Fujiwara, Oguri to share stage in "Musashi"

[Tokyograph News]

Director Yukio Ninagawa has lined up two popular young actors for an upcoming theatrical production. Tatsuya Fujiwara and Shun Oguri will co-star in his version of "Musashi," written by noted playwright Hisashi Inoue.

The story, which revolves around the famous swordsman Miyamoto Musashi, was penned by Inoue more than 20 years ago. He had hoped to turn it into a Broadway musical, but the dream was never realized. Three years ago, he worked with Ninagawa for the first time on a different play, and they eventually decided to team up again to take "Musashi" to the stage.

Fujiwara will take on the role of Musashi, while Oguri plays his rival Sasaki Kojiro. The two swordsmen had a famous duel in 1612, during which Sasaki was defeated and killed.

Anne Suzuki and Kayoko Shiraishi have also been cast. Performances have been scheduled for March-April 2009 in at least Saitama, Tokyo, and Osaka. Ninagawa and Inoue are also aiming to have the play performed overseas in the future.

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