The Akane-Banashi TV anime is set to have its world premiere in New York on April 1. This will be followed by a screening in Boston on April 4.
The New York screening will take place at Japan Society at 8PM ET. Aside from the first episode of Akane-Banashi, attendees will be able to watch behind-the-scenes content. An event-exclusive hand towel (tenugui) will be handed out too.
©Yuki Suenaga, Takamasa Moue / SHUEISHA, Akane-banashi Committee
Meanwhile, the Boston screening (which has the event name Akane-banashi Special Screening presented by TV Asahi) is part of Anime Boston and will take begin at 7 PM ET. Attendees will get an original button badge.
Both Akane-Banashi screenings will feature a performance and talk by Canadian Rakugo performer Katsura Sunshine.
Tickets for the April 1 event will go on sale on the Japan Society website on March 2.
Akane-Banashi adapts the Shueisha-published rakugo-themed manga written by Yuki Suenaga and drawn by Takamasa Moue. Manga Plus describes it as such:
Rakugo–the ultimate form of storytelling, where everything in a story is expressed with just your body and words. Shinta and his daughter Akane have been seduced by this wonderful form of classical entertainment. Having observed her father strive to pass the shin’uchi rakugo test, Akane will take her own steps into this unique world!
The manga began serialization on Weekly Shonen Jump in 2022 and has 20 volumes as of January 2026. It was a finalist of the 47th Kodansha Manga Award’s Shonen category and placed second at Manga Taisho 2023.
The anime’s broadcast start will also happen in April.
Staff
• Director: Ayumu Watanabe (Summer Time Rendering, Children of the Sea, the upcoming Witch Hat Atelier)
• Assistant director: Yu Harima (Summer Time Rendering Episode 7 and 20 director)
• Character designer and chief animation director: Kii Tanaka (Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead)
• Series composer: Michihiro Tsuchiya (Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans Urdr-Hunt compilation, Aikatsu! x PriPara scenario writer)
• Sub-character designer: Yasunari Nitta (Shadowverse Flame)
• Costume designer: Noriko Shimazawa
• Music composer: Akio Izutsu (Akuma Kun)
• Rakugo supervisor: Kikuhiko Hayashiya (manga)
• Animation production: ZEXCS
Cast
• Anna Nagase as Akane Osaki
• Takuya Eguchi as Karashi Nerimaya
• Rie Takahashi as Hikaru Koragi
• Tohru Osaki as Shinta Arakawa
• Nobunaga Shimazaki as Maikeru Arakawa
• Chiaki Kobayashi as Koguma Arakawa
• Yohei Azakami as Kyoji Arakawa
• Seiichiro Yamashita as Guriko Arakawa
Source: Press release
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