The World Is Dancing Anime's Music Trailer Adds Yoji Matsuda and Miyuki Sawashiro to Cast
The casting of a veteran actor like Yoji Matsuda in his first regular TV anime role signals that the production is investing in experienced talent to ground its historical drama about the origins of Noh theater.
Key Facts
- Veteran voice actor Yoji Matsuda, known for his role as Ashitaka in Princess Mononoke, joins the cast of The World Is Dancing as Inuo, marking his first regular role in a serialized TV anime.
- Miyuki Sawashiro, whose credits include Fujiko Mine in Lupin the Third and Kurapika in Hunter x Hunter (2011), voices Shirabyoshi, a woman struggling to survive in difficult circumstances.
- The anime is set to premiere on July 2 on Tokyo MX and KBS Kyoto in Japan, with additional broadcasts on other networks starting July 3.
- Reijiro Tsumura, a Kanze-school Noh performer and Important Intangible Cultural Property holder, is supervising the Noh choreography for the series.
Reporting from 3 sources: Anime News Network, Anime Corner, The Fandom Post.
The staff of the television anime adaptation of Kazuto Mihara's manga The World Is Dancing released a music trailer and announced two new cast members on Friday. Veteran voice actor Yoji Matsuda, known for his role as Ashitaka in Princess Mononoke, joins the cast as Inuo, a mysterious man who appears and disappears while influencing the protagonist Oniyasha. Matsuda stated that this is his first regular role in a serialized TV anime. Miyuki Sawashiro, whose credits include Fujiko Mine in Lupin the Third and Kurapika in Hunter x Hunter (2011), voices Shirabyoshi, a woman struggling to survive in difficult circumstances. The trailer also previews vocal insert songs performed by Yumiri Hanamori as Oniyasha and Romi Park as Zojiro. The anime is set to premiere on July 2 on Tokyo MX and KBS Kyoto in Japan, with additional broadcasts on other networks starting July 3. Toshimasa Kuroyanagi directs the series at Cygames Pictures, with character designs by Keigo Sasaki. The story follows a boy named Oniyasha born into a family of sarugaku theater performers in 1374, who would later shape the art of Noh and be remembered as Zeami.
Matsuda said in a statement that the project's title and protagonist Zeami (Oniyasha) made him "incredibly excited," and that he was "eagerly awaiting the script, looking forward to seeing how his relationship with Oniyasha would be depicted." Sawashiro said she felt "daunted" by the role of Shirabyoshi, a woman who has struggled to survive, but was "captivated by the deep yearning of her soul."
The production has brought in specialists to ensure accurate period dance. Reijiro Tsumura, a Kanze-school Noh performer and Important Intangible Cultural Property holder, is supervising the Noh choreography. Additional choreography is handled by dancer Kaiji Moriyama, who directed the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics Opening Ceremony, and choreographer Mikiko Kawamura.
Shochiku and CyberAgent are co-producing the series. The opening theme song "shusho" is performed by Macaroni Empitsu. Satoshi Nemoto is credited for calligraphy and title lettering. The full voice cast also includes Shimba Tsuchiya as Ishiya, Maaya Uchida as Kogane, Katsuyuki Konishi as Kan'ami, Haruki Ishiya as Junigoro, Takahiro Sakurai as Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Nobuo Tobita as Nijo Yoshimoto, Mamiko Noto as Nariko, Inori Minase as Chiharu, and Hazuki Seto as Satsuki.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 3 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.