Costume photos of Ashitaka, San, and Lady Eboshi from "Super Kabuki ' Princess Mononoke '," a kabuki adaptation of Studio Ghibli's animated film " Princess Mononoke Mononoke" (directed by Hayao Miyazaki), have been released. Ichikawa Danko will play Ashitaka, Nakamura Ichitaro will play San, and Nakamura Tokizo will play Lady Eboshi.
A short 15-second promotional video has also been released on YouTube. The three figures' dignified movements and piercing gazes evoke the process of conflict between humans and nature, and the strength of each individual fighting for coexistence.
It was also announced that the "Weekly Mononoke Kabuki Channel" will begin streaming on the Shochiku official YouTube channel from May 15th. The channel will delve into the behind-the-scenes production of "Super Kabuki ' Princess Mononoke'". The first episode will feature a close look at the photo shoot of the three main cast members. There will be 10 episodes in total, with new episodes released every Friday at 7 PM.
"Super Kabuki ' Princess Mononoke'" features original music by Joe Hisaishi, a script by Keiko Niwa and Kazuhisa Tobe, and direction by Kensuke Yokouchi. Ichikawa Chūsha (Teruyuki Kagawa) will play Okkotonushi, the eldest member of the Inogami clan. It will be performed at the Shinbashi Enbujo (Chuo Ward, Tokyo) from July 3rd to August 23rd.
"Princess Mononoke" is themed around the coexistence of nature and humanity. Ashitaka, a young man cursed by a god, and San, a girl raised by a wolf god, become embroiled in a battle between humans who try to destroy nature and the gods who protect it. Yoji Matsuda voiced Ashitaka and Yuriko Ishida voiced San, while Yuko Tanaka, Kaoru Kobayashi, Mitsuko Mori, Akihiro Miwa, and Hisaya Morishige also provided voice acting. When it was released in 1997, it broke the all-time box office record for Japanese films. A re-release in 2020 attracted approximately 15 million viewers and grossed approximately 20.18 billion yen. The release of a 4K digital remaster version in October 2025 also garnered attention.
