People :
A Lifework of “Narrating” as a Voice Actress
Ms. Shizuka Suzuike

Ms. Shizuka Suzuike Graduated from Fujimura Womens’ High school, Tokyo Woman’ Sports Junior College, and Waseda University School of Letters, Arts and Sciences II (Evening Division). First year student of the MA course of the Graduate School of Public Management. Apart from running a manpower dispatching agency called Tamino and Company Co., she actively works as a voice actress and an narrator. Her stage name is “Yuna Shizuka”, and she’s the manager of the theater group “Yuna Time”.

The real voice which speaks the part of Kayama Rika in the well- known “Rika Chan Telephone” is actually quite husky. I am comforted by the soft soothing way she talks and am unconsciously drawn into the conversation. Ms. Suzuike had said that it was not her dream to become a voice on the screen or on radio. Originally she worked in a bank where she “drastically lost weight due to stress” and quit her job, taking a working holiday to Australia. There, while working at a hotel, she was given the job of a reception host. After returning to Japan, she began with the opportunity to be a host for weddings and then gradually expanded her work sphere to include being a narrator or companion at exhibitions. Soon, she made up her mind that “I want to work using my voice!” In a seminar conducted by the famous Mr. Tadashi Nakamura, who narrated the introductory part of the drama “Bewitched”, Ms. Shizuike in no time strengthened her skills under the teaching of a professional. She told us that “In this world, we stress how to make words appear bold and clear to listeners, but I had already learned through practice how to maneuver words as I want them.”

She first entered the School of Letters, Arts and Sciences with the intention to “work on drama theories with my voice actor/actress friends”, but her interests gradually shifted to psychology, and she earned a certified qualification as a psychologist. “Psychology is a subject which brings in the talking or reading I do as a life work outside my job, and I also want to see the influence I can make on society.” In the elementary school where she reads voluntarily to children, the children who do not come to school on a regular basis actually come to hear her read. “The power of reading is really big. I feel that maybe I can be something for the children who are closed up but seeking help even though they cannot open up for communication.” At graduate school, she studies stress-related issues in society from the point of view of a voice actress. “I would like to try reading to people in medical facilities and welfare institutions for the aged and see if there is a difference in psychological condition before and after there reading, to find new ways to reduce the stress”, she explained eagerly. She is active in many areas as a student, a voice actress, and also a manager. When asked the question “Aren’t you busy juggling so many things at once?” she replies, “Whenever I’m puzzled whether to do this or another thing, I say just “go for it, do both.” If I find I’m not successful, I think again at that point about what is important.” You could see a firm confidence in the expression of her face.