The Town of Puper to Perform in Concert Halls with New Arrangement

The picture book 'The Town of Puper,' authored by Hiroshi Nishino of the comedy duo King Kong, celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. This year, the second movie 'The Town of Puper: The Clock Tower of Promise' was released, and last week, a fully AI-generated teaser video was showcased at the international short film festival 'Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2026 (SSFF & ASIA 2026).'

Starting with online free streaming, 'Puper' has enhanced access to the work through various genres and means such as theater, ballet, musicals, and movies. This summer, it has been decided to move the stage to concert halls and perform in a format that showcases the original charm of the picture book's reading.

First, on June 21 (Sun), at Akita Art Theater Milhas Middle Hall. It will be performed as one of the programs of the 'Akita-Katakami International Music Festival,' which started five years ago centered around Akita City and neighboring Katakami City. The reading will be done by voice actress Yuuka Maruyama, and the violin performance will be by Ai Okumura, a talented performer. Okumura has served as the concert mistress in the long-running musical performances last year. The music, centered around the theme song 'The Town of Puper' composed by Nishino himself, will be arranged by pianist Kei Takeuchi, incorporating her original compositions along with classical music from Beethoven onwards.

This concert, titled 'An Afternoon of Classical Music for Families,' is scheduled to feature the performance of 'Puper' in the first half and a performance by Keidai Chida, an international pianist serving as the artistic director of the music festival, in the second half.

On August 16 (Sun), the end of Obon, it has been decided to perform at 'Bosch Hall,' which opened last year near Center North Station of Yokohama Municipal Subway. This performance will change its appearance, with world music based on Irish and Norwegian music coloring the story. As with the Akita performance, Maruyama will be in charge of the reading.

The music for this performance will be created by three experts: Emi Sakai (fiddle, Hardingfele, etc.), Shoko Takanashi (piano, whistle, concertina, etc.), and Taisuke Kumagai (percussion). In the teaser video that has been released, you can listen to the phrase of 'The Town of Puper' played by Sakai on the Hardingfele, a traditional Norwegian string instrument. The liveliness of Halloween, the setting of the story, and the rhythm of Irish/Norwegian folk dances seem to go well together.

The planner says, 'In Japan, there are halls where you can enjoy events like concerts in every city, and there are unique communities centered around them. The customers who visit also differ in generation and purpose depending on the location, and they are places that show different expressions for each city. This reading concert will be performed this time with different perspectives such as classical music and world music. If the regions where we will perform increase in the future, it may grow into a reading concert unique to that city. We hope that various customers with different stances, such as families with young children, teenage friends, and deep fans of the original work, will experience the same experience of 'reading a picture book,' creating new communication opportunities.'

Please enjoy the original artistic experience of 'reading a picture book' at a concert hall.

【Performance Information】

Akita Performance The 5th Akita-Katakami International Music Festival 'An Afternoon of Classical Music for Families' June 21, 2026 (Sun) 13:30 start / Akita Art Theater Milhas Middle Hall Performers: Yuuka Maruyama (reading), Ai Okumura (violin), Kei Takeuchi (piano, composition, arrangement), Keidai Chida (piano) All seats free General 3,500 yen Children 500 yen (4 years old and above, not yet a junior high school student) Inquiries: Art Office Saito 018-874-9215 (excluding water days, holidays)

Yokohama Performance Picture Book Reading Concert 'The Town of Puper' August 16, 2026 (Sun) 14:00 start / Bosch Hall Performers: Yuuka Maruyama (reading), Emi Sakai (fiddle, Hardingfele, etc.), Shoko Takanashi (piano, whistle, concertina, etc.), Taisuke Kumagai (percussion) All seats free General 3,000 yen High school students and below 1,000 yen (admission prohibited for those under 4 years old) Booking: teket https://teket.jp/18325/70020 Inquiries: Bosch Hall 045-530-5084, Rondino 090-2302-5520