A new chapter for Luce Twinkle Wink☆ starts here. Report on "New Organization Unveiling Live @AKIBA Culture's Theater" with new member Mio Sakimoto

Luce Twinkle Wink☆'s live "New Organization Unveiling Live @ AKIBA Culture's Theater" was held on February 15, 2019, at AKIBA Culture's Theater in Akihabara, Tokyo.

Luce Twinkle Wink☆ (hereafter referred to as "Luce") is a five-member idol unit that aims to bridge the gap between idols and anime, and since the graduation of Megumi Nishikiori on January 14, 2019, the four members, Yukino Usami, Saki Fukazawa, Saori Itayama, and Kaho Higaki, have been performing for the past month. Then, new member Mio Sakimoto performed for the first time at this live, for which the unveiling of a new member had been announced. This was the first live performance under the new Luce organization.

Ms. Mio Sakimoto is from Sendai and her nickname is "Saaki-un. The audition for new members was announced in November last year, and after Sakimoto's affiliation was officially decided at the beginning of the year, she has been training hard and finishing her performance as Luce at a rapid pace. Many winkers (Luce fans) gathered at the AKIBA Culture's Theater, where Luce regularly performs, to witness her first stage performance.

The five appeared with the familiar sound effects and loud calls from the audience. Sakimoto's presence was palpable as she fluttered her straight black hair. The first song chosen for the new Luce was "Twinkle "5" stars! . The song was created for Luce's first album. With lyrics provided by Maon Kurosaki, the song shows the determination of the five members to move forward together, and the dance is highly challenging. From the beginning of the live, the audience could feel the strong will to show the new Luce. Fight on!" and "go to Romance＞＞＞＞＞" were performed in rapid succession, drawing a buzz of excitement from the audience.

Luce's performances are characterized by the intensity and perfection of their live dances and their inexhaustible stamina to keep up with them almost nonstop. The people who know this best are the winners who have been watching Luce by attending regular performances. That is why there was an air of surprise when they brought "go to Romance＞＞＞＞＞," an energetic, fun but intense dance to the third song, as if it were a matter of course.

What impressed me most about Mio Sakimoto's stage performance was how gorgeous and lovely she looked with her smile, which had the air of a legitimate idol. Her eyes would close comfortably as she sang, and her face was full of expression. It is definitely one of her talents to be able to show a bright and gorgeous smile on stage, where it is impossible not to be nervous about being a new member of a unit that has been active for many years. In terms of dancing, the dancers worked hard to keep up with Luce's high-level choreography. Of course, there were still some areas where they could not match the sharpness and beauty of the movements of the four traditional members, especially when paired with Saori Itayama, but I think they were able to keep up with them with great precision. As for singing while dancing, I felt there was room for improvement. I believe that the new Luce can be even more wonderful as much as Ms. Sakimoto works hard and grows.

During the first MC, Ms. Usami declared, "The second chapter of Luce is about to begin! declared Ms. Usami. She introduced Ms. Mio Sakimoto and her nickname "Saaki-Run". Ms. Sakimoto made her first speech, "I was scared until 30 seconds before the show, but the warmth of the audience made me feel relieved. The members kept saying "Saaki-Chun is so cute! I was scared until 30 seconds before the show. Ms. Higaki spoke of Ms. Sakimoto's emotional strength, saying that even when other candidates who danced with her during the audition made mistakes, she continued to dance without wavering and without getting upset.

Ms. Sakimoto said that on her days off, she used to stay at home and watch anime and idol shows, but that her intense training for Luce has made her healthier. Ms. Sakimoto also spoke of her longing for Luce, saying that when she lived in her hometown of Sendai, she used to sing "Koiiro Keisatsu Kikuitsu" at karaoke, but suddenly she said "Please! one word. Whenever she felt like crying on stage, she asked the leader, Ms. Usami, for advice on how to say "Please!

In the next block, they performed "Jyubou Stardom," "Koi no prologue*," and "1st Love Story. During "Koi no Prologue*", Ms. Usami and Mr. Sakimoto held hands with a choreographed hand gesture, and it was impressive that Ms. Usami looked at Mr. Sakimoto with a smile many times during the performance. During "1st Love Story," the members were surprised by the audience's loud calls of "Saaki-un! from the audience during "1st Love Story," to which even the members were surprised.

During the MC corner, the four members presented Ms. Sakimoto with a gift. The gift was a pair of line pants that Luce always wears for practice. It was also revealed that Ms. Sakimoto's birthday is March 12, so the upcoming regular performance on March 15 is sure to be a lot of fun.

The last block featured "You are a star!", "Setsuna Halation", and "Koiiro ♡♡ Thinking Circuit". When they sang the cute and comical song "You are a star!", Itayama-san's voice was heard piercing through the cute component, and one could sense a change in the balance of their singing voices due to the change of members. The last song of the stage with the new members was "Setsuna Halation" and "Koiiro♡Thought Circuit," the important first songs for Luce.

Ms. Sakimoto said, "I am so happy to be a part of this group. It's been a lot of fun! She closed the live with "Ganbaru-chie", the first song by the five of them. The new chapter of Luce Twinkle Wink☆ starts from here.

(Reporting by Kiri Nakazato, Photography by Takayuki Matsumoto)

Setlist】】M01:Twinkle "5"5"6

M01:Twinkle "5" stars!

M02:Fight on!

M03:go to Romance＞＞＞＞＞

M04: Envy Stardom

M05:Prologue* of Love

M06:1st Love Story

M07:You are a star!

M08:Setsuna Halation

M09:Koiiro ♡Keikoukouri