The Curtain Rises「開幕, Kaimaku?」 is the fifty-fifth chapter of the Oshi no Ko manga series. It is written by Aka Akasaka and illustrated by Mengo Yokoyari. It was released in Weekly Young Jump on September 9, 2021.[1]
Summary[]
The opening day of the play arrives as a nervous Abiko Samejima, who frets over the result of her meddling with the script, is accompanied by Yoriko Kichijouji. They meet up with Goa, who appeases Abiko's worry and states that he is pleased himself with how the script turns out. Abiko has to retreat behind her mentor's back due to shyness. Goa also states that the actors also determine the quality of the play, and he believes that they're all talented, but Yoriko doubts this statement as she saw the poster of Melt playing his character, Kizami.
Mem-Cho meets up with the cast of LoveForReal, Yuki Sumi, Nobuyuki Kumano, and Kengo Morimoto in the venue for the play. She notices that Yuki and Nobuyuki wears the same bracelet, which made Yuki panic. Kengo notices Ruby Hoshino in the crowd, calling her a hottie, as Mem-Cho explains that she is Aqua's sister, to everyone's astonishment. Ruby, who came with Miyako Saitou, noticed that everyone around them seems important, and Miyako said that their seat are reserved for people involved with the play, which made Ruby feel like a big shot. Ruby and Miyako then noticed Gotanda nearby, as Miyako wonders of the significance of Aqua inviting him and noting that Aqua must be excited about this play. Gotanda silently wonders if Aqua can pull off the emotional acting needed for the play, and smiles to himself as he never saw Aqua this serious about acting before.
After putting on their makeup and costumes, Kana and Akane, runs into each other in the backstage. Kana states that even though it irritates her to say this but she is looking forward to acting together again. She continues by declaring that she will outperform Akane, who is currently called the genius actress, so that nobody can call her a 'former' genius child actor again. As Kana walks away, Akane privately admits that she is looking forward to acting with her as well. Akane then comes across Melt and asks if he knows where Aqua is. Melts informs her that Aqua is in his dressing room, getting ready for play. Meanwhile Aqua is preparing himself by looking at a picture of Ai, but failing as he retches and fall to the floor, his emotions throwing him into a state of turmoil. He resolutely look at the mirror, ready to throw everything to make up for his lack of talent in this direction, as that is his method of acting. As the rest of the audience get seated, the stage play begins, as Kindaichi states that the curtains have risen.
Characters[]
