Hi all! It's just been announced that Infini-T Force will be the subject of a theatrical stage play this August. The play will be performed at the IMA Hall in Tokyo's Nerima Ward from August 29th through September 2nd. The production is being planned and produced by a theatrical creative group named ILLUMINUS, and written and directed by ILLUMINUS's key writer/director Takehiro Yoshida. The press release says that the play will "incorporate the latest technology in 3D digital imagery, as well as dance, acrobatics, and illusions." The cast has not been selected yet, and no further details regarding the production are available at the moment, but we'll know more as we get closer to the August opening date. For those who are unaware, stage versions, including musicals, of popular manga and anime series have been taking place in Japan for a while now. While generally fairly low budget affairs (Think Off-Broadway level, or even Off-Off-Broadway level), these productions have a very loyal group of supporters. Some of these have even been multi-part productions, telling a complete story through 3 or 4 different productions over the course of a year or so. That Infini-T Force has been chosen as the subject for one of these productions is a sign that the series has developed a decent fan following in Japan -- no one is going to invest the money into making a stage play of something no one cares about! Sadly, unless you happen to be in Tokyo during the five days when the play will be performing, it'll be difficult to see it. There is a chance that a DVD of the production will be released, as this has occurred with some of the anime and manga related stage productions in the past, but very, very few of these have ever had a commercial release outside of Japan. That can't stop us from hoping to find a fansubbed version, though! Anyway, I'll let you know when I hear more. James

I would definitely watch out of raw curiosity.

I would absolutely go and see this if I could!!

I've seen some stage plays before online, they can be pretty good depending on the actors, but I found them really interesting and entertaining

I'm late hopping in here. I'd love to see the stage play. I hope they do it justice.

When I first read this, I thought, "What the...?" Then I remembered Footrot Flats: The Musical which was about a talking dog, some sheep (who could forget that wonderful song and dance number, 'Rattle Yer Dags'?) and a few humans. Then I thought, well, I guess an Infini-T Force stage play probably couldn't be much stranger than that.

Hi all! The main cast for the Infini-T Force Stage Play has been announced. They include the following: Gatchaman/Ken Washio: Yuki Izawa Tekkaman/Joji Minami: Ryotaro Kosaka Polymer/Takeshi Yoroi: Allen Kohatsu Casshan/Tetsuya Azuma: Natsuki Osaki Emi Kaido: Masana Oya Damian Gray: Taiyo Ayukawa Belle Lynn: Mio Hanana Pegas: Hiroki Sato They have 8 performances scheduled between August 29th and September 2nd, with ticket prices ranging between 7,500 yen and 8,800 yen. More to come, as it's announced. I wish I could attend... James

I wish too, James. At best though I hope to be able to see it online at some point, and I wish these fine looking actors every success (or should that be breaking many legs?)

Hi all! The Infini-T Force stage play has recently released images of the hero actors in their costumes. Figuring that you'd like to see them, here they are: Ken Joji Takeshi Tetsuya These images were released on August 9th, the same day that they held a press conference to unveil the Hero Suits and the costumes to the media and to people who had donated to the very successful crowdfunding effort to pay for the construction of the Hero Suits. Here are some images from that event. They also released a full cast list, revealing that the show will include both Z, portrayed by Goh Iris Watanabe, and Emi's friend Maria, portrayed by Miyabi Iino. They are also introducing two new characters to the story. One is Sakisaka, the manager of the Capricorn cafe that the heroes frequent. He is someone who has lost his family due to Z's destruction of parallel worlds. He allows Joji to hide the Blue Earth spaceship in the basement of the Capricorn. He is portrayed by Tomoaki Nakatani. The second new character is the Military Commander, who is in charges of Z's forces that are searching for the lost Case. I am guessing that he is the fellow in the cape whose back is to us in one of the event photos, and that the 5 fellows next to him in the shirts with "15" on them are his goon squad, who will likely be fodder for the heroes in some wire action scenes during the play. Anyway, the Commander is being portrayed by Toshiya Taniguchi. They have also posted a sort video on YouTube showing the first meeting and table read for the play. If you want to see it, and hear the actors introduce themselves and speak a few of their lines, you can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LXj7PZgT-M Now, if only there was a way for people outside of the Tokyo area to see the play... James

Wow! Awesome work on the costumes. I really want to see the transformation sequences!

It does look awesome. Maybe someone will eventually post a video on YouTube?

Thanks so much for sharing James. They look great. If this is a success, would they do another with the addition of Joe and Nambu? Did they ever do one for Gatchaman?

Hi all! If this initial stage production is a success, then yes, there is always the chance of further, new productions. Many of these stage versions of popular anime and manga are designed with that very thought in mind, with subsequent new plays featuring the same cast in new "chapters" of an ongoing story. There's no reason to think that Infini-T Force couldn't follow that route -- assuming it is successful. Whether a subsequent production would bring in Joe or Nambu is anyone's guess. These types of full scale stage productions weren't in vogue back when Gatchaman was at the height of its popularity, so, no, they never did one for Gatchaman. The closest thing I'm aware of are the various costumed performer "Hero Show" appearances held at department stores, amusement parks, and festivals. These had people in Gatchaman costumes performing a short Gatchaman story for audiences mostly made up of children. After the performances, the actors would sign in-character autographs for the kids, with things like "To Makoto, Ken, the Eagle G-1" and "Jun, the Swan G-3." Here is a small photo from one of those Hero Shows, held on the Angel Stage in the now-defunct Futako-Tamagawa Gardens: James

Hi all! With the premiere of the Infini-T Force stage production a mere 10 days away, they have released this official promotional "Key Visual," which gives us our first chance to see their version of Emi. Pretty spiffy looking, if you ask me. James

That looks great!

Hi all! A pair of new images from the Infini-T Force stage production have been released, showing us Emi and Bell Lynn. I'm sure there will be more soon! James

Hi all! And soon would be just a few hours later, when they posted this picture of Z. I guess the question now is "Who's next?" James

They made the costumes as close to the anime as possible.

Anyone notice how similar Z's outfit is to Nambu's?

Hi all! And we have an answer to the "Who's next?" question! The lucky winner is...Emi's friend Maria!! Here she is! Those of you with Maria in the pool can collect your winnings! More to come, I'm sure! James

Originally posted by KT1972 Anyone notice how similar Z's outfit is to Nambu's?

I hadn't until now. They can have a best dressed contest if they do one with Nambu and Joe in the future. In that one, Ken would definitely be the better dressed between him and Joe.

Hi all! A pair of new character photos today. The first is of Marshal, an original character for the stage production who is the cyborg commander of Z's forces searching for the Case. The second one is of Sakisaka, another original character introduced in the stage production. He is the manager of the Capricorn cafe. Likely more to come! James

Hi all! Another pair of costume reveals to share. First up is Damian Gray. The second one is Pegas. The Pegas we're seeing here is far different than the huge robot Pegas we're familiar with from the anime, which really isn't very practical for a stage production. That version of Pegas mostly remains inside the Blue Earth, which is hidden beneath the Capricorn cafe. The Pegas we see here is a holographic image projected from the larger robot Pegas, so that he can easily interact with Joji as he moves around Shibuya. I'll admit that the bright blue and white costume looks a bit silly, but as you can see from the image below, it's patterned after the design of the robotic version of Pegas. I'm hoping a robot version of Pegas will appear during the production for a transformation sequence, since Joji needs Pegas to transform into Tekkaman. It probably wouldn't be much more than a giant prop puppet for Joji to enter and Tekkaman to pop out from, but it would still be neat to see! James

Hi all!

Originally posted by KT1972 Anyone notice how similar Z's outfit is to Nambu's?

Part of that comes from the way Z's coat appears to be light blue in that photograph, thanks to the way it is lit. That makes him look much more Nambu-esque than he should be. The coat is more of a tan color, like that worn by the anime version. Of course, the Infini-T Force version of Nambu wears a dark coat, which helps make them look a bit different than each other. James

Hi all! So they won't feel left out in all of these photo reveals, here's a new set of images of the four heroes, this time in action poses! The production premieres on Wednesday night in Tokyo, with 8 performances scheduled over five days. I hope it'll go well for everyone! James

I never thought to ask this before, but who are the guys standing behind Nambu?

Hi all! I haven't seen the movie, but I believe they're the goons who we see attacking the heroes in the movie preview, before they have transformed into their combat gear. According to the movie program book, they're referred to as a group as the Bird Suit Team. James

That makes it sound as if Nambu has replaced the team with them. Maybe Blackbirds who survived?

Hi all! The description from the movie program book says this regarding them: Bird Suit Team Those who have transformed with the Bracelets given to them by Dr. Nambu. They are set up with an AI, so that even if they are worn by a person with no combat experience, they will demonstrate advanced combat capabilities. Increasing the amount of energy supplied by the Nexus will increase their capabilities accordingly. I hope this helps. James

Yes. Thanks James!

Hi all! The Infini-T Force stage production opened on Wednesday night, and appears to be a success. Here are a few pictures from it that have been posted online. If you'd like to see some video from the production, you can see about 2 minutes worth at this link: https://freshlive.tv/entame/232419 The total clip runs almost 19 minutes, with the majority of it being the press conference that was held prior to the performance. Starting at about 16:40 into the video, it switches to several short clips from the show in progress, including a scene inside the Capricorn, a scene where Emi has realized that Maria has vanished, Damian Gray preparing to attack, and a transformation scene for all four heroes, followed by the start of a fight. I hope you'll enjoy it! James

Hi all! The Acrobat Stage Infini-T Force performance on the 30th had a very special guest in the audience. Attending the show was none other than Katsuji Mori, the voice actor who first gave life to Ken in Gatchaman and Joji in Tekkaman. Here are a few pictures taken to commemorate the occasion. It looks like they all had a good time! James

He's so lucky to get to see it and visit with the actors.

Hi all! After months of planning and weeks of rehearsals, the curtain has now fallen on the 8th and final performance of the Infini-T Force stage production. The hard work by all involved was rewarded with a standing ovation from the final audience, as well as three curtain calls! Here are some pictures taken of the cast behind the scenes during the run of the production. As you can see, they were all having a good time. And, lastly, the electronic poster outside the IMA Hall, where the production was performed, advertising Infini-T Force. I wish I could have seen it, but somehow I couldn't convince my wife that it would be a good idea to spend several thousand dollars to fly the two of us to Japan for the weekend just to catch it...! James

Maybe if you won the lottery...

Hi all! Yeah, winning the lottery. That'll do it... Hey, it certainly wouldn't hurt! Of course, to see this production, I'd need a Time Machine to go with it. Though having a Time Machine would certainly make getting that winning lottery ticket much easier as well. James

Hi all! Actor Toshiya Taniguchi, who portrayed the military leader Marshal in the play, posted this fun series of images, along with the caption, "I am soliticing those who have the character of a Mecha Soldier for the next battle. I await the next battle! (Laughs)" I love how the "Mecha Soldier" is saluting Z in the last shot! And, finally, a series of design sketches for the original characters that appeared in the production, starting with Pegas. Sakiksaka Marshal And the Mecha Soldier Phew! So many photos in this thread...! James