I’ve noticed that a lot of people don’t realize how much theatre there is in Japan, which is sad, because Japan and South Korea have about as much theatre as the US and UK nowadays.
I’ve been going to 2.5D plays since I moved here about 6 years ago, but last year, I started going to more musicals as well.
It’s true that most is in Japanese with no translation provided, but I know a lot of people who go to plays here, don’t speak Japanese, and enjoy them. Besides, if you’re intermediate or so, it’s a great way to practice listening. And if it’s something that you’re very familiar with in English (*Les Miz* is coming back at the end of the year, for example), the language barrier shouldn’t be an issue.
(I am more than willing to translate anything musical-related for anyone who needs)
Also, these aren’t just in Tokyo. Most larger productions tour to Osaka and at least one other city. Streams are also pretty common as well. One production is streaming three performances. While they don’t have subtitles, a lot of the streaming sites have their website available in English, so that might help.
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Recently, a new musical called *Isabeau* premiered. It’s about a medieval French queen who was considered evil, but the play ends up turning it around and making her more sympathetic than her enemies. The star of it, Nozomi Futo, is a Takarazuka graduate.
Another big premier this year is the musical adaptation of *JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure*, with music by Dove Attia, a famous French composer.
Takarazuka is also doing a musical of that Indian movie, *RRR*.
There are also a lot of Korean musicals premiering in Japan recently. Last year had *Darwin Young* and *The Devil*, two of the year’s best. This year, productions of *Navillera* (based on a manhwa which apparently also had a drama), and *Sonata of a Flame* (a “thriller”) have been announced, as well as a musical called *Smoke*, about an important Korean poet, which has been performed in Japan before.
For Western musicals, aside from *Les Miz*, Toho has also announced that *Mozart! Das Musical* (from the composers of *Elisabeth*) will be coming back this year. Another production company, Horipro, is doing *Sweeney Todd* and *Come From Away* this Spring.
And Gekidan Shiki has their lineup of Disney and other big Broadway titles in rotation/touring the country. *Wicked* is currently on stage in Tokyo from them. They’re also premiering a musical called *Ghost and Lady* this year, which is based on a manga that ran in the magazine Morning. Interesting, since last year’s best musical was also based on a manga from the same magazine.
It’s not in Japan yet, but in Korea, there’s a new musical of *Rose of Versailles*, with music by Brandon Lee, the composer of the recent musicals of *Frankenstein* and *Ben Hur*.
It’s actually not as hard as it might seem to get tickets. The process intimidated me at first, but ePlus and Pia work pretty well. You can usually pay by credit card, or in convenience stores, and print the tickets in convenience stores. Sometimes, you can buy them from the machines in convenience stores, too. Applying for lotteries is a lot less necessary that I thought it would be, but it’s still recommended.
There’s also TKTS! You might know them from New York — if you’ve never been to Times Square, it’s under those big red stairs you see in photos. TKTS has booths in Shibuya (outside of Hikarie) and Shinjuku (by the new Kabukicho tower) where you can buy tickets. They’re probably very English-friendly. In New York, TKTS sells same-day, discount Broadway tickets. I’m not sure if the ones here are all same-day or discounted, though. But it’s worth a look!
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Please ask any questions you might have!
Have you been to musicals in Japan? What’s your favorite thing that you’ve seen? What are you excited for? Which actors do you like?
If anyone’s more experienced with musicals than I am, please correct anything I said that was wrong.
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(For flair… I didn’t see a general “entertainment” flair, just “gaming”, so I put “nichijou”… I hope that’s okay.)
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