Sat, June 13, 2009 (5:50pm EDT)
Takahisa Masuda (22) of NEWS has landed his first starring role in a play this November, titled "Ame no Hi no Mori no Naka." Masuda has performed in stage shows before, but this will be his first time taking the stage in a true acting role.
The play is written and produced by Masafumi Nishida, who was one of the screenwriters for the hit drama series "Maou." The story is an original slapstick comedy about a college student (Masuda) whose car runs out of gas, stranding him and a friend (Mitsuki Tanimura) in the woods on a rainy day. They eventually end up at an old boarding house, but it seems suspicious. As it turns out, Masuda's character gets frightened very easily by the incidents that occur, while Tanimura plays the much more strong-willed character.
Performances are scheduled for November 4-23 at The Globe Tokyo, followed by a run at Osaka's Theater Drama City on November 26-30.
The play is written and produced by Masafumi Nishida, who was one of the screenwriters for the hit drama series "Maou." The story is an original slapstick comedy about a college student (Masuda) whose car runs out of gas, stranding him and a friend (Mitsuki Tanimura) in the woods on a rainy day. They eventually end up at an old boarding house, but it seems suspicious. As it turns out, Masuda's character gets frightened very easily by the incidents that occur, while Tanimura plays the much more strong-willed character.
Performances are scheduled for November 4-23 at The Globe Tokyo, followed by a run at Osaka's Theater Drama City on November 26-30.
Sat, June 13, 2009 (4:38pm EDT)
Fashion model Sumire, primarily active with the magazine Koakuma Ageha, passed away in her own apartment on Thursday due to a cerebral hemorrhage, it has been learned. She was only 21 years old.
In May, Sumire had written in her official blog that she was suffering from headaches. She stopped updating the blog for a couple weeks, then on June 3 she wrote a post saying that she wasn't feeling well and had returned to her hometown.
On Wednesday night, her manager became concerned after being unable to contact her. Sumire was later found dead, and police confirmed that there were no signs of foul play.
In May, Sumire had written in her official blog that she was suffering from headaches. She stopped updating the blog for a couple weeks, then on June 3 she wrote a post saying that she wasn't feeling well and had returned to her hometown.
On Wednesday night, her manager became concerned after being unable to contact her. Sumire was later found dead, and police confirmed that there were no signs of foul play.
Sat, June 13, 2009 (3:03pm EDT)
Pop group Dream is returning with their first new single after four and a half years. The song, "Perfect Girls," will be used as the theme of "Wangan Midnight: The Movie," a live-action film based on the popular "Wangan Midnight" manga.
The manga, which deals with the street racing scene on Tokyo's Shuto Expressway, has been adapted to video games, anime, and direct-to-video live-action films. However, "Wangan Midnight: The Movie" will be the first theatrically-released picture for the franchise. Directed by Atsushi Muroga, the film stars Yuichi Nakamura, Ryoko Kobayashi, and Kazuki Kato.
For Dream, who made their major label debut nine years ago, "Perfect Girls" is their first theme song for a movie. The group has been on hiatus since July 2008, but later that year they began preparing for their return. They created a demo tape with more than 20 songs, and the movie production team selected the dance number "Perfect Girls."
The tune will be released as a single in September, the same month "Wangan Midnight" opens in theaters. Dream's last single was "Soyokaze no Shirabe / STORY" in March 2005. The group has also announced plans to hold free concerts in five cities, starting on June 14.
The manga, which deals with the street racing scene on Tokyo's Shuto Expressway, has been adapted to video games, anime, and direct-to-video live-action films. However, "Wangan Midnight: The Movie" will be the first theatrically-released picture for the franchise. Directed by Atsushi Muroga, the film stars Yuichi Nakamura, Ryoko Kobayashi, and Kazuki Kato.
For Dream, who made their major label debut nine years ago, "Perfect Girls" is their first theme song for a movie. The group has been on hiatus since July 2008, but later that year they began preparing for their return. They created a demo tape with more than 20 songs, and the movie production team selected the dance number "Perfect Girls."
The tune will be released as a single in September, the same month "Wangan Midnight" opens in theaters. Dream's last single was "Soyokaze no Shirabe / STORY" in March 2005. The group has also announced plans to hold free concerts in five cities, starting on June 14.
