The 4th Annual Japan Parade & Street Fair in New York City is set to feature a colossal musical guest: the cast of Attack on Titan: The Musical.
The festivities will kick off on Friday, May 9th with the brand-new Japan Night Reception & Concert at the Edison Ballroom (240 W 47th St, New York, NY 10036). The concert will begin at 7:00 PM with the cast of Attack on Titan: The Musical as the opening act, followed by MIYABI Koto Shamisen Ensemble then with a closing performance from singer-songwriter Sayaka Yamamoto.
The cast of Attack on Titan: The Musical will also make an appearance in the Parade the following day, Saturday May 10th. A recent press release shared that “The appearance at the Parade will feature Takuro Ohno (Erwin Smith), Ryo Matsuda (Levi), Riona Tatemichi (Hange Zoë), and Blade Attackers: Hiroaki Shimoo, Ryuma Hashido, Yukiko Matsumoto, and Takahiko Kato.”
The event is described as follows:
Japan Parade & Street Fair is one of the largest Japanese American parades in the United States, organized by the non-profit Japan Day Inc. (Honorary Chairman: Mikio Mori, Ambassador and Consul General of Japan in New York; President and Chairman: Shinichi Okamoto, Managing Executive Officer and Deputy Head of Global Business at Nippon Life Insurance). For two consecutive years, in 2023 and 2024, the event has attracted approximately 50,000 New Yorkers and is becoming a staple of early summer in Manhattan. Last year’s 3rd Japan Parade & Street Fair was a great success as approximately 100 units and 2,500 people marched in a spectacular procession through Central Park West and was covered by over 150 media outlets in both the U.S. and Japan. The 2024 parade celebrated the “U.S.-Japan Tourism Year,” and the Japan National Tourism Organization’s float attracted much attention. Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, which was ranked third on the The New York Times’s list of “52 Places to Go in 2024,” was the first Japanese local government to participate. The Grand Marshal was the legendary wheelchair tennis player Shingo Kunieda, a Paralympic Gold Medalist and People’s Honor Award recipient, and special guests from Japan was the cast of the stage production of Demon Slayer. On the same day, Japan Street Fair was also held on 72nd Street, adjacent to the parade route. Twenty-four food tents were set up to promote Japanese foods, one of Japan’s major attractions, and they drew many visitors. In addition, booths promoting tourism in Japan, a photo booth with the popular mascot Hello Kitty, and activity tents for origami, calligraphy, yo-yo fishing, and other activities provided New Yorkers with opportunities to enjoy and learn about Japanese culture. As for charity activities, we raised $7,000 to Noto Peninsula Earthquake relief.
Tickets for Japan Night Reception & Concert (May 9th) are $75 plus fees and can be purchased here. The Parade & Street Fair (May 10th) is free to attend, but donations are encouraged and can be given online via PayPal, in the mail with a check, or with cash at the Street Fair’s charity tent. The Parade will begin at 81st Street 1:00 PM and end at 67th Street while the Street Fair will take place on West 72nd Street (between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue) from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM. For more information, please visit https://www.japanparadenyc.org/.
