. It's better than a letter. What are you going? You'll let me there for a bit of fresh air on the deck, sir. Taking desert with you? Yes. Oh, he he had the day, and I'm satisfied that you have enjoyed yourselves. Now we turn to you, of course. This was the last night within Japanese waters, the fuel loaded on the Yamato was only enough for a one way journey to Okinawa. Who said it is your sir?

What have you been doing here? Vegetables are falling out of the store. I see, sir. Lieutenant Ichikawa, what is it? Can the Yamato make it to Okinawa? Well, that's why we have loaded such a quantity of rice and vegetables. We can survive for a month out there. We must reach Okinawa. Yes, sir. The Yamato will never sink. I've heard that the Yamato is designed to be unsinkable and. Go to bed now, your nominee will be busy tomorrow when we leave port. Yes, sir. I will retire at once. What are you waiting for? Well, is there anyone inside the store? No, no one is their only white radishes, carrots, leeks, onions and kale. I am going to sleep now, sir. Strange boy. The posture is, I think.

And two stations cast off slow and two stations cast off slow on pause, one to zero degrees, one to zero degrees. The motto at last began moving from the tragedy out to the Seto Inland Sea. After that point, she went through the bongo channel and came out into the Pacific, heading toward Okinawa, 800 kilometers to the south. Hey, look at that cherry blossom over there, cherry blossom, cherry blossom. Lieutenant Ichikawa, may I leave for a few minutes to see it? You may go. Maybe it's an oyster, sir. Here I go as well.

Yes. All of you go and take a look. Don't worry. I'll be down here. Go now before the sun sets. Thank you, sir. I'll be back before the rice is cooked. Cherry blossom flowers are just slightly open. I heard that many men were there on the deck staring at the cherry trees of their motherland. Who's there? You know me. Yes, sir. You've been hovering near the store since yesterday. Why? Well, step aside, Arlen Specter. No, I'm sorry. I'm out of my way. Someone's there. What? Someone is inside who come out, come out here immediately. Yes, who are you? I am Michael Michael Washita. Why are you hiding here, Lieutenant Ichikawa? Sir, this girl is from Okinawa. From Okinawa.

Is she your sister? No, sir. She said she got aboard by hiding herself in a basket when the vegetables were loaded. Intolerable. The ship has left port. Why didn't you inform me earlier? She'd like to go back to Okinawa. Go back. Her mother is in Shooty on Okinawa Island. Please let me stay. I was completely dumbfounded. A young girl. Her hair was short cut neatly and certainly she seemed to be from Okinawa with such large round. Lieutenant Ichikawa, please let her stay. Take her to Okinawa with us. The journey is underway. We can't stop the ship. We can't put her in a boat and lower it down to the sea. Yes, sir. Please take me with you. Is your family in Okinawa? Yes. My mother and grandfather are in shooty.

Why were you in Kuwait on your own last year? The children in Okinawa were evacuated. We were brought over to the mainland because the American forces may attack Okinawa. Lieutenant Ichikawa. So what is it? I could just see cherry blossoms over Kyushu. They were a pale color. That's good. Lieutenant, sir, why don't you go and see. Thank you. Are you inspecting the vegetable store? Well, yes, I just passed the wireless room. They say the enemy fleet is waiting for us at the exit of the bungalow channel. Maybe you don't need to tell me. Yes, sir. I should have known. May I go, sir? You may. Everyone will see you here. They tended to go as Kevin, as much safer. Let's go. Yes. No one's around quickly. All right, here we are.

You better stay in this closet. Yeah, shouldn't be any problems for the time being. The other officers are all working in the wardrobe pantry. I'll take watch outside. I want to see my mom shooting. Isn't that where there used to be an ancient castle? My mom has to escape with my grandfather, but he's very frail at the Americans, landed on Okinawa on the attack. And surely you must be hungry. You've been on board a few days now. Whether, you know, I mean, it has brought me food. Oh, I see. That's why he was wandering off with his dessert. When do we get to Okinawa? You should hide now. We have to deliver supper to the crew. Deliver supper starting from the upper deck. I did pretty much by leaving. The support for that evening consisted of rice, balls, sweet beans,

stew and lemonade on the upper deck, a couple dozen crew kept watch throughout the night. The moon disappeared. It was pitch black in every direction I stood on the starboard side facing kuchu, I am from Mukono Jol in Kyushu, although I could not see a thing. I bought toward my home. Dear mother. Thank you so much for the care that you have given me for so long. Takashi is leading. Mother. It is unlikely I'll come home alive. You sent me to study at university. I failed to return your generosity.

I haven't lived up to your expectations. And now I have to leave you. Well, the last time. Please accept my gratitude. Lieutenant Ichikawa. What is it? Delivery of software to every division has been completed. Good, you may retire to breakfast. Tomorrow is an action meals and we have to be up earlier than usual. Four hundred hours. I understand when it gets light, the enemy may spot us. Exactly. Dismissed. You're not. Yes, sir. Supper's ready for. This bed is Lieutenant Yamazaki's, but he is staying in the wardroom pantry

tonight so you can sleep on it. Aren't you lucky? Yes. When do we get to Okinawa if everything goes well? What does that mean if everything goes well, everything will go well. But the enemy has thousands of aircraft and several hundred warships. And they're waiting for us. Many thousands of aircraft, we have only one light cruiser and a handful of destroyers supporting the Yamato, but the Battleship Yamato is unsinkable, isn't she? Who told you that everyone's talking about it, people including said that they imagine was the greatest ship in the world? That's right. You've seen the 18 inch guns. There are nine. Yes. The shells are taller than a grown man, twice as tall as you. They can be fired at a distance of over 45000 meters. There aren't any ships in the world with guns like that.

Really? Yes. Lieutenant Ichikawa, is it true that 1200 shells for the 18 inch guns have been loaded? Correct. See, when we get close to Okinawa, we'll smash the American warships around the island with these 1200 shells in Okinawa will be rescued. Of course, Okinawa will be rescued. That's why the Yamato is heading there. I mean, it's time for lights out. Make sure we're up early tomorrow. Yes, sir. I'll return to my place. So you decided to try? Salpeter, it's our dialect. It means, excuse me. I hope your mother is safe and well. I mean, I am sure that your mother has been evacuated to safety. Yes. I'm going now. Tens of thousands of American soldiers, a fleet of several

hundred warships and nearly 1000 aircraft were attacking Okinawa. Hundreds of thousands of islanders were thrown into the bloodbath, civilians were the first to be killed. Hey, hey, you know, it's you, Leading Seaman Condor. What are you doing here? Nothing. I'm sorry, sir. What's that in your hand? A photograph. Show me. It's your wedding photograph. Yes, sir. Before the Yamato left port, we had five days leave, I got married in my hometown. She's a good looking girl. Yes, sir. When I went home, they begged me to meet her and then they persuaded me to marry her.

You did the right thing. Lieutenant Ichikawa, may I ask how can you say it's right? Your parents must have thought it was your last chance. They wanted to see you married. I lived with my wife for two days only. I hope that I would be survived by my child. But is it really a good thing? It's a good thing to have your child live on after you. I feel sorry for my wife. She has been my wife for only two nights and bears my child for the rest of her life. I feel pity for her. Yes, it is a pity. But what can you do? I don't know. She looks like a good wife. I envy you, Lieutenant Ichikawa, have you remained a bachelor? I met my fiancee before my departure.

I see you are engaged, sir. Yes, she is a distant relative. It was suggested that we marry, but I declined. Why, sir? I shouldn't say. I'll be honest, I wanted her I wanted to hold her body close to mine as close as I could, knowing they would never come home again. Then why didn't you? I couldn't make. My wife and not for the same reason as you. You were sorry for your wife. It's not from such a tender feeling. I thought that if I made love to her, I would not want to return to the Yamoto, I would want to stay with her. And I couldn't face the reality of going back to the ship and certain death of a coward, I'm afraid. I thought I would never want to return to the Yamoto.

Condong, you are an excellent seaman. You have left such a pretty wife and have come back on board. Lieutenant Ichikawa, I, too, was reluctant to leave home, but if I didn't return to the Yamoto, my whole family would die. A family that produced a deserter would be ostracized. They couldn't survive through. Well, if we lose this war, the American forces will occupy our motherland. We don't know what they'll do to us. We have to return to the Yamoto and fight yes, sir, the Yamato's the most mighty battleship in the world, maybe will reach Okinawa after all Gondo. Maybe it's better to die than to survive. Don't worry, it isn't certain that will all die,

you'll go to bed. Living or dying depends on how well we sleep, so I shall retire now, sir. I returned to my cabin and went to bed. Goba. Metsu. Googol about. Khutsong. Matthew Kobar. Who said I couldn't sleep so Colbourne, I kept thinking it might be my last night. The girl hid herself under the blanket on the other bed. But she was away because so she the mayor got.

Amy was saying, gee, if we die. Where are we to go? Can't you sleep? Where do people go when they die? I can't answer that. Although an evil song says, let's meet over the cherry tree and Yasukuni Shrine, the Cherry Tree and Yasukuni Shrine, that's in Tokyo, isn't it? We are supposed to bloom by Jerry Flowers when we die. Is that just for Navy men? We don't know whether it will be cherry flowers or just swept away by the sea. And if I die away from my mother, I won't be able to see her. If we think hard about them, I'm sure we can meet our mothers somewhere. I.

I'm thinking of her very much. My mom is a dancing teacher. Oh, and you dance? Yes. That's why my name is Michael, a dancing type face. Well, she is rocking the ship has entered the Pacific Ocean, reaching full speed if necessary. She can sail at 27 knots. Isn't it true the Yamato can sink some parts of the ship or built with iron as thick as 40 centimeters, 40 centimeters? Even the hull is 20 centimeters, so ordinary torpedoes won't make a hole. I heard that even if a hole is made, the ship won't sink. True, because the bottom is divided into many compartments. Even if a hole is made in one compartment, we can seal it. The damage doesn't affect the rest of the ship. Then you could have gone to defend Okinawa much earlier. We could have

I was thinking, I must tell the girl the truth, that the Yamoto was not unsinkable. It would sink, but not right away. Yes, the Yamoto is very special. We used all of our resources to build it and it took over four years to complete. The Navy believed that with this ship, we could never lose a war as a battleship is the mightiest in the world. But, Michael, there is no ship that cannot sink. Then the Yamato can sink. A ship which cannot sink is not a ship, anything floating can be sunk, ships that never sink. Do not exist, then will the ship reach Okinawa? Of course, I hope we reach Okinawa.

We're determined to get there, but it can still sink. Who was responsible for this strategy? We have hardly any air cover. We're sailing into the middle of enemy positions which have hundreds of aircraft, even if it's a kamikaze attack. It's crazy. The crew who left their studies at the university, including me, we all think this, but our superiors badgered us to sacrifice our lives for our country. Think of your country first. I want but there's something deep down that troubles me, is it really for our country that we die? Why should we end the lives of 20? For whom? For what? I'm sorry, the. You shouldn't talk like this. I'm frightening you. I promise I won't cry anymore.

Please go on. You see, Michael, I think we are fighting for someone we care about, people who our blood relations rather than fighting for our country. I really think so. Now, you are the same, Michael. You came up with a Yamoto because you wanted to be with your mother. You wanted to help her and protect her. Like to be with my mom. That's right. Everyone's the same. We want to be with those. We care about you. And I and all three thousand people on this ship are thinking in the same way. Borgerson continues on side to.