Spy x Family’s littlest star is a role so big it has four actresses.
So far, the producers of the upcoming live-action Spy x Family musical have been pretty generous in giving us a sneak peek at the upcoming adaptation of the hit anime/manga. Right off the bat they showed us in-costume photos of the actors and actresses who’ll portray Loid and Yor Forger, the husband and wife who keep their identities as master spy and deadly assassin secret from each other. Then last week we got our first preview of how several members of the supporting cast will look when they take the stage.
However, the reveal of Anya, Loid and Yor’s adopted daughter who can read minds and is the only one who ever really knows the whole story of what’s going on in Spy x Family, was something we’d been kept waiting on while the producers held exhaustive auditions as part of “Operation Search for Anya.” Now, though, the wait is finally over, with the role going to not just one but four child actresses.
Expanding on the idea of a “double cast,” where a pair of performers take turns playing the same character on different days, the part of Anya is a “quattro cast,” with the first of the Anya-playing quartet being Aoi Ikemura. At six years old Ikemura is the same age Anya claims to be in the anime, and though this will be her first time acting in a stage play she’s previously appeared in the TV drama Okaeri Mone and in commercials and advertisements.
Next is five-year-old Miharu Izawa, though she’ll also match Anya’s age of 6 by the time the Spy x Family musical opens. Even at her young age, Izawa’s stage credits already include performances in the Kuma no Gakkou Mini Concert in 2021 and Pari no Neko-tachi musical in 2022.
7-year-old Miharu Fukuchi had never even seen a musical until she watched a musical version of Romeo and Juliet in 2021. Inspired to instill the same sort of emotions she felt in others, she applied to Operation Search for Anya, and despite it being her first time to formally audition for a play, she was selected as part of the quattro cast.
And last, 9-year-old Risa Masuda has been acting since she was 5, becoming a regular member of educational television program Miitsuketa! in 2019 and appearing in its stage show. Spy x Family, though, will be her first time performing in a musical.
▼ Video of Operation Search for Anya
Musical Spy x Family opens in Tokyo on March 8, with performances in Hyogo Prefeture’s Nishinomiya and Fukuoka City starting in April and May, respectively.
Related: Musical Spy x Family official website
Source: Musical Spy x Family official website
Top image: Musical Spy x Family official website
Insert images: Musical Spy x Family official website
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