Founded in 1953 by Keita Asari, the Shiki Theater Company is one of the largest theater companies in the world, with approximately 1,700 actors and staff members. Since the 1970s, the company has actively presented Broadway and Disney musicals and other shows. When the company was first established, it was a student theater group formed by 10 members led by Asari, specializing in straight plays, but it gradually expanded its activities. CATS," which premiered in 1983, ran for 13 months. In 1998, "The Lion King" began its indefinite long run of more than 20 years, surpassing "CATS" in the number of performances and reaching a record of more than 14,300 in 2024, its 26th anniversary, the most in Japanese history. Other productions include "Aida," "Mamma Mia! Wicked," and "The Phantom of the Opera," as well as creating and performing original works such as "The Cat Who Taught Seagulls to Fly" and "The Little Monster" since the latter half of the 2010s.
