One Minute World Arts- Spirited Away on Stage

The year 2022 marks the 90th year of production of TOHO, a major Japanese film, theater production and distribution company. To celebrate, a new theatrical production of Hayao Miyazaki’s classic animated movie, Spirited Away, was planned and developed for a long time, and is finally presented at the Imperial Theater, Tokyo in March this year. The play is written and directed by John Caird, the honorary Associate Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company who is also the director of the famous musical Les Misérable.

Most of the roles in this production are double cast. Kana Hashimoto and Mone Kamishiraishi, two popular actresses, are invited to play the protagonist Chhiro by turns. Meanwhile, Mari Natsuki, the actress who voiced the twin witches Yubaba and Zeniba in the original animated movie, is set to play these two characters on stage. (The other actress who plays these two roles is Romi Park.) What’s even more eye-catching is that each of the fantastical creatures in the story will be presented with gorgeous puppetry. The marvelous visual pleasure provided by the stage production is highly anticipated.

Spirited Away, TOHO’s 90th anniversary theatrical production, runs at the Imperial Theater, Tokyo till March 29, followed by a national tour in Japan that will visit Osaka, Fukuoka, Hokkaido, and Aichi Ken.

《神隱少女》舞台版

2022年適逢日本東寶影劇公司(TOHO) 創立90週年，遂特別製作了動畫大師宮崎駿經典電影《神隱少女》的劇場版，以資慶祝。此劇由英國皇家莎士比亞劇團榮譽副總監，同時也是音樂劇《悲慘世界》的導演約翰卡德(John Caird)擔任編導，歷經長期籌劃，才終於在今年3月登上東京帝國劇場的舞台，與觀眾見面。

本製作的一大特色為「雙卡司」；不但邀得日本當紅女演員橋本環奈與上白石萌音二人，分頭飾演主人翁千尋，而且還請出原版電影中湯婆婆與錢婆婆的聲優(配音員)夏木麻里，來扮演這對雙胞胎女巫（另一版的女巫則由朴璐美擔綱）。此外，更值得戲迷引頸期盼的是，舞台版導演運用編排精巧的偶戲，來詮釋動畫版中那些非人的角色，精彩地呈現了故事裡那個奇幻的世界。

劇場版《神隱少女》將會在東京帝國劇場上演至3月29日，隨後轉至大阪、福岡、北海道和愛知縣等地，進行日本國內巡演。

 

Sources:  https://www.polygon.com/22961714/spirited-away-stage-play-photos、https://www.tohostage.com/spirited_away/

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Toby Olie/Toho Stage