A Manga Exploring the Art of Noh 'The World Is Dancing' TV Anime Adaptation Announced for Summer 2026

A Manga Exploring the Art of Noh
“The World Is Dancing”
TV Anime Adaptation Announced for Summer 2026!

Teaser Visual, Announcement PV, and Lead Cast Revealed
Illustration by Original Author & Main Staff Also Unveiled

January 21st - TV anime adaptation of The World Is Dancing has been officially announced for Summer 2026! Along with the announcement, the Teaser Visual, Announcement PV, and main staff/cast have been revealed. The anime is scheduled to begin broadcasting and streaming in Summer 2026!

A TV anime adaptation has been announced for Kazuto Mihara's manga The World Is Dancing, a series exploring the art of Noh originally serialized in Kodansha's Morning. Animated by Cygames Pictures, the project is co-produced by Shochiku and CyberAgent.

The English version of the original manga is available online on KODANSHA (Chapter 1- Free Preview).

The Teaser Visual of Oniyasha by Keigo Sasaki features the elegant “The World Is Dancing" calligraphy by Satoru Nemoto, creating a stunning artistic fusion.

The Announcement PV showcases the breathtaking beauty and brutality of the era, highlighting Oniyasha's fateful first encounter with a revolutionary dance. It also reveals Yumiri Hanamori as the voice of Oniyasha.

Staff and Cast:
・Kazuto Mihara(Original Author)
Born in Fukui Prefecture. Made his manga serialization debut with Hajime Algorithm (10 volumes). He later serialized The World Is Dancing (6 volumes), depicting the life of Zeami, or Oniyasha. He is currently working on Sora Tobu Violin.
∟Illustration by Original Author Kazuto Mihara

・Toshimasa Kuroyanagi (Director)
Made his directorial debut with the TV anime series Shōnen Hollywood. He has also directed the TV anime The Great Passage, the animated film Love Me, Love Me Not, and both the TV and theatrical versions of the Backflip!! series.
∟Comment by Toshimasa Kuroyanagi
This is the story of a boy named Oniyasha, who continues to challenge himself creatively during an era when Noh—now considered a classical performing art— was still called Sarugaku and was the cutting‐edge entertainment of its time. He isn't blessed with exceptional talent, nor does he possess any achievements worthy of praise. Even so, he throws himself into Sarugaku day after day, driven by the hope that if he becomes someone, he might be able to change the world. Watching him, we felt it connected to the "beginner's spirit" that still lives somewhere inside all of us. That feeling inspired the entire crew to work hard to create an anime that everyone can enjoy.
Just as the "flower" that Oniyasha discovers has endured for 600 years, we want to craft this story with great care so that it, too, can be loved for generations to come.

・Yumiri Hanamori (VA for Oniyasha)
Affiliated with tomorrow jam. Major roles include Asako Yamagishi in The Summer Hikaru Died, Sagiri Yamada Asaemon in Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku, Akira Asai in Call of the Night, Nadeshiko Kagamihara in Laid-Back Camp, and Ryuji Ayukawa in Blue Period.
∟Comment by Yumiri Hanamori
I believe that in this world, there are as many things people consider "good" as there are people. No two people measure things by the same standard. And that's exactly why, if someone encounters something in this world that they feel is "good," it will surely become a flower that lights and colors the path they walk. I can't help but hope for that.
In a world where rise and fall come and go like waves on the shore, what shape did the flower he brought into bloom take, and what color did it shine with? Why does it continue to bloom even now, along the paths of so many people? I hope that, somewhere beyond this work, it reaches you too.

・Keigo Sasaki (Character Design)
Affiliated with Cygames Pictures. Major work includes character design for the TV anime The Millionaire Detective – Balance: UNLIMITED, character design and chief animation direction for the animated film Lonely Castle in the Mirror, and joint character design for Umamusume: Cinderella Gray, among others.
∟Comment by Keigo Sasaki
After reading the original work, I found myself thinking, "If I don't take part in this, I'll definitely regret it." That's how full of charm this story is.
As we work on the anime, questions keep coming to mind—"How much of that can we express in animation?" "What does 'expression' even mean in the first place?" While being swept up in the sheer passion Oniyasha pours into his art, I'm spending my days taking on this challenge together with the other creators. We're doing our very best to deliver something truly touching to you.

・Satoshi Nemoto (Calligraphy/Title Lettering)
Holds a doctorate in calligraphy studies. In 2024, he provided the title calligraphy and served as calligraphy advisor for the NHK historical drama Dear Radiance. He is a special lecturer in the Faculty of Letters at Rissho University. His creative work spans a wide range, including contributing artwork to the watch brand Grand Seiko (2018) and holding a solo exhibition in New York (2019).
∟Comment by Satoshi Nemoto
The great master of Noh, Zeami, left behind Fushikaden, the oldest Japanese treatise on Noh and acting, in which he described the movements of the body and the heart, likening one's outward bearing—fushi—to a flower. In his later years he also wrote Kakyo, and for him, this idea of "flower" held a special meaning.
When I was asked to create the katakana title lettering for The World Is Dancing and considered how best to express it, I felt that using flowers as the theme was the right approach. Katakana was originally born as a set of marks to help read classical Chinese texts in Japanese, and in that sense it moves freely between the world of written characters and the world beyond them. That is why, freeing the letters from their literal form, I shaped my brushstrokes to reflect Zeami's "flower" in this title design. If this anime can be graced with even the smallest blossom through my work, I would be truly grateful.

INTRODUCTION:
One does not need dance to live.

In 1374, during the turbulent age when the Northern and Southern Courts were locked in conflict, the Northern Court's shogun, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, was becoming an increasingly dominant force.

Born the son of Kan'ami, head of the Kanze troupe of sarugaku performers, Oniyasha drifts through his days with a hazy question lodged in his heart: Why do people dance? His spirit remains clouded, until the day he encounters a dance that is truly “good.”

Curious, sensitive, and strikingly beautiful, the boy meets people, laughs, cries, confronts his own weaknesses, and slowly begins to shape a new form of dance for a world steeped in impermanence.

Kazuto Mihara's groundbreaking Noh themed manga from Morning finally comes to life as an anime, filled with scenes that stir the heart and dynamic movement and chanting that can only be expressed through animation.

Directed by Toshimasa Kuroyanagi (The Great Passage, Backflip!!) and animated by Cygames Pictures (Uma Musume: Cinderella Gray, The Summer Hikaru Died), this series showcases top tier animation supported by a standout cast.

This is a story shaped by dance that may have unfolded when the boy who would one day create Noh—Zeami—was still known as Oniyasha, carried across 600 years to the present.

STORY:
In 1374, amid the turmoil of the Northern and Southern Courts' long running conflict, a boy named Oniyasha is born into a family of sarugaku theater performers. He spends his days in a kind of quiet gloom, haunted by a simple but persistent question: Why do people dance? Then, one day, he witnesses a dance that he feels to be “good”—and everything begins to change. This is the story of the beautiful young boy who would one day shape the art of Noh and be remembered as Zeami.

Production and Staff Information:
Based on the manga ““The World Is Dancing” by Kazuto Mihara originally serialized in the weekly MORNING magazine published by Kodansha Ltd.
Director: Toshimasa Kuroyanagi
Character Design: Keigo Sasaki
Lead Voice Actor: Yumiri Hanamori
Calligraphy/Title Lettering: Satoshi Nemoto
Animation Production: Cygames Pictures

Official Website and Social Media Account:
Website: https://sh-anime.Shochiku.co.jp/worldisdancing-anime
X (Twitter) account: @wid_anime