A press conference announcing the opening lineup for "EX Theater Ariake," a new theater located within "Tokyo Dream Park," a multi-purpose entertainment complex that TV Asahi will open in Ariake, Tokyo on March 27, was held at the same location on the 25th.
EX Theater Ariake is a theater with a maximum of 1,546 seats spread across three floors. At the press conference, it was explained that the theater employs a staggered seating arrangement to minimize obstruction of the view by front-row spectators, and that ample space is provided between seats in all directions to create a comfortable viewing environment. In addition, the stage floor is a removable "assembly floor" to allow for highly flexible staging. Furthermore, the walls are designed with excellent sound insulation to ensure that stage sounds are evenly distributed throughout the audience.
On this day, the plays to be performed in the opening year were introduced, and the cast and production staff took to the stage. Attendees included Masahiko Kawahara, director of the inaugural performance "AmberS" (April-May), and co-stars Kazuya Ohashi and Takuto Teranishi; Hidenori Inoue, director of the Gekidan Shinkansen 46th Anniversary Summer Performance "Akechiko! ~The Black Diamond of Steam, or the Island of Madness~" (June-July), and cast member Arata Furuta; and Yuna Koyama, translator and director of the musical "Dear Evan Hansen" (July-August).
Next, Hikaru Iwamoto, who stars in the musical "Time Traveler's Wife" (September), Yukihiko Tsutsumi, director of the stage play "Knockin' on Locked Door THE STAGE" (October), and co-stars Tatsuya Ueda and Noel Kawashima, Kaori Kobayashi, director of the musical "Me and My Girl" (December), and Hiroki Miura, who stars in it, and Yuichi Fukuda, director of the musical "Monty Python's SPAMALOT" (January 2027), and Takanori Iwata, who stars in it, also attended.
Tsutsumi expressed his enthusiasm for "Knockin' on Locked Door THE STAGE," saying, "I've been given a script that I think probably can't be done on stage. I'm hoping to use this amazing mechanism to create expressions that are impossible on stage."
