July 2023. 「096kKumamoto Opera Company' has departed for Paris for Europe's largest manga event, 'Japan Expo 2023'!
"Japan Expo" is an event dedicated to Japanese culture held in Paris, France.
The event was first held in 1999, and the number of visitors has continued to increase each year. This year, a whopping 255,000 visitors visited.
Visitors can enjoy a variety of activities related to Japanese culture, including manga and anime, cosplay, webtoons, special exhibits, and live events. Manga publisher Coamix will also be participating in this year's "Japan Expo 2023." Tsukasa Hojo, a director at Coamix and a highly popular manga artist in France (his masterpieces ``CITY HUNTER'' and ``Cats❤︎I''), was invited as a special guest. Furthermore, the ``096k Kumamoto Opera Company'' operated by Coamix also chose ``Japan Expo 2023'' as its first overseas performance venue and appeared on the stage.
``096k Kumamoto Revue Company'' is a theater company made up entirely of women. The play is based on the manga ``Keiji Maeda Kabuki Tabi'' (original work: Tetsuo Hara, Nobuhiko Horie, illustrations: Masato Deguchi).
The original work has currently sold over 1 million copies in Japan, and its theatrical performances are enjoyed by many people, especially in Kumamoto. Therefore, we decided to participate in "Japan Expo" in the hope of showing this performance to an international audience. In France, the original manga is translated and published by piccoma Europe.
Over four days, 20 of the 24 members of the troupe and many staff members performed on two stages within the event, which was dedicated to manga and Japanese animation.
・At the venue's main stage (ICHIGO STAGE), the stage play ``Maeda Keiji Kabuki Tabi ~Higo no Tora/Kato Kiyomasa~'' will be performed.
・Live performances of traditional Japanese performing arts and anime songs will be performed at the Japanese Culture Performance Stage (SAKURA STAGE).
◾️Stage performance (July 13th and 15th)
This was the biggest challenge for the 096k Kumamoto Opera Company. The aim is to express the stage play ``Maeda Keiji Kabuki Tabi - Higo Tora Kiyomasa Kato'' in just 60 minutes. This play was originally intended for a Japanese audience and was approximately 75 minutes long, but this time it had to be changed and simplified to make it easier for a French audience to understand within the limited time available. I was worried whether the charm of this stage would be fully conveyed, but the result was a huge success that exceeded all expectations!
The performance, whose audience grew from 400 to 1,500 in just two days, captivated French audiences with subtitles created especially for the occasion. With a moving story supervised by an international editorial team and passionate performances by 20 members of the troupe, this play transcends the Japanese language and captures the hearts of French fans, who express their love and support after watching the show. He brought his feelings to the performance.
Furthermore, as special guests, Kumamon, who has become a character representing Japan from Kumamoto, and KUNI-KEN, who have participated in "Japan Expo" many times as a shamisen rock unit, will also appear on this stage. With the addition of their power, the stage became even more enthusiastic.
Additionally, backgrounds and animation effects were added for the French performance. These backgrounds were created by 10 winners of the World Silent Manga Audition who came to Japan and are working at Coamix's Kumamoto base. It is planned to be used at future performances in Kumamoto. The background created together in Takamori Town by the 096k Kumamoto Opera Company and artists visiting from all over the world is sure to enhance the quality of the live performance and deliver even more excitement.
◾️Japanese entertainment performance and anime song medley (July 14th and 16th)
In addition to stage performances, the 096k Kumamoto Opera Company presented its proud Japanese performing arts to French fans, including Japanese drumming, singing, and sword fighting. In addition, as a special accent, the theme songs of the animated works by Tsukasa Hojo and Tetsuo Hara (TM NETWORK's "Get Wild", Anri's "CAT'S EYE", Crystal King's "Recover the Love!!") were played. The troupe members captivated the audience with their moving performances.
Furthermore, since the original author is from Kumamoto, a special cover of the anime opening song ``We Are!'' from the world-famous manga ``ONE PIECE'' was also performed, and approximately 3,000 people attended this special performance over two days. Had fun!
Throughout the four-day event, the audience remembered the faces of the members of the 096k Kumamoto Opera Company, and many fans stopped in front of the members, took photos with them, and expressed their gratitude directly. He told me.
"096k Kumamoto Opera Company" will continue to perform in Japan and abroad, conveying the beauty of Kumamoto and Takamori Town and the charm of Coa Mix's wonderful manga to many fans around the world!
Merci, Japan Expo!
Merci, France!
Abyant! (Let's meet again)
