Super Kabuki II: One Piece

Super Kabuki II: One Piece (jap. スーパー歌舞伎Ⅱ ワンピース) is a Japanese kabuki play based on the manga One Piece and the adventures of its protagonist Monkey D. Luffy, directed by Ennosuke Ichikawa IV. Although there have been changes over time, the play mainly deals with the events of the Summit Battle. The play premiered on October 7, 2015 at the Shinbashi Enbujō Theater in Ginza. The final performances for now were held at Misono-za in Nagoya from May 3 to May 27, 2018. In total, over 30 characters from the One Piece world are portrayed. The theme song is written by Yujin Kitagawa, a member of the Japanese pop-rock duo Yuzu.

Eiichiro Oda himself has already seen the Kabuki play and praised it highly, especially the actors. In addition, Super Kabuki II: One Piece received several awards, including the 2015 Takejiro Otani Award for Best Screenplay in Modern Kabuki Plays (Kensuke Yokouchi).

Storyline

The Kabuki play is divided into three acts, with the first act going about 60 minutes, the second act about 65 minutes, and the third act about 85 minutes. The acts are separated by breaks of 25 – 30 minutes.

The story mainly covers the events of the summit battle on Marine Ford, but also the Straw Hat Pirates’s stay on the Sabaody Archipelago, as well as Luffy’s adventures on Amazon Lily and in the Impel Down. In all, the contents of volumes 51 through 60 are covered. In the process, the story has been shortened somewhat and adapted for performance on a stage.

Cinema Kabuki One Piece

The November 2015 performances of Super Kabuki II: One Piece at the Shinbashi Enbujō Theatre were recorded and produced as a film for the big screen by Japanese film company Shochiku Co, Ltd. under the title “Cinema Kabuki One Piece”. Cinema Kabuki One Piece runs about two hours and premiered in Japan on October 22, 2016. It was followed by other airings, including with English subtitles at the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on November 27, 2016 and at expos, such as the 2017 Japan Expo in Sri Lanka. The Kabuki play has also been made available to viewers via video portals, most recently on Niconico, a Japanese video portal and livestream provider, on April 25, 2020.

Leading up to the premiere, an exhibition for Super Kabuki II: One Piece was held at Ginza Mitsukoshi, a huge shopping complex, from October 05 to October 18. Admission was free and the cast of Whitebeard, Ukon Ichikawa, was present to cut the ribbon. In addition, Luffy’s stage costumes were on display, pictures were shown, and other points of interest related to the Kabuki play were presented.

Super Kabuki II: One Piece “Grand Live” – Special Edition

On November 11, 2017, a two-part special issue called Super Kabuki II: One Piece “Grand Live” (jap. スーパー歌舞伎II ワンピース “偉大なる世界”) was released by Shūeisha Publishing. The set consists of a photo book (Photography) and an information book (Talk & Record).

• Photography: The photo book contains many photos by photographer Shin Suzuki of the 2016 performance at the Hakataza Theater in Fukuoka.
• Talk & Record: The information book contains interviews with several actors and also an interview between Ennosuke Ichikawa (Luffy actor & director) and Eiichiro Oda. There, Oda praised the performance he has already seen, and specifically Ennosuke Ichikawa as Monkey D. Luffy. Also included in the booklet are drawings of characters made especially by Oda in the Kabuki style. Furthermore, background information is revealed and backstage work is talked about.

However, in this context, Oda not only commented on the Kabuki piece, but also on the upcoming story arc on Wano Country, as this was strongly associated with Kabuki, and expressed that the start of the arc would still take 1-2 years (however, the interview was conducted back in June 2017). The Wano Country arc ultimately started on 02/07/2018 with chapter 909. He also mentioned that there will be a flashback with Ace on Wano Country.

Cast