May 16, 2022 

For Immediate Release, Please: 

Contact: Kenji Ogino | k_ogino@toho.co.jp | Tokyo 

Masaki Fujiwara | ma_fujiwara@toho.co.jp | NY 

WORLD PREMIERE OF FRANK WILDHORN’S NEW MUSICAL YOUR LIE IN APRIL OPENS IN TOKYO 

TOKYO, JAPAN – May 16, 2022: The world premiere of a brand-new musical Your  Lie in April finally opened its curtain to a house full of enthusiastic audience at the  prestigious Nissay Theatre on Saturday, May 7th in Tokyo two years after the  cancellation of the world premiere in 2020 due to the pandemic. The house continues  to be full everyday with tickets already sold out almost entirely. 

The musical, an adaptation of Naoshi Arakawa’s masterpiece manga of the same title  which has been adapted into a TV anime series in 2014 as well as a hit live-action film  in 2016, boasts a great collaboration of Broadway creators and Japanese musical talents.  Music is by musical maestro Frank Wildhorn (Jekyll & Hyde, The Scarlet Pimpernel,  Wonderland, Bonnie & Clyde, Death Note, Mata Hari, Rudolf), lyrics by Tracy Miller 

and Carly Robyn Green (The Light of Firenze, Kung-Fu Masters, Houdini) and Frank  Wildhorn, arrangements and orchestrations by Jason Howland (Little Women - the Musical, Ikiru, Beautiful - the Carole King Musical, Jekyll & Hyde), book by Riko  Sakaguchi who has co-written a Studio Ghibli film and written many other TV drama  and films (The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, Mary and The Witch's Flower), and lyrics  translation and direction by Ikko Ueda (Little Shop of Horrors, Love’s Labour’s Lost,  The Man Who Laughs, On Your Feet!, Dead Poet Society, Next to Normal, Legally  Blonde). The show is produced by Toho Co., Ltd. and Fuji Television Network, Inc.

Your Lie in April centers around a piano prodigy Kosei Arima, who has lost the ability  to hear the sound of the piano in his childhood since the death of his mother, who used  to be his strict piano teacher, and is no longer able to face the piano. This changes one  day in April when Kosei, now a high school student, meets a violinist of the same age,  Kaori Miyazono, through his childhood friend Tsubaki Sawabe with his high school  friend Ryota Watari. After hearing Kaori's overwhelmingly free performance at a violin  competition, Kosei's world begins to take on colorful hues once again. Kaori tries to  bring Kosei back to the world of music somehow, and Kosei becomes more and more  attracted to Kaori. However, just as Kosei is about to return to the world of music, he  discovers that Kaori has a big secret. 

The musical stars Yuta Koseki and Tatsunari Kimura as Kosei Arima (double cast),  Erika Ikuta as Kaori Miyazono, Fuka Yuzuki as Tsubaki Sawabe, and Koki Mizuta and Takuto Teranishi as Ryota Watari. 

The audience showered the cast members with applause at the raucous curtain call of  the opening night and continued expressing their fervent appreciation as the casts  brought on stage the Grammy- and Tony-nominated musician, Mr. Frank Wildhorn as  well as Ms. Carly Robyn Green. Mr. Wildhorn and Ms. Green had flown from the states  to celebrate the opening of the international collaboration. Mr. Wildhorn saluted the  audience, introducing the cast and creatives, and said: 

“It is a pure miracle that we are able to finally open Your Lie in April after these two  challenging years. This musical has truly universal themes of family, friendship, loss,  first love, adulthood, and the power that music has in all our lives. I would like to thank  everyone for giving us a chance for our voice to be heard.” 

The buzz on the internet is created not only by the fans of the source material and  musicals but also by newcomers of such, which many commented on the well-delivered  emotions and youthful energy through the great power of music. Reviews included the  words of: a "universal" story that is refreshingly brought together by the many brilliant  songs with countless "take-home tunes". 

Your Lie in April continues its Tokyo run at the Nissay Theatre until Sunday May 29th.  The musical will then tour to Gunma, Aichi, Hyogo, Toyama, and Fukuoka from  Saturday June 4th to Sunday July 3rd. 

Toho Co., Ltd. is a leading production company of theatre and film in Japan,  internationally recognized for the Godzilla series and for Akira Kurosawa’s  masterpieces. Its theatrical department has presented numerous original and licensed  musicals and plays in Japan, including Broadway and West End imports such as Les  Misérables, Miss Saigon, Mary Poppins, My Fair Lady, Man of La Mancha, Fiddler on  the Roof, La Cage Aux Folles, RENT, Jekyll & Hyde, Fun Home, Next to Normal,  Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Jersey Boys, Beautiful: The Carole King  Musical, Ghost The Musical, Bullets Over Broadway, Waitress, The Producers and  NEWSIES among many others. In 2017, Toho presented a new production of  Shakespeare’s As You Like It directed by Michael Mayer, music by Tom Kitt,  choreography by Lorin Latarro. Coming productions including Guys and Dolls directed by Michael Arden, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, and more. Recently, Toho 

has co-produced the Broadway musical Tootsie. Toho has also produced the Japanese  versions of musicals from Central Europe, including Elisabeth, Mozart!, and Rebecca  the Musical. The company also produced the original musicals and plays, including Marie Antoinette and Lady Bess with the creators of Elisabeth, book and lyrics by  Michael Kunze, and lyrics by Sylvester Levay, the musical adaptation of Roman  Holiday, Crest of the Royal Family, music by Sylvester Levay, Knight’ Tale music and  lyrics by Paul Gordon, book and directed by John Caird. Toho’s most recent  production was the stage adaptation of Hayao Miyazaki’s awards winning animation  masterpiece Spirited Away, adapted and directed by John Caird and co-adapted by  Maoko Imai. Toho’s musical productions have been licensed internationally, Marie  Antoinette was presented in Germany, Korea and Hungary, and Lady Bess was  presented in Switzerland. 

Fuji Television, since commencing broadcasts in 1959, has shared countless stories of  love and friendship, good and evil. As a trendsetter, we have remained half a step ahead  of these rapidly changing times by delivering innovative dramas, variety shows,  newscasts, sports programs, and motion pictures. That is the very reason why Fuji  Television has been able to maintain its position as the leading commercial broadcaster  in the Japanese media industry. Fuji Television’s vision to allow its creativity to reach  beyond things that are only Japanese, has helped in its path to global expansion. The  one-of-a-kind, highly energetic, cooking show “Iron Chef” became a huge hit after  entering the American market in the mid-1990s. “Iron Chef,” based on Fuji Television’s  format, has since become the role model for how to make programs that will thrill  audiences around the world. With over 60 years of experience, Fuji Television has  accumulated extensive expertise and knowledge in producing hit TV shows and formats,  prompting drama remakes to local markets as well as co-producing original programs  with major overseas production companies. By leveraging these skill sets and our  innovative DNA, we continue to expand into new markets around the world, bringing  Japanese creativity to a wider audience. 

For more information, please visit www.tohostage.com/ kimiuso (Japanese only)

SCENES FROM YOUR LIE IN APRIL 

*High-resolution jpeg files available upon request.