South Korea’s TV series Vincenzo adapted into Japanese stage musical
SEOUL – South Korean smash-hit crime series Vincenzo will be adapted into a Japanese musical.
According to Studio Dragon, the production company behind the 2021 television series, the stage musical is scheduled to premiere on Aug 11 at AiiA 2.5 Theatre in Kobe, Japan. The musical will run through Aug 13.
The production will then travel to Tokyo, where it will be staged at Nippon Seinenkan Hall from Aug 18 to 21.
The tour ends in Osaka at Sankei Hall Breeze, with shows from Aug 25 to 27.
Japanese actor Masanari Wada will play the lead role of Vincenzo Cassano, a lawyer and mafia leader who takes on villains who have escaped the clutches of the law.
In the K-drama, he is played by South Korean actor Song Joong-ki.
Vincenzo’s ally lawyer Hong Cha-young, played by South Korean actress Jeon Yeo-been in the show, will be played by J-pop idol group Hinatazaka46 member Suzuka Tomita in the musical.
The 20-part series ended with an 18.4 per cent viewership rating in South Korea in May 2021, topping the viewership ratings among all TV shows in the same time slot.
The drama series also hit the top five on Netflix’s global chart of TV shows.
Studio Dragon licensed its intellectual property (IP) for the Japanese musical to Avex Pictures, the Japanese entertainment firm leading the musical adaptation of Vincenzo.
The two companies also signed a memorandum of understanding last Wednesday, aimed at expanding the production studio’s popular IPs in Japan’s creative content market. - THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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