"Doing Everything I Can" — Akihisa Shiono's Approach to Rakugoka Kaisei Arakawa in His Voice Acting Debut ["Akane-banashi" Interview]

Akihisa Shiono, an actor belonging to LDH JAPAN who has been active in numerous live-action dramas and films, is venturing into the world of anime for the first time in the TV anime "Akane-banashi," which has been airing since April. Shiono plays Kaisei Arakawa, an up-and-coming rakugoka (rakugo storyteller) who is a disciple of Isshō Arakawa—widely acclaimed as the greatest rakugoka of the current generation—and who achieved the rank of futatsume (the second-highest rank) at a young age.

In addition to voice recording, Shiono also took on the challenge of performing rakugo within the show for the first time. We interviewed him to find out how he navigated this process.

——Kaisei is a character with exceptional rakugo skills, being a highly anticipated young futatsume. In addition to your first time acting in a voice recording session, you were also required to have rakugo techniques...

Shiono: At first, I just had no idea what to do.

Everyone: (lol)

——How did you actually approach playing Kaisei?

Shiono: Compared to the other cast members, I feel that my ability to bring a character to life using only my voice is still weak. It is something I absolutely have to be mindful of, but if I exaggerate too much, the expression becomes unnatural. So, I am taking on this challenge while studying and learning from watching and listening to everyone else's voice recording and acting.

Rather than being selected in the audition for my range of expression as an actor, I think I was chosen for a certain unique quality that I inherently possess. Therefore, instead of trying to dabble in a wide variety of things, I ultimately decided to give it my all and focus sharply on one thing at a time.

——Anna Nagase, who plays Akane Ōsaki, mentioned that you were so calm it was hard to believe it was your first voice recording session. She said that because of your unique acting sense and approach as a live-action actor, Kaisei's unworldly aura really came through.

Shiono: Thank you very much.

——What about the rakugo scenes? It is striking that everyone, including Ms. Nagase and Jun Fukuyama, who plays Shinta Arakawa, takes a different approach.

Shiono: Ultimately, it comes down to just doing everything within my power. I felt that if I carried too many burdens—such as trying to do rakugo while remaining perfectly conscious of the character—everything would fall apart. So, my mindset was to focus on playing Kaisei when he is having a conversation, and to cherish the act of doing rakugo myself when he is performing rakugo.

that being said, as a viewer and an anime fan myself, I do think it is easier to watch when the character is firmly established within the anime.

Next Page