On Tuesday, TOHO revealed JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood stage musical’s star-studded cast, along with key and costume visuals on its official Twitter account.
Actors Yuya Matsushita and Shotaro Arisawa will play the role of the main character, Jonathan Joestar, who recently took part in stage plays Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Arc (2022) and Kingdom (2023) respectively. Actor-voice actor Mamoru Miyano also drew a lot of attention as he joined the cast as Dio Brando. He is best for his voice-acting roles as Light Yagami from Death Note, Rintaro Okabe from Steins;Gate, and Osamu Dazai from Bungo Stray Dogs. The three are supposedly the main characters as featured in the musical’s key visual as shown in the article’s thumbnail. The rest of the talented cast includes:
- Miisha Shimizu as Erina Pendleton
- YOUNG DAIS as Robert E.O. Speedwagon
- Yoshihisa Higashiyama as Will Antonio Zeppeli
- Yusuke Hirose as Will Antonio Zeppeli
- Yamato Kochi as Jack the Ripper
- Jumpei Shimada as Wang Chan
- Tetsuya Bessho as George Joestar I
- Kong Kuwata as Dario Brando
Additionally, the stage musical’s official website has also been updated with further information about the plays and a summary of play:
This story revolves around the mysterious Stone Mask excavated from Mexico and follows the adventurous tale of the fateful destinies of two young men!
In the 19th century, England – Jonathan Joestar (Yuya Matsushita / Shotaro Arisawa), the only son of the noble Joestar family, has the nickname “JoJo”. His father, Sir Joestar (Tetsuya Bessho), raises him under strict yet warm guidance to become a “true gentleman”. The Joestar household adopts Dio Brando (Mamoru Miyano), who was born and raised in the slums. They take him in because they believe Dio’s deceased father, Dario Brando (Kong Kuwata), had saved Sir Joestar’s life. Sir Joestar raises the two as equals, and they grow up strong.
However, Dio schemes to take everything from JoJo; his beloved dog Danny, his friends, his first love Erina Pendleton (Miisha Shimizu), and even the Joestar family’s wealth. Realizing Dio’s evil intentions, JoJo heads to the slums of London, Ogre Street. With the help of his new ally Speedwagon (YOUNG DAIS), they drag Wang Chan (Jumpei Shimada) back to the Joestar mansion because of his involvement in Dio’s conspiracy. In a desperate situation, Dio harnesses the power of the mysterious Stone Mask, displayed in the Joestar house, to gain immense strength.
To counter the overpowering Dio, JoJo endures the rigorous training of Will A. Zeppeli (Yoshihisa Higashiyama / Yusuke Hirose) to master the “Ripple Technique”. Both of them set out on a journey with Speedwagon to settle the score with Dio. Meanwhile, Dio, with the likes of Jack the Ripper (Yamato Kochi) and legendary knights under his command, builds an evil empire and awaits JoJo’s arrival. The long-standing feud between JoJo and Dio, their bizarre adventure, is about to begin—.
Ney Hasegawa, who previously directed the stage play Under Execution, Under Jailbreak, which is also based on the short story of the same name by Hirohiko Araki, is in charge of the stage musical’s direction. Tsuneyasu Motoyoshi (My Hero Academia: The “Ultra” Stage) is penning the script, and French-Tunisian music producer Dove Attia is providing the musical score of the production. Showtimes and locations are as follows:
- Location: Imperial Theatre, Tokyo, Date: February 6, 2024 – February 28, 2024
- Location: Hokkaido Sapporo Cultural Arts Theater Hitaru, Date: March 26, 2024 – March 30, 2024
- Location: Hyogo Prefecture Hyogo Performing Arts Center KOBELCO Large Hall, Date: April 9, 2024 – April 14, 2024
Phantom Blood is the first among the, so far, nine parts of the long-running JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure manga series. It was originally serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump from December 1986 to October 1987. The latest part of the manga, titled The JoJoLands, started serializing a year and a half after the end of the eighth, JoJolion.
Source: Official Twitter, JOJO News
©︎ TOHO, Hirohiko Araki, Shueisha
