Spirited Away stage adaptation hits US theaters in April

Twenty years after Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, the stage adaptation Spirited Away: Live on Stage will be screened in US cinemas on April 23 and 27, distributed by GKids. Directed by Tony Award winner John Caird, honorary member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, the production features a cast of 40 actors and performers, with Kanna Hashimoto and Mone Kamishiraishi alternating as protagonist Chihiro Ogino. The show premiered on February 28, 2022 at the Imperial Theatre in Tokyo, running for a month before touring Osaka, Fukuoka, Sapporo, and Nagoya. Co-directed by Maoko Imai, with set design by Jon Bausor (London 2012 Paralympic opening ceremony), choreography by contemporary dance star Shigehiro Ide, puppetry by Toby Olié, and music by Joe Hisaishi. The 157-minute production uses puppets, visible set pieces, and choreography to recreate the fantasy world. Multiple actors play key roles: Mari Natsuki and Romi Park as Yubaba, Hiroki Miura and Kotaro Daigo as Haku, Koharu Sugahara and Tomohiko Tsugimoto as Kaonashi. The filmed version, captured with 17 cameras, streamed in Japan in spring 2022. A behind-the-scenes special aired on NHK in January. The stage adaptation follows other Miyazaki stage works: a kabuki Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and a Totoro production at London's Barbican Theatre.