No Longer Human (musical)

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No Longer Human is a 2021 musical theatre adaptation of Japanese novelist Osamu Dazai's 1948 best-selling novel No Longer Human, by Grammy-nominated American Broadway composer Frank Wildhorn. [1] Produced by Shanghai-based production company Ranspace, [2] the show features orchestrations by Kim Scharnberg, English lyrics by Tracy Miller and Carly Robyn Green, Chinese lyrics by Ya Wen and Mingzhu Zheng, direction by Ney Hasegawa, [3] music conduction by Yuzhuo Sun, music programming by Siyang Chen, Shaochen Cai and Kailin Huang. [4] It marks Wildhorn's first original Chinese musical. [2]

The show made a world premiere at the Shanghai Grand Theatre in December 2021, [5] followed by a multi-city tour throughout China. [3] The first round of performances had 12 shows, with a total box office of nearly 9 million yuan (close to $1 million) and 15,000 audiences. [6] It was initialy set to tour China again in 2024, [2] but soon announced the second round in 2022, [4] and the third round in 2023 while releasing the original cast recording. [7] It was crowned by critics as the top 1 musical theatre performance of 2021 in China. [6]

The original musical cast stars Chinese pop singer Pax Congo and theatre actor/singer Liam Liu. [1] It is also known as The Human Disqualification in translation. [8]

Theater Magazine and Original Cast Recording Vinyl Theater Magazine-Original Cast Recording Vinyl.jpg
Theater Magazine and Original Cast Recording Vinyl

Awards

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
2023Performing Arts World Musical AwardsAnnual Outstanding MusicalsN/AWon [9]
YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
2023Beijing Tianqiao Annual Musical CeremonyOutstanding Female Musical PerformerChen, TianWon [10]
Outstanding Male Musical PerformerLui, LingfeiWon
Outstanding Musical ProducerLiang, YibingWon
Outstanding DirectorXu, Chongye & Hasegawa, YasushiWon
Outstanding Book WriterWen, Ya & Zhang, MingzhuWon
Outstanding ChoreographyHasegawa, YasushiWon

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References

  1. 1 2 "Chinese musical 'No Longer Human' to hit SZ Poly". Shenzhen Daily. June 22, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 Zhang Kun (August 11, 2023). "US Composer Sings Praises of Chinese Musical". China Daily. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Rabinowitz, Chloe (December 9, 2021). "Wildhorn, Miller & Green's NO LONGER HUMAN to Make World Premiere in Shanghai". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Tickets for the must-see musical No Longer Human are now on sale | Bai Jugang overcomes all difficulties, Liu Lingfei breaks through himself". Sohu (in Chinese). July 30, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  5. Ma Yue (August 7, 2023). "Broadway composer Frank Wildhorn stages the original Chinese musical 'No Longer Human'". Shine. Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "The original Chinese musical "No Longer Human" starring Bai Jugang and Liu Lingfei, meet in 2023 to witness the fireworks blooming together!". Sohu (in Chinese). January 23, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  7. "The third round of ticket sales|The musical "No Longer Human" will officially start selling tickets for all shows at 15:00 today, and the OST collection will be released online for the first time". Sohu (in Chinese). June 6, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  8. "The 2023 Beijing·Tianqiao Musical Annual Ceremony was held and the results of the major recommendations were announced". Beijing People's Daily Online. November 19, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  9. "2023 Performing Arts World Musical Awards Results Announced". Sohu (in Chinese). February 26, 2024. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  10. Staff (November 19, 2023). "The 2023 Beijing·Tianqiao Musical Annual Ceremony was held and the results of the major recommendations were announced". Beijing People's Daily Online. Retrieved December 6, 2023.