– We were born to make history. –
Yuri!!! On Ice is one of the anime series that took the world by storm. With amazing animation, soundtrack, and choreography. But it is undeniable that all of us fell in love with the story and of course, with the characters.
With the buzz around that our beloved skating anime will have a movie, why don’t we 2.D-fy it as we anticipate for its release?
2.5D always makes good on how they translate anime into stage, proof of this is Hyper Projection Engeki!!! Haikyuu and Daiya no Ace The Live. I have often wondered how they would translate Yuri!!! On Ice on the 2.5D stage from how the costumes would look like to how they would perform the skate programs on stage.
One of the major components of this adaptation would be the choreography. It requires skill to be able to pull of their choreography on ice, it would probably require more skill to pull it off on stage.
I have a lot of questions but I’ll save those for when someone actually thinks about making a stage for Yuri!!! on Ice. For now, I present to you some butai actors who fit the bill and WHO COULD skate on stage in Yuri!!! on Ice’s stage play adaptation.
[Disclaimer: This is not the official cast for the stage play. As of writing, there has been no announcement that Yuri!!! On Ice will be having a stage adaptation. ]
Yuuri Katsuki
Yuuri Katsuki is indeed one of the characters that most of us can relate to. His journey has inspired many of us even if it doesn’t have anything to do with skating. Yuuri amazed us all with his prowess and his amazing sequences but most importantly, he amazed us with how he always stands up strong whenever he falls down.
Hoshimoto Yuzuki is a relatively new face in the 2.5D scene but is a strong and capable performer. He has proven so in his performances as Ugawa Akira in Musical StarMyu and as Himemiya Tori in Ensemble Stars! On Stage ~Take Your Marks!~. Yuzuki’s many talents include tap dancing, ballet and jazz. It is no doubt that Yuzuki will be able to portray Yuuri in his entirety.
As of writing, Hoshimoto Yuzuki is to reprise his role as Team Hiragi’s Ugawa Akira in Musical StarMyu ~Second Season~ that begins its run on the 4th of July 2018.
Viktor Nikiforov (Furukawa Yuta / Kiyama Haruki)
The charismatic and suave Viktor Nikiforov, the man who inspired our main character: Yuuri to become a figure skater himself. Aside from his jumps, one of Viktor’s best skills is choreography – having choreographed some of Yuuri’s jumps. In my opinion, he was actually the most difficult one to choose an actor for, hence, there couldn’t be just one.
Furukawa Yuta is trained in classical ballet and jazz. He is an amazing actor and an amazing dancer. It was apparent in his performance as Sebastian Michaelis in Musical Kuroshitsuji. He is one of the actors who has been able to perform on stages outside of the 2.5D genre, including Phantom and Elisabeth. It is without a doubt that he will be able to play Viktor with flying colors.
As of writing, Furukawa Yuta is currently playing Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Toho’s Mozart.
Another choice for Viktor, is Kiyama Haruki. Haruki is one of the actors with a very extensive background. He started performing at the age of three under the influence of his father (a Kabuki performer) and his mother (a ballet dancer). He is a dancer with many disciplines and he is also an amazing singer. Haruki has a BFA in Ballet and his impressive theater credits include being cast in the Broadway Musical “Cabaret” as the character: Bobby. He has also made his mark in the 2.5D scene, some of his roles include Otori Itsuki in Musical StarMyu, Tomoegata Naginata in Musical Touken Ranbu and Barrington Meyer in Biohazard: The Stage.
As of writing, Kiyama Haruki is set to reprise his role as Otori Itsuki in Musical StarMyu ~Second Season~.
Yuri Plisetsky
The legitimate representation of the saying: “He is beauty, he is grace – he will punch you in the face.” Yuri Plisetsky is someone that we can all somehow relate to with his determination and ambition. It’s was when Lilia stepped in as one of his trainers that we saw Yuri grow.
Whenever I think of Yuri Plisetsky and how he skates in his programs, I think of none other than Miura Hiroki whenever I am to think of someone to play him in an adaptation. Hiroki started training ballet at the age of 5 and later went on to winning the Junior Men’s Category of the 22nd NBA National Ballet Competition. His skills in ballet have also been incorporated in some of his choreography as Atobe Keigo in Musical Prince of Tennis, Tachibana Ritsuka in Musical Dance With Devils and Higekiri in Musical Touken Ranbu. He is an undeniable choice to play our favorite Russian Fairy.
As of writing, Miura Hiroki is slated to reprise his role as Atobe Keigo in Musical Prince of Tennis: Zenkoku Taikai ~Seigaku VS Hyotei~. The musical will begin its run in December 2018.
Phichit Chulanont
One character who has been a fan favorite since he appeared in the anime is the lovable Thai figure skater: Phichit Chulanont; some even dub this amazing skater as the “Best Wing man” to Yuuri Katsuki. But if there is one thing that we cannot deny, it’s the amazing drive of Phichit to be at the top of the game. I’m sure we can all relate to how Phichit has felt – getting inspired by a certain something (in his case, a movie) and pursuing that until it becomes a passion.
When I think of Phichit Chulanont being on the 2.5D stage, I always think of Mitsuya Ryo. He is most known for playing Syusuke Fuji in the 2nd season of Musical Tennis no Oujisama and Dagger in Musical Kuroshitsuji: Noah’s Ark Circus. Not only does he have skills to play Phichit but he also has one of Phichit’s most famous hobby aside from figure skating: taking selfies!
As of writing, Mitsuya Ryo is currently playing the role of Honebami Toushirou in Butai Touken Ranbu ~Hiden Yui no Me no Hototogisu~ that will end it’s run on July 29, 2018.
Otabek Altin
The Hero of Kazakhstan, Otabek Altin has really stood out from the skaters as someone who has a strong sense of determination. Performing programs with high technical difficulty, Otabek has proved to us that there is indeed to right way to skate. Since his appearance, Otabek has also been a fan favorite.
For the role of the this rather stoic yet expressive skater, Kohatsu Allen is one of the most ideal actors that come to mind. It would be quite an experience to see him transition from Volleyball Ace to the figure skating national hero of Kazakhstan. It would also be quite nice to see Allen showcase his ballet skills on stage!
Kohatsu Allen will appear in Hyper Projection Engeki Haikyuu!!’s “Summer Week 2018” event on August 2018.
Minako Okukawa
One of figure skating’s biggest fans, it’s without a doubt that if there would be 2.5D adaptation of Yuri!!! on Ice – Minako would be one of the characters who is most likely to be there. Yuuri’s ballet teacher is one of the characters that would be amazing to see on stage. I find that it would be amusing to be able to see Minako drunk on stage. I would also imagine that Minako would be some sort of “narrator” to the stage play, providing transitions and the likes.
Actress Akane Liv is someone that I would like to see tackle the role of Minako. Originally a member of the Takarazuka Revue’s Snow Troupe from 1999 – 2004, Akane Liv is one of the actresses that has left an amazing mark in 2.5D as Madam Red in Musical Kuroshitsuji ~Chi ni Moeru Lycoris~. Akane Liv is known for her amazing vocals – this was apparent in her performance as Madam Red when she belted out Madam Red’s solo “Don’t Lose Your Way – I Won’t Give Up”. She is one of the actresses that transitioned to the Toho stage, having played Jordan Baker in Toho’s The Great Gatsby in 2017. It would be amazing to see Akane Liv again on the 2.5D stage as Minako!
Mila Babicheva
If Phichit is the “Best Wing Man”, there also exists the “Best Wing Woman” and who else could that be except Mila Babicheva! Like all of the characters in the anime, Mila is a well loved character who like Phichit, is one of the main supporters of Yuri Plisetsky.
One of the actors that I want to see as Mila is none other than Tano Asami, most people might know her as Butai Kuroko no Basuke’s Aida Riko and Musical Kuroshitsuji: Noah’s Ark Circus’ Beast. It would be amazing to see her as Mila. Asami is one of the few actresses in the 2.5D genre and it would be nice to see her perform as Mila and have interactions with Hiroki’s Yuri!
As of writing, Tano Asami is slated to play Guila in Nanatsu no Taizai ~The STAGE~ this coming August 2018.
There are a lot of characters from Yuri!!! On Ice that we haven’t included in the list but who would you like to see perform as your favorite skaters and which skaters do you think will be brought to life if there will be a 2.5D adaptation?
Lizzie Dust
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