Forbidden Dance
Encyclopedia
is a shōjo
manga
by Hinako Ashihara
consisting of four volumes. It was published in English by TokyoPop
in the fall of 2003 and is currently out of print in the United States.
, but an accident during the National Competition caused her an ankle injury that left her unable to dance for nearly a year. Although Aya recovers physically, it quickly becomes clear that she has not recovered psychologically. It isn't until she is invited to watch the performance of a small ballet troupe, called COOL, that Aya comes out of her funk. Now she has a new goal, to dance on stage with the charismatic leader of COOL: Akira Hibiya. However, since Akira has an incredibly strong presence and powerful charisma
many girls have made such proclamations that have been ignored, thus Aya was labeled a fanatical fangirl and promptly escorted from the theater where the performance took place.
As the story progresses Aya struggles to prove her worth as a ballet dancer and earn her place in COOL while struggling with more typical teenage concerns such as grades and her friends. While the main focus is Aya throughout the plot line the readers learn more about the backgrounds of most of the supporting characters. Aya herself is not left out of the character development as she refines her ballet technique and matures emotionally throughout the narrative.
Shojo
The term refers to manga marketed to a female audience roughly between the ages of 10-18. The name romanizes the Japanese 少女 , literally: "little female". Shōjo manga covers many subjects in a variety of narrative and graphic styles, from historical drama to science fiction — often with a strong...
manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
by Hinako Ashihara
Hinako Ashihara
is a female Japanese manga artist. She wrote the manga Sand Chronicles, Forbidden Dance, "SOS," "Ten-nen Bitter Chocolate", Homemade Home, and "Chouchou Kumo "...
consisting of four volumes. It was published in English by TokyoPop
Tokyopop
Tokyopop, styled TOKYOPOP, and formerly known as Mixx, is a distributor, licensor, and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa, and Western manga-style works. The existing German publishing division produces German translations of licensed Japanese properties and original English-language manga, as well...
in the fall of 2003 and is currently out of print in the United States.
Plot
Aya Fujii is a high school student who eats, sleeps, and breaths balletBallet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
, but an accident during the National Competition caused her an ankle injury that left her unable to dance for nearly a year. Although Aya recovers physically, it quickly becomes clear that she has not recovered psychologically. It isn't until she is invited to watch the performance of a small ballet troupe, called COOL, that Aya comes out of her funk. Now she has a new goal, to dance on stage with the charismatic leader of COOL: Akira Hibiya. However, since Akira has an incredibly strong presence and powerful charisma
Charisma
The term charisma has two senses: 1) compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others, 2) a divinely conferred power or talent. For some theological usages the term is rendered charism, with a meaning the same as sense 2...
many girls have made such proclamations that have been ignored, thus Aya was labeled a fanatical fangirl and promptly escorted from the theater where the performance took place.
As the story progresses Aya struggles to prove her worth as a ballet dancer and earn her place in COOL while struggling with more typical teenage concerns such as grades and her friends. While the main focus is Aya throughout the plot line the readers learn more about the backgrounds of most of the supporting characters. Aya herself is not left out of the character development as she refines her ballet technique and matures emotionally throughout the narrative.