>>19220679>**—HIMAWARI, you’re active as both a pro wrestler and a stage actress. Are there any struggles in balancing these two forms of “expression”?** **HIMAWARI:** I’ve always loved standing in front of people and expressing something, so rather than struggles, the enjoyment is far greater. To me, stage acting and pro wrestling are very similar.
>**—Similar?** **HIMAWARI:** Yes. Both have that live feeling. They’re about expressing raw emotions in front of the audience and moving their hearts—in that sense, they’re exactly the same. But there are differences too. On stage, you act out the life of a “character” written in the script, as someone separate from yourself. Pro wrestling, though, is the character “HIMAWARI,” but at its core, it’s about expressing the essence of “Sato Himawari”—my real self, my life—over a lifetime.
>**—So you yourself become the content.** **HIMAWARI:** Exactly. On stage, there are lines and character settings, but in pro wrestling, if you’re empty inside, you can’t convey anything. You have to constantly grow yourself and fill up your inner self. That’s both the difficulty and the joy of pro wrestling.
>**—Are there ways the two activities positively influence each other?** **HIMAWARI:** Absolutely, tons! People often say I have a “noisy face” (laughs).
>**—“Noisy face” (laughs).** **HIMAWARI:** That’s probably because of my stage experience. On stage, you have to deliver your expressions to audience members far away, so naturally, your expressions become bigger. That habit carries over to wrestling, where I can show “pain,” “frustration,” or “fun” entirely through my face.
Conversely, the improved athletic ability and body control from wrestling have made stage sword fights and action scenes much easier. I have a stage play with sword fighting in November and December, and learning how to swing a sword there dramatically increased the “attack power” of my hair in wrestling.
