It has been announced that the new musical "Shinjuku Hats 8:15," written and directed by Koki Mitani and starring Yuki Amami and Shingo Katori, will be broadcast and streamed on WOWOW in September. The musical ran in Tokyo, Osaka, and Fukuoka from April Getsuku and concluded on May 30th.
The story unfolds as a southbound local train departs Shinjuku Station. From the moment the train stops due to a level crossing accident until it resumes operation, the film depicts in real time the people who happened to be in the same place at the same time: passengers on the train, people waiting on the platform, railway staff supporting the operation, and police officers responding to the situation. A single word spoken from inside the train reaches the platform, and a decision made at the scene influences someone else's choice. Small events trigger further events, seemingly unrelated lives become connected, and the chain reaction accelerates rapidly.
There are approximately 100 characters, all played by 15 actors, and each time the perspective shifts, the same moment takes on a completely different appearance. Kazuyuki Asano, who plays about 10 different roles, is at the forefront, while Amami and Katori also surprised the audience with their rapid-fire role changes.
Amami transforms from a cool transport command center chief giving precise instructions to a cooking researcher who adores her darling, while Katori, as a news Caster, reports the situation while stirring up trouble with his dark remarks. Furthermore, even "non-human characters" make an appearance, and the tense atmosphere is filled with laughter, resulting in a masterpiece that leaves a lasting impression at the end.
The cast also includes Matsuya Onoe, Eiji Wentz, Sylvia Grab, Shinya Niiro, Tomohiko Imai, Sayaka Akimoto, Rie Minemura, Takahiro Fujimoto Yuta Ozawa, Yasuhiro Ohno, Arisa Nakajima, and Takashi Kobayashi. The music was composed by Kiyoko Ogino.
WOWOW will broadcast and stream the performance, which was recorded at the Nippon Seinenkan Hall (Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo) on April 22nd, in September.
◇Story
8:15 AM. A southbound local train departing from Shinjuku comes to a halt due to a level crossing accident. Trapped inside the train, stranded on the platform, in the control room and at the scene... the "now" of the people who happened to be there at the same time unfolds simultaneously, and a single word or decision determines someone else's next move. We follow the events in real time from when the train stops until it starts moving again, and the events spread horizontally, creating a chain reaction. What will happen at the moment service resumes, when everything connects...?
