THEATRE, DANCE AND MUSIC
Theatre and music marketing for Japanese shows in the UK
Producers, promoters and venues bring us in when a Japanese show needs an audience in the UK. We write the guides and interviews that explain the show to new fans. Then we give our community of Japanese culture lovers a reason to book now, usually a reader code or a ticket giveaway. Since 2024 our campaigns have run from The Coronet Theatre in Notting Hill to OVO Arena Wembley.
Japanese plays and musicals on London stages
NODA MAP: −320°F at Sadler's Wells, July 2026
Hideki Noda gave us 45 minutes on a video call two days before opening night, and the interview went live the next day. A giveaway asked entrants to follow NODA MAP's London account as well as ours. Three newsletters and a review from our team covered the rest of the run.
My Neighbour Totoro at the Gillian Lynne Theatre, 2026
Victoria Chen and Helen Chong, who play Mei and Satsuki, gave us an interview that also ran as a two page spread in ZonePress. Two ticket giveaways and backstage photographs of the company followed through the autumn.
Death Note: The Musical at the Barbican Theatre, 2026
For Trafalgar Entertainment's world premiere we interviewed costume designer Sachiko Nakahara and promoted the NAKAMA code for Monday to Thursday performances. Six newsletters followed the show from casting news in June to its final week.
SIX the Musical, Japanese company, at the Vaudeville Theatre, 2025
This was the first West End week of SIX performed in Japanese. Producer Kenny Wax told us how the Japanese company came to London, and a reader code worked across all price bands.
Our Cosmic Dust at Park Theatre, 2025
We filmed a matinee from our seats and cut three short videos for the production's own channels. Four articles went live in under a fortnight while the play was running.
Six Japanese productions at The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill
The Coronet Theatre, 2024 to 2026
The Coronet is the venue we have worked with most often. It started with Chiten Theatre Company's GOOD-BYE in 2024 and has since covered butoh (the Japanese avant garde dance form), contemporary dance and SPAC's Medea. Our second GOOD-BYE reel was played 40,069 times, and The Coronet came to us directly for Waltz, Medea and The Gambler.
Anime and game music concerts, from Dingwalls to Wembley
The Music of Square Enix at OVO Arena Wembley, June 2026
TEG Live Europe asked for its reader offer to lead every send, so all five newsletters and every banner pointed to one ticket link. A VIP meet and greet with composer Yoko Shimomura and conductor Arnie Roth gave fans a reason to enter and share.
The Sound of Epic Anime in London and Birmingham, 2026
Conductor Michael England talked to us about leading the London Concert Orchestra through the anime scores on the programme. The NARUTO code gave our readers a discount at the Royal Festival Hall and Symphony Hall.
LiSA at the Troxy, September 2026
Veryshow Productions came to us on the day London tickets went on sale. We ran a first wave around the tour announcement in February and a second in the weeks before the show, with a full page in ZonePress in between.
Yasuharu Takanashi at Dingwalls, October 2026
This was the Naruto Shippuden composer's first UK show. In his written interview he confirmed that he wrote Sadness and Sorrow, a Naruto theme often credited to other composers.
Japanese jazz in Camden and Tokyo
The Jazz Cafe, Camden, 2023 to 2024
Our giveaway for the Nujabes Experience in February 2023 started a run of Japanese headliners we promoted for The Jazz Cafe. Nao Yoshioka, Kyoto Jazz Massive and Takuya Kuroda followed through to October 2024.
Tokyo Jazz Joints, Philip Arneill's photobook, 2022 to 2023
Photographer Philip Arneill spent years documenting Japan's small jazz bars for his book Tokyo Jazz Joints. We wrote a feature on the project during his Kickstarter campaign and later gave away a copy of the finished book.
“…I believe that the coverage on Japan Nakama was certainly effective. Thank you.”
Yuki Katsu, NODA・MAP
How far ahead to book and what access we need
How far ahead should we start?
Our campaigns have started anywhere from two weeks to eight months before the show. NODA MAP booked us on 18 June for a 2 July opening. LiSA's promoter came to us in January for a September date, which gave us room for two waves.
Can you interview Japanese artists and creative teams?
Yes. Hideki Noda spoke to us on a video call, and Yasuharu Takanashi and director Motoi Miura answered in writing through their teams. When a production wants to approve copy first, as RG Live and the Totoro producers in London and Tokyo did, we build that into the timeline.
Do you work on shows outside London?
Yes. Our Sound of Epic Anime campaign covered Symphony Hall in Birmingham as well as the Royal Festival Hall.
Can our audience get a discount?
Reader codes have run for Death Note: The Musical, The Sound of Epic Anime, SIX and The Coronet Theatre. A dedicated code gives you a direct way to see the bookings that came through Japan Nakama.