Shiki Theatre Company

Shiki Theatre Company (劇団四季, Gekidan Shiki, Lit. Four Seasons Theatre Company) is one of Japan's best-known and largest theatre companies. Shiki Theatre Company employs over 800 actors and staff, and stages about 2800 performances a year. Shiki Theatre Company operates seven theaters for their exclusive use. Originally, they staged Shingeki plays. However, in the late 1970s, they branched out into other forms of theatre found success by staging western and Japanese musicals.

Shiki is also known for producing original language musicals. One such example is the Showa trilogy, a set of three musicals about World War II and the aftermath. The series consists of Ri Kōran, a musical about the famous Manchurian-Japanese singer; Foreign Hill (異国の丘, Ikoku no Oka) which tells the story of Japanese prisoners of war at an internment camp in Siberia; and Southern Cross (南十字星, Minami Shūjisei) about the trials of innocent B and C-class war criminals in Indonesia.

History

The Shiki Theatre Company was established in 1953 by Keita Asari (浅利慶太) and his company. The organization was established as a stock holding company in 1967.

Theatres
The Shiki Theatre NATSU in 2015
The CATS Theatre in 2008
The Nagoya Shiki Theatre in 2018
The Hokkaido Shiki Theatre in 2014

The Shiki Theatre Company owns and operates several theatres across Japan.

Tokyo
  • JR-EAST Shiki Theatre HARU – an approx. 1,500-seat theatre; opened in January 2021.[1]
  • JR-EAST Shiki Theatre AKI – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre; opened in October 2020.[2]
  • Theatre JIYU – an approximately 500-seat theatre.[3]
  • Dentsu Shiki Theatre UMI – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre; opened in December 2002.[4]
  • Ariake Shiki Theatre – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre purpose-built for the Shiki production of Disney's The Lion King; opened in September 2021.[5]

Nagoya
  • The Nagoya Shiki Theatre – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre; opened in October 2016.[6]

Osaka
  • The Osaka Shiki Theatre – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre; opened in January 2005.[7]

Former Owned Theatres
  • The Fukuoka City Theatre – an approx. 1,100-seat theatre; opened in May 1996, closed in May 2010.
  • Shiki Theatre HARU – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre; opened in December 1998, closed in May 2017.
  • Shiki Theatre HARU – an approx. 900-seat theatre; opened in October 1998, closed in June 2017.
  • The New Nagoya Musical Theatre – an approx. 1000-seat theatre; opened in May 1999, closed in August 2016.
  • The CATS Theatre (Gotanda)– theatre purpose-built for the Shiki production of Cats; opened in November 2004, closed in May 2009.
  • The Canon CATS Theatre (Yokohama)– theatre purpose-built for the Shiki production of Cats; opened in November 2009, closed in November 2012.
  • Shiki Theatre NATSU – an approx. 1,200-seat theatre; opened in July 2010, closed in June 2021.
  • The Hokkaido Shiki Theatre – an approx. 900-seat theatre; opened in January 2011, closed in March 2020.
  • The CATS Theatre (Oimachi)– an approx. 1,200-seat theatre purpose-built for the Shiki production of Cats; opened in August 2018, closed in June 2021.[8]

Productions

Past and present productions by the Shiki Theatre Company include the following:

Original shows and adaptations
  • A Dream Within a Dream (夢から醒めた夢, Yume Kara Sameta Yume), based on a novel by Jirō Akagawa
  • Yuta's Enchanting Friends (ユタと不思議な仲間たち, Yuta to Fushigina Nakama-tachi), based on the novel by Miura Tetsuo.
  • A Robot in the Garden(ロボット・イン・ザ・ガーデン),based on a novel by Deborah Install

Showa trilogy
  • Ri Koran
  • Foreign Hill
  • Southern Cross

Children's theatre

Western shows

Family entertainment

References
  1. "Theatre Information: JR-EAST Shiki Theatre HARU". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  2. "Theatre Information: JR-EAST Shiki Theatre AKI". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  3. "Theatre Information: Theatre JIYU". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  4. "Theatre Information: Dentsu Shiki Theatre UMI". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  5. "Theatre Information: Ariake Shiki Theatre". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  6. "Theatre Information: The Nagoya Shiki Theatre". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  7. "Theatre Information: The Osaka Shiki Theatre". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  8. "キャッツ・シアター建設レポート" [Cats Theater Construction Report] (in Japanese). Shiki Theatre Company. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  9. "ミュージカル『ウィキッド』東京公演が開幕１周年を迎えました[動画追加]" [The musical 'Wicked' Tokyo performance celebrated its first anniversary (Video added)] (in Japanese). Shiki Theatre Company. 18 June 2008. Archived from the original on 3 July 2008.
  10. "『ウィキッド』札幌公演が千秋楽を迎えました！" (in Japanese). Shiki Theatre Company. 7 November 2016. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  11. Gioia, Michael (29 September 2014). "Japanese-Language Version of Disney's Aladdin Will Open in Tokyo". Playbill. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  12. "Aladdin: Introduction". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  13. "Beauty and the Beast: Introduction" (in Japanese). Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  14. "【動画追加】『キャッツ』が日本公演通算1万回を達成しました！" [(Video added) 'Cats' has achieved 10,000 concerts in Japan!] (in Japanese). Shiki Theatre Company. 13 March 2019. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  15. "Cats: Introduction". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  16. co.,ltd, NANO association. "キャスト候補発表！劇団四季『ノートルダムの鐘』製作発表レポート！". エンタステージ (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  17. ""THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME" English Guide｜SHIKI THEATRE COMPANY". SHIKI THEATRE COMPANY. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  18. Ehren, Christine (17 December 1998). "The Lion King Roars Into Tokyo's Shiki Theatre, Dec. 20". Playbill. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  19. "The Lion King: Introduction". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  20. "The Little Mermaid: Introduction". Shiki Theatre Company. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
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