The Idol [28] by Yuu0318 on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

NEW MEMBER OF IDOL GROUP “ECLIPSE” UNVEILED AT CONCERT IN STUNNING 4-TON DRESS

Abstract

Popular idol group “Eclipse” concluded their national tour with a spectacular concert at Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, on Friday, September 20th. The focal point of the evening was undoubtedly the debut of their new member, Yuna Fujii. Her surprise appearance captivated the audience, but it was her extraordinary outfit that truly stole the show - a colossal red dress weighing over 4 tons, setting a new record for both size and weight. This article delves into the details of this remarkable concert and costume, featuring interviews with the director and Fujii herself.

The news of recruiting new members had been a hot topic for some time, but after the auditions, things went silent. No further updates were released, and the identity of the new member remained a closely guarded secret, unknown to the public and even to the existing members of the group. Finally, six months after the auditions, during the concert held on Friday, the new member made a surprise debut in front of 14,000 fans, in an unprecedented and extraordinary manner.

At the beginning of the concert, as the spotlight illuminated the stage, an enormous dome-shaped structure made of red fabric and satin appeared in the center. Since the structure was motionless and enigmatic, it was initially thought to be a mere stage decoration. The other members began their performance as usual on the other side of the stage. During the chatting session that followed the dances, a sudden announcement was made by a narrator in the background, revealing that the much-anticipated new member would finally make an appearance. To everyone’s surprise, unlike other idol groups, which typically introduce several new members at once, only one girl was selected to join “Eclipse” from tens of thousands of candidates.

The Grand Reveal

The audience’s attention was drawn back to the gigantic red fabric structure. As the heavy and thick veil slowly lifted, the newcomer, 19-year-old Yuna Fujii, appeared atop the red structure, making her first appearance to the audience. It turned out that the red fabric dome was not a decoration but an enormous dress worn by Fujii. The sight left everyone, including the other members, in awe, as no one had ever imagined a dress of such magnitude.

The dress, in a rich, deep red color reminiscent of a ripe pomegranate, was designed with multiple layers that cascaded down in an extravagant display of fabric and satin. Each layer was meticulously adorned with ruffles, giving the impression of waves or petals that added depth and texture to the ensemble. Spanning nearly 15 meters in diameter and reaching over 6 meters in height, the dress completely dominated the stage, with its folds extending to the very edge. The dress was so colossal that drones were used to capture its full scale.

※❶ A breathtaking shot of the dress taken by a drone from above the concert venue. Fujii’s petite frame is nearly invisible against the sheer enormity of the dress.

Ambitious Undertaking

“This is the biggest project we have ever undertaken,” stated Kitaoka, who serves as both the stage director and costume director. “The dress is so large and heavy that our team had to use cranes to transport the materials and a hydraulic lifting platform to assemble it.”

When asked about the design concept behind the dress, Kitaoka emphasized the importance of creating a visually striking effect for Fujii’s debut. “While making a strong visual impact is essential, the dress is specifically tailored for Fujii. We aimed to use the dress’s over-the-top extravagance to highlight and contrast with her natural, unpretentious demeanor. It will be fascinating to see how the introverted Fujii reacts when she finds herself in the most prominent dress ever created.”

“There have been instances of enormous dresses used as performance costumes in the past, and our team has studied them extensively,” Kitaoka noted. “Many of these designs involve large pieces of fabric draped over stage structures, with the performer merely standing within the setup. While visually striking, these performers are often detached from the dress, not actually wearing it. This time, we wanted Fujii to truly wear the dress. Therefore, our team created a dress that is both enormous and monolithic, ensuring she is fully integrated into the design.”

※❷ A picture illustrating the internal structure of the dress reveals that, without the outermost layer, it is tightly packed with layers of petticoats and fabric.

“To create this behemoth of a dress, our team first constructed a large steel frame to support its shape and distribute the astonishing weight of the fabrics,” Kitaoka explained. “Underneath this frame, thousands of layers of petticoats are stacked and tightly packed. Despite their complexity, these layers are exquisitely connected and sewn to the bodice. The outermost layer, thick and intricate, was then placed on top of the frame and also sewn to the bodice. Through this meticulous process, we have managed to create an enormous dress weighing over 4 tons.”

Kitaoka continued, “To achieve the monolithic nature of the dress, we could not break it into smaller parts for assembly on site, which posed significant challenges for transportation. Additionally, since the bodice is connected to the massive skirt, putting on and taking off the dress will be much more difficult and time-consuming for Fujii. Despite these sacrifices, we found the result to be visually striking.”

Fujii’s Emotional Introduction

Following her striking first appearance, it was time for Fujii’s self-introduction. Clearly overwhelmed by the atmosphere of facing tens of thousands of spectators, especially while wearing such a grand and attention-gathering dress, Fujii appeared absolutely frightened. She remained silent for several minutes, her face flushed with coyness, and her eyes became watery as tears began to fall. After being calmed by her teammates and the supportive audience, she managed to introduce herself with a soft, slightly trembling voice. Despite her evident nervousness, Fujii completed her self-introduction perfectly.

During the following three hours of the performance, other members sang and danced as usual, while Fujii remained in her gigantic dress throughout. Constrained by the enormous gown, she couldn’t dance with her teammates, but her vocal performance was striking, especially considering she is a newly entered member. Her singing complemented the performance perfectly. Occasionally, the other members would join Fujii on stage, dancing around the circumference of her massive gown. This interaction highlighted the contrast between Fujii’s stationary presence and the fluid movements of her teammates.

As the concert drew to a close, all members gathered in front of Fujii’s gigantic dress, removed their shoes, and stepped onto the sprawling hem of her dress. They said goodbye to the audience, ending the concert in a grand and memorable way.

Exclusive Post-Concert Interview

After the concert concluded, we conducted an exclusive interview with Fujii in a very unique manner: while she was still wearing the gigantic red dress. Due to the dress’s enormous size, which isolated her from everything around, our journalist had to use a crane platform to reach her position and conduct the interview up close.

To maintain her secret identity before the public reveal, Fujii had to arrive much earlier, get into the dress, and hide beneath its thick veil before other members and the audience arrived at the venue. After the concert, she remained within the dress until all the audience had left. By the time we interviewed her, she had been in the dress for over eight hours. Despite looking a bit fatigued from wearing such an enormous dress for an extended period of time, Fujii patiently answered our questions.

※❸ A close-up photo taken during our interview with Fujii, who remained in the huge red dress. Looking up close, she is like engulfed in a sea of red flowers.

For Fujii, debuting in such an enormous dress was a sudden and unexpected arrangement, only revealed to her on the very morning she arrived at the venue. “I was never told beforehand… I just arrived as usual, waiting in the practice room… Suddenly, a staff member called me and guided me onto the stage…” she recounted. Born and raised in Ehime Prefecture, Fujii shared, “I’ve never worn a formal gown before, let alone one that is so gigantic… It is the biggest dress I’ve seen in my lifetime, and it was quite unbelievable when I was told that I would be the one to wear it…”

“Getting into the dress was very difficult…” Fujii explained. “Once the dress was secured, I was covered in a thick veil, and it was completely dark inside… I had no idea what was happening outside… I could only sense the outside world through sounds… I heard other members arriving and practicing… After a long time, I heard the audience start entering the stadium. As the sound of the crowd grew louder, I felt my heart start to beat faster…”

“After a few hours, when the veil was finally lifted, the sight was completely different from when it was first put on me…” Fujii recalled. “The audience seats were full, with over 14,000 spectators staring at me in this gigantic outfit… I was so frightened and nervous during the first ten minutes that I couldn’t speak a word… I instinctively wanted to escape, only to find myself fixed to the dress and utterly immovable… It was the encouraging voices from the audience that comforted and calmed me down…” the introverted Fujii mentioned shyly as she remembered the moment.

When asked about her concerns regarding the gigantic dress, Fujii candidly admitted, “There were many… The dress is so big that audiences in the front row might just see piles of fabric and not be able to see me… Since the bodice is fixed to the giant dress, it completely restricted my movement, and I couldn’t turn around… Audiences behind me couldn’t see my face, and I was scared I would disappoint them…”

She continued, “In the first few minutes, I was so nervous that I might have made mistakes… Wearing such a dominating dress, I feared I might steal attention from my teammates… I questioned whether I truly deserved to wear such a grand dress. These thoughts made me feel quite frustrated…”

“But the group was heartwarming,” Fujii added. “They seemed aware of my discomfort, and after the show, they came to the bottom of my dress and shouted out to me that I was doing well, telling me not to worry and welcoming me to the team… I was encouraged by their support…”

Teammates’ Impressions

Following the interview with Fujii, we also spoke with some of her teammates in the idol group. Mitsunomiya shared her thoughts on Fujii’s debut: “When the veil was slowly lifted, her appearance atop that enormous red dress really struck me. It was so gorgeous and magnificent.”

Ichihara, who met Fujii for the first time that day, offered her perspective: “Fujii is a nice girl. Honestly, I was initially quite dissatisfied with the management team’s decision. Her dress is so big, and as a newcomer, she was positioned so high up in that dress, which seemed to dwarf us all. But despite that superior treatment, Fujii doesn’t think she is any better than us and remains humble all the time. It must be incredibly stressful to wear such an enormous and grand dress for her first show, and staying calm like she did is quite difficult. I really admire her for that.”

“It was a novelty experience,” remarked Captain Haruno, despite having participated in countless concerts since joining the group. She noted that it was the first time seeing such a spectacular costume. “Since the expanse of the dress reaches the edge of the stage, we inevitably had to step on it when we moved to her side. Of course, we took off our shoes before stepping on her dress. It was a bit inconvenient, but stepping on it, I could feel the thickness and softness of the dress—it was a plush feeling. Overall, it was fun.”

The End of an Exhausting Day

Our journalists stayed until the very end. Finally, with the help of a dozen people, Fujii managed to get out of the gigantic dress with great difficulty, freeing herself from its constraints after wearing it for almost half a day. This marked the end of her exhausting yet fulfilling debut concert.

※Fictional

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