On May 15, 2022, during a stage production of Touken Ranbu titled Kiden Ikusa Sekai no Kabuki at the Ochiakigaku held at Shin Kabukiza in Osaka, it was announced that the Touken Ranbu: Kyoden Burning Honnoji would be turned from a play into an anime adaptation.
Touken Ranbu: Kyoden Burning Honnoji was first performed in 2016 and the story revolves around the Japanese sword, personified as Fudo Komitsu, which was given to Mori Ranmaru by Nobunaga Oda. Kenichi Suemitsu, who wrote the script for the film and directed the film, will do the series composition and screenplay for the anime version. The broadcasting time is not yet known.
It was also announced that a new play centering on Kunihiro’s character is in the works for February 2023, called Stage Touken Ranbu: Yamanbagiri Kunihiro Solo Line (Japanese Sword History). Hiroki Nanami plays Kasen Kanesada and Sho Ayanaji plays Ogurikara. The play will be performed in Tokyo, Kyoto and Fukuoka. In the summer a 7e Anniversary celebration for Stage Touken Ranbu will be held.
舞台『刀剣乱舞』順次公開決定！【舞台『刀剣乱舞』5周年記念プロジェクト】
2.5D anime musicals are becoming a new trend in Japan
Stage Touken Ranbu is a series of 2.5D plays co-produced by Marvelous Entertainment and DMM.com and inspired by the online browser game Touken Ranbu. Kenichi Suemitsu has directed all the plays in this franchise so far. The 2.5D plays announced in 2015 are not to be confused with the Musical: Touken Ranbu, which was announced at the same time.
What are 2.5D stay plays? A 2.5-dimensional musical is a type of modern Japanese musical theater production based solely on popular Japanese anime, manga or video games. The term 2.5D musical was coined to describe 2D anime stories brought to life.
In 2013, approximately 70 2.5D musicals were produced and attracted 1.6 million people (most of them young women in their teens and 20s). Starring in a 2.5D musical is often seen as a starting point in a young Japanese actor’s career.
Touken Ranbu goes from anime to real life and now from real life to anime
2.5D musicals differ from other anime musical adaptations by paying extra attention to detail, so that the costumes, makeup (appearance), and even personality (and funny expressions) of the characters portrayed by the actors and actresses are as close as possible. with the original anime characters. The goal is for the actor or actress to look like an anime character that has literally come to life. Special effects and stunts are used to recreate the fantasy worlds of anime.
The lyrics of the songs sung in the musicals are usually written by the directors. Recently, the use of projection mapping, which involves projecting backgrounds and special effects onto the stage and screens, has been used in many 2.5D musicals.
The first play in the Touken Ranbu franchise ran from May 3, 2016 to May 20, 2016 and was titled Kyo-den: Moyuru Honnoji. On May 20, 2016, the play was also streamed live in 60 theaters in Taiwan and Hong Kong and attracted more than 40,000 spectators.
Due to the success of this play, a spin-off production called Kyoden: Moyuru Honnoji: Saien ran from December 15, 2016 to January 17, 2017. There have been several other 2.5D games based on the Touken Ranbu franchise.
You can watch a trailer for the play Touken Ranbu: Kyoden Burning Honnoji here:
舞台『刀剣乱舞』虚伝 燃ゆる本能寺｜予告篇｜2021年11月23日（火・祝）より≪3週間限定公開≫
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