Hankyu Hanshin Brings Iconic All-Female Theatre Performance with Over 110 Years of History to Bangkok, inviting Thai audiences to discover the appeal of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe
BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 21 October 2026 – Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Group, a diverse business group that connects people with the culture, communities, and everyday appeal of the Kansai region, brought the glamour and imagination of Japan's Takarazuka Revue to the heart of Bangkok at the Visit Japan FIT Fair #18 held from 16 - 18 October 2026 at Siam Paragon. The centerpiece of the event was a special stage performance on Sunday, 18 October, featuring the Takarazuka Revue's Star Troupe Top Pair , Chisei Akatsuki and Chizuru Uta.
Takarazuka Revue is a spectacular all-female musical theatre company that originated in Japan and has a history spanning more than 110 years. Its performers are exclusively women, with otokoyaku taking on male roles and musumeyaku portraying female roles. Renowned for its dazzling stage productions, sweeping storytelling, and captivating blend of song, dance and drama, Takarazuka Revue has enthralled audiences across generations.
On the main stage of Visit Japan FIT Fair #18, the Star Troupe Top Pair took part in a talk session about their connection with Thailand, Takarazuka Revue, and one of Takarazuka Revue's popular productions, TAKARAZUKA MUSICAL ROMANCE "Boys Over Flowers II" – Shooting STAR –, which was also screened via live viewing in cinemas in Thailand in June 2026.
The production is based on the renowned Japanese manga Boys Over Flowers, written by Yoko Kamio, which has been adapted for audiences around the world. In Thailand, the story was also adapted into the popular 2021 television series F4 Thailand: หัวใจรักสี่ดวงดาว Boys Over Flowers.
The Star Troupe Top Pair then performed two songs: the fan-favourite "Futatsu no Suisei – Two Meteors –" from Boys Over Flowers II, and "Kono Ai yo Eien ni – TAKARAZUKA FOREVER –," a song that has long been cherished by Takarazuka Revue audiences. The performances offered Thai audiences a rare opportunity to experience up close the artistry, elegance and storytelling that have made Takarazuka Revue beloved across generations for more than 110 years.
By presenting a familiar story through Takarazuka's distinctive theatrical tradition, the session created an engaging cultural bridge between Japan and Thailand while offering audiences a memorable glimpse into the world of Japanese musical theatre.
Norio Sasagawa, General Manager of the Tourism and Inbound Promotion Division at Hankyu Hanshin Holdings, Inc., commented:
"We are delighted to have had the opportunity to introduce Thai audiences to the glamorous world of Takarazuka Revue through the Star Troupe Top Pair's [CN2] live stage appearance in Thailand. By bringing Takarazuka Revue – one of Japan's proud cultural traditions – and its unique all-female performing arts closer to Thai audiences, we hope to inspire greater interest not only in Takarazuka Revue itself, but also encourage people to visit Japan, discover its history spanning more than 100 years, and experience the diverse culture and attractions found throughout the region."
Beyond the stage, Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Group showcased the diverse appeal of the Kansai region to Thai travellers at its event booth. Hankyu Railway, Takarazuka Revue and Hankyu Hanshin Department Stores came together to introduce trip ideas and tourism highlights across Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe. From convenient travel on the Hankyu Railway network to cultural and entertainment experiences such as Takarazuka Revue and shopping at Hankyu Department Store Umeda Main Store, the booth highlighted the many ways visitors can experience the best of Kansai.
Beginning with its participation in the stage event in Thailand, a series of initiatives will be rolled out from October 2026 to bring Takarazuka Revue closer to Thai audiences. These include the launch of Takarazuka Revue-related content on TrueID, as well as a live viewing of the Snow Troupe's Tokyo Takarazuka Theater production of The Poe Clan at SF Cinema in Bangkok on 25 October.
Official information about Takarazuka Revue is available on the official Thailand website:
https://www.tca-pictures.net/thailand_lp/
Thai audiences can continue exploring Takarazuka Revue through its official social media channels:
Hashtag: #TakarazukaRevue
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About Takarazuka Revue
Founded in 1914, Takarazuka Revue is a renowned Japanese theatre company featuring an all-female cast and celebrated for its spectacular musical productions. Today, it comprises five troupes – Flower, Moon, Snow, Star and Cosmos – as well as Senka, a group of specialist performers. Each troupe's productions are led by its Top Pair, [CN1] who perform alongside the troupe's other leading stars to bring a distinctive character and appeal to each production.
Takarazuka Revue presents more than 1,000 performances each year, primarily at the Takarazuka Grand Theater in Hyogo Prefecture and the Tokyo Takarazuka Theater in Tokyo.
About Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Group
Hankyu Hanshin Holdings, Inc. is the holding company of the Hankyu Hanshin Group, which operates a diverse range of businesses primarily in the Kansai region, including urban transportation, real estate, entertainment, information and communication technology, travel, and international transportation.
Through the Group's wide-ranging businesses and services – including Hankyu Railway, Hanshin Electric Railway, Takarazuka Revue, and the Hanshin Tigers professional baseball team – the Group connects people with the culture, communities, and everyday appeal of the Kansai region.
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Takarazuka Revue Delivers a Special Performance at the "Visit Japan FIT Fair #18" Stage Event Held at Siam Paragon
LOS ANGELES, USA – Newsaktuell – 21 October 2026 - A newly released study of US state government performance found strong partisan and regional patterns within three pillars of governance: democratic accountability, state capacity and public goods provision. Yet, the US states' outcomes differ in important ways from international comparisons, as the three governance dimensions show limited correlation, the researchers found.
Panel discussion at Columbia University in New York: Speaking about the study "The Governance Performance of the Fifty States: The U.S. Berggruen Governance Index" were (from left): Prof. Helmut K. Anheier (UCLA), Prof. Robert Y. Shapiro, Prof. Adam Tooze (both Columbia), and Joseph C. Saraceno (UCLA). (Picture: Jason DeCrow/AP Content Services for DNA)
The report, "The Governance Performance of the Fifty States: The U.S. Berggruen Governance Index", applies the research team's "governance triangle" from past global country rankings to the 50 US states. The report has now been presented to the public at Columbia University in New York.
"Unlike in the Berggruen Governance Index's cross-national comparisons, where the three dimensions are broadly correlated, in the 50 U.S. states they often run counter to each other," the authors conclude. "This may seem counterintuitive, as one might expect a well-governed state to finish high on all three and a poorly governed one to place low across all three."
The report concluded that state capacity and public goods provision are "essentially uncorrelated." Massachusetts, which has among the highest per capita incomes, was third in public goods but 49th in state capacity. Mining and agriculture-dependent Wyoming was 36th in public goods provision but No. 1 in state capacity.
- Public goods provision, which combines quality-of-life metrics such as health and educational outcomes with infrastructure and quasi-public goods that are often delivered by the private sector, saw four of the top five from the Northeast, while the bottom seven were in the South. All but one of the top 16 states were won by Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in the 2024 US presidential election. Nineteen of the bottom 20 went to Donald Trump.
- Democratic accountability measures election procedures, which vary widely among states, along with scores for civil society activity and government openness. These include among others lobbying disclosures and state auditor independence. The top 12 states were a geographical mix of the West, Northeast and Midwest. Nine of that dozen voted for Harris, though the state with the highest score was reliably Republican Montana. The 10 lowest-ranked states were all Southern, and the bottom 20 were all won by Trump in 2024.
- State capacity foremost indicates debt levels, along with budget processes and effective welfare-state delivery such as unemployment insurance. The top-ranked states were geographically diversified, but no Northeastern state was among the top 12. All major regions were represented in the bottom 10, including notoriously debt-laden Rhode Island, Illinois, Connecticut and New Jersey.
The three components produce four state groupings identified by the authors:
- 14 fiscally sound and delivering states, which are half Republican and half Democratic and swing states, based on the 2024 presidential race.
- 16 strained but delivering states, which are mostly Democratic.
- Nine fiscally strong but poorly served states, almost entirely Republican.
- 11 low performing states, including only one Democratic state.
The report was written by principal investigator Helmut K. Anheier with co-authors Joseph C. Saraceno and Edward L. Knudsen, all of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, and produced as a collaboration of the Luskin School with the Berlin-based Hertie School, supported by the Berggruen Institute, a Los Angeles think tank.
During a panel discussion held with the release of the report at Columbia University, economic historian Adam Tooze focused on the states with poor scores for provision of public goods. He pointed out that for many public goods that in Europe are assumed to be state-led, such as health care, education and utilities, in the US the private sector has a greater role.
"If you look at all of the states which are underperforming, it's the South, and the variable that's operating here is race," said Tooze, a Columbia professor. "The reason why these states don't have large-scale public services is that white people who are richer don't want to pay taxes to redistribute income to black people. And it's not a secret; it's the logic of American politics."
Among the 11 low performing states, the very worst performers are in the South: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Kentucky.
Joseph C. Saraceno said that the 14 states classified in the report as fiscally sound and delivering "provide a moderate level of public goods while also having state capacity, or this measure of fiscal room that they find to be comfortable, or have a rainy day fund as needed."
The group of fiscally strong, poorly served states have strong balance sheets but little to show for it in quality of life. Arkansas, for example, ranks seventh in state capacity but 46th in public goods provision. Tooze said those states have better fiscal resilience and "rank high on their capacity score because basically they've never done anything. So unsurprisingly, when push comes to shove, they could do something if one supposed they had politics that would allow them to."
Edward Knudsen, another researcher who worked on the previous global versions of the Berggruen Governance Index, pointed out that the strained but delivering states are heavily traditionally Democratic Party states that also score higher for democratic accountability. "In a lot of the Democratic leaning states, you have more ability for the population to demand public goods. They in turn are able to receive them. That places this fiscal stress," Knudsen said.
The full report "The Governance Performance of the Fifty States: The U.S. Berggruen Governance Index" can be downloaded here: https://ucla.app.box.com/s/hcruhr43fyhfw0uondid2e6fviqopmww
Frank Fuhrig, DNA
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