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Takarazuka Revue set to perform 'Rurouni Kenshin' musical early next year

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By Krista Rogers, RocketNews24

In early 2016, the beloved "Rurouni Kenshin" series will be getting its first musical adaptation by the Takarazuka Revue, Japan’s all-female musical theater troupe. If you’re a fan of the manga and singing, check out when and where the musical will be performed and start planning accordingly.

Nobuhiro Watsuki’s original "Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Swordsman Romantic Story" manga ran in the pages of Shuiesha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine between 1994-1999. The story spawned a hit anime series, critically acclaimed OVAs, and, more recently, a live-action film trilogy that starred heart-throb Takeru Sato and concluded last fall.

The musical production will be performed by the Takarazuka Revue at both the Takarazuka Grand Theater in Takarazuka, Hyogo Prefecture, and at the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater in the capital’s Yurakucho district. The Takarazuka Grand Theater run will be from February 5 to March 14, 2016 (advance tickets will go on sale January 9) and the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater run will be from April 1 to May 8, 2016 (advance tickets will go on sale February 28).

One of the unique characteristics of the Takarazuka Revue, besides its all-female ensemble cast, which is famous for staging such productions as "The Rose of Versailles," is the division of its members into five different troupes, each of which specializes in a signature style and/or element. The "Rurouni Kenshin" musical will be performed by the Revue’s Snow Troupe, which is considered “the upholder of traditional dance and opera for the whole company” — fitting for a work of historical fiction such as Kenshin, which is set after Japan’s Meiji Restoration in 1868.

Along with the announcement come some details regarding the main cast members involved in the production. The Snow Troupe’s top otokoyaku (“male role” actor) Seina Sagiri and top musumeyaku (“female role” actor) Miyu Sakihi will presumably portray main characters Kenshin Himura and Kaoru Kamiya in the musical. Shuichiro Koike will be in charge of the script and production.

t’s been almost 16 years since the manga concluded, so it’s been a pleasure to see the "Rurouni Kenshin" revival over the past few years in the form of live-action movies, new manga spin-offs by the original author, and now this new musical production.

Sources: Biglobe News, Wikipedia

Read more stories from RocketNews24 -- New live-action Sailor Moon stage musical cast revealed -- Can you name 5 traditional Japanese arts that are distinctly female? -- Hello Kitty takes to the stage for the Sanrio musical

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